Type of welder for Steel stands ?

[texasreefguy]

Im wondering what type of welder mig,arch etc to use for welding steel stands together ?

 

[Tickle]

Arc would work just fine. So would a mig. You'll get more of a show bead off a mig. If you're going to skin in then a decent arc welder will do.

 

[Kdawg_69]

me personally I would do a mig especially if your trying to do this urself with with no previous experience with welding cause its more forgiving n its also easier to learn


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[texasreefguy]

would a 90 amp be good says for mild or low alloy steel. I was thinking of a arc welder but has function of a mig with wire fed.I have experience with arc welders but has been awhile.

 

[Kdawg_69]

i would say do a arc welder then if you've used one before but i would just personally do a couple of practice runs with it to get used to welding with one again but i think a 90 amp would be good but how big is the tank your going to be building the stand for by the way where in texas are you i'm in el paso

 

[leveldrummer]

MIG is absolutely the easiest to weld steel with, point a shoot. no sticking rods, just make a nice circular pattern and let the welder fill in. The only difficult thing about mig welding is getting the voltage and wire feed speed correct. and thats really not difficult at all.

 

[texasreefguy]

the welder im looking at is an arc but is flux wire fed not a stick arc welder. I need to weld several stands for a few tanks.Im in dfw texas kdawg69

 

[Kdawg_69]

ive never used one of those welders i've done both stick arc and mig me personally i like mig cause i get to shakey with a stick not that i cant do it but i just dont get a clean weld with a stick

 

[DLdraconias]

how much weight could one hold? a couple 40s on a rack? a 125? ive seen mig welders at harbor freight for $100:deadhorse1:

 

[texasreefguy]

The mig welder at harbor freight for $100 is one im looking at using. Its under mig but its an arc that works as a mig but without the gas.

 

[Da Maui life]

how much weight could one hold? a couple 40s on a rack? a 125? ive seen mig welders at harbor freight for $100:deadhorse1:

You can rent one for the day at most tool rental shops.. Btw more often then not you get what you pay for! HF 100 welder is cheap junk.

 

[Kdawg_69]

in this instance I agree with Maui I would stay away from a mig welder from HF especially since your talking about 1200 lbs plus depending on tank size on that stand ur building if I were u I would go to a few auto shops n talk to them to see if u could build ur stand at one of their shops if u supply the materials hell go to gas monkey I bet u work out a deal with Richard n create a setup for him that u could maintain for him in trade for him letting u use his equipment lol


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[Rbs07fxstc]

Anything wirefed will be easiest to use. Wire with flux core will be cheaper to setup cause the gas bottle & gauges will be expensive. The flux core just needs the slag knocked off after welding. Flux is nice to use while welding cause you can have the fan blowing on you & not worry about gas getting blown away.

 

[cubiclewarrior]

I would rent a quality welder for a weekend "hobart / miller and a chop saw before I would give HF 100 for their welder . If you have never welded before a HF unit is not usually something you want to learn on.

The issue I see with HF welders is inconsistent sometimes porous welds and if you are putting 1000lbs on something you will want quality welds...


You could just goto a muffler shop with the pieces I doubt they would charge much

 

[Mattewell]

I have the 90 amp flux core welder from harbor freight. I was a bit skeptical if it would do a good job, but I have been pretty satisfied with it. I just use it for odd jobs and weekend projects. You will have to make a very minor and very easy modification involving shaving down some plastic to get it to make better welds. Theres a youtube video out there somewhere that shows how to do it.

 

[texasreefguy]

I think the brand their selling is chicago welders

 

[leveldrummer]

how much weight could one hold?

This is a pretty loaded question. It will depend on the size of the steel, the design, and the quality of construction. but you could easily build a stand that could support a full bus.

 

[texasreefguy]

Is their a calculator to determine what dia square steel tubing to use and how thick it should be in gauge.Also is it better to use the rect tubing instead of square ?