advice on flux core wire feed welder

[turbodog]

Have a bit of welding to do. Am experienced with ac/dc stick welding to a passable degree.

Want to get a wire feed welder, but don't want to fool with shielding gas... and I just learned you can get flux core wire.

Does this stuff require special storage like regular rods? Does it 'go bad'? Other comments?

 

[raggie33]

man i want to learn to weld

 

[adnj]

Not much special storage beyond keep it clean, dry and out of temperature extremes. The most popular rods like 6011 & 6013 don't require anything more elaborate either.

If you are welding outside, stick and flux-core may work better for you where the shielding gas of MIG may be blown away by the wind. But it's hard to beat MIG for ease of use, IMHO.

There are some pretty good FCAW (flux-core arc weld) machines avaible for very reasonable prices but better machines are usually priced higher. Take a look at the inverter welders if you want to save some weight when carrying it around.

Good luck!


Sent from my LG-V520 using Tapatalk

 

[turbodog]

So if it's stored in a building, not climate controlled, that should be ok? I know I store the stick rods in a tube.

 

[K2-bk-bl-rd]

It's not the greatest stuff to weld with. I spent 25+ hours welding a riverfront deck railing with it, and it wasn't my favorite welding I've done! If you have done to stick welding, then it shouldn't be a problem. It doesn't seem as picky about storage as stick rods.

 

[turbodog]

Well, instead of messing with something I have no experience with and worrying about wire feed issues I bought a $140 inverter dc stick welder from Amazon. Should suffice for the occasional odd job (and to fix my harrow I broke a week ago).

Ran some test beads down the side of a #7 rebar. Looks good.

 

[turbodog]

For those still reading....

Welded up a drag harrow that was ripped in half by hitting a stump. The cheap $140 welder did a super job. It did a better job than the multi-thousand-dollar miller welder/genset I used to use. The hot start feature is nice!