Weldering

[tobyd]

What do people use to weld up cars?

 

I'm learning stick welding at evening classes at my local college (they stopped this ages ago but have bought it back) and can weld up various bits of scrap into various shapes but for cars i can't see how you'd be able to

 

a. not warp all the things

b. get it clean enough

c. not burn through horribly

 

is automotive stuff mostly just spot + filler or thin-gauge MIG or do you just use 1.8 or 2.5 rods at 5A and have an awful time?

[Scruffy Bodger]

For body panels on cars you need a mig. 0.6mm wire, spot, spot, spot infinitum. Bounce it around, never too much heat in one spot, maybe even stick a lump of ally or copper behind it if at all possible to draw the heat away on larger sections that are flat to stop warping. 0.8mm is possible but it's an arse. Clean metal makes things much much easier although you can develop certain techniques if this isn't practical or possible.

[Des]

The first car welding I did was arc with 1.6 rods, and was able to do reasonable work, granted this was before the MOT requiring seam welds, nice small welder that only needed a mains socket, and the rods keeping dry, if you can master the arc you shall be a God when you pick up a mig.

[Eddie Honda]

What do people use to weld up cars?

 

Might get more miles over here http://autoshite.com/topic/29668-electric-pritstick-the-welding-thread/