BrettW
Platinum Member
Anyone have a Lincoln Weld-Pac 100 welder? If so do you like it? thanks, bw
weld pac 100
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Boone
Gold Member
I have that unit with the gas conversion kit. If I was shopping, I would buy a larger more powerful mig welder. I also have a 295 amp stick welder, if I didn't the Lincoln weld pak 100 would be gone. I was very unhappy with the flux core wire, the welds were terrible without any penetration.
The mig comes in handy for many things such as auto body welding but I find the 100 is under powered much of the time. One thing it does is forces me to stick weld which is more of a challenge but satisfying.
The mig comes in handy for many things such as auto body welding but I find the 100 is under powered much of the time. One thing it does is forces me to stick weld which is more of a challenge but satisfying.
davesisk
Platinum Member
About the best sign of poor penetration (given my limited knowledge) is that the bead is kind of lying on top of the workpiece rather than being part of it. If it's poor, you can usually chip the bead away with a cold chisel, or even break the pieces you're trying to fuse about by hand.
A neighbor has a Lincoln Weldpak 100 (I think). He really likes it (and so do I /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif), but he finds it underpowered occasionally. (He's building a rail buggy from round tubing and other stock.) Underpowered isn't ideal, but it's better than no welder at all. If the weld is such that you can make a V-groove, then you can get the necessary penetration by making layering it with multiple passes. Not quite as clean and neat as having it done in one pass, but it can be done. It is quite time-consuming though.
I originally started with a flux-cored wire only welder, and I agree, the readily available flux-cored wire makes some ugly welds (although it usually penetrates as good or better than gas-shielded solid wire given the same parameters). ESAB and a couple of other companies make what is supposedly some really impressive flux-cored wire, but it's quite expensive and I've never tried it.
In general, the rule of thumb is that you need about 1 amp for every 1/1000 of an inch. So, for 1/4", you need 250 amps to fuse it in a single pass. Of course, this depends on the type of joint as well. A butt joint takes less, but how often do you end up doing a straight butt joint? (In other words, why not just cut it the right lenght??? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif) A T-joint takes more amps to do in a single pass, and I'd say that's a more common joint for most things. Most stuff has lots of right angles.
Sounds like you're new to welding. Wire-feed (usually MIG) is by far the easiest to run a bead with. It does take some practice to get good welds, regardless of what type of welder you're using. I got into TIG a few months back, and I'm still learning...
HTH,
Dave
A neighbor has a Lincoln Weldpak 100 (I think). He really likes it (and so do I /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif), but he finds it underpowered occasionally. (He's building a rail buggy from round tubing and other stock.) Underpowered isn't ideal, but it's better than no welder at all. If the weld is such that you can make a V-groove, then you can get the necessary penetration by making layering it with multiple passes. Not quite as clean and neat as having it done in one pass, but it can be done. It is quite time-consuming though.
I originally started with a flux-cored wire only welder, and I agree, the readily available flux-cored wire makes some ugly welds (although it usually penetrates as good or better than gas-shielded solid wire given the same parameters). ESAB and a couple of other companies make what is supposedly some really impressive flux-cored wire, but it's quite expensive and I've never tried it.
In general, the rule of thumb is that you need about 1 amp for every 1/1000 of an inch. So, for 1/4", you need 250 amps to fuse it in a single pass. Of course, this depends on the type of joint as well. A butt joint takes less, but how often do you end up doing a straight butt joint? (In other words, why not just cut it the right lenght??? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif) A T-joint takes more amps to do in a single pass, and I'd say that's a more common joint for most things. Most stuff has lots of right angles.
Sounds like you're new to welding. Wire-feed (usually MIG) is by far the easiest to run a bead with. It does take some practice to get good welds, regardless of what type of welder you're using. I got into TIG a few months back, and I'm still learning...
HTH,
Dave
TOMLESCOEQUIP
Platinum Member
Brett........I have one........I have 2 miller migs at work but needed a welder at home on occaison.........I purposely didn't get the gas conversion kit because I wanted it for outdoor projects at home.......It works well for small repairs but I would want a larger welder for fabrication........It does what I've asked it to.....And the 110 volts makes it very portable and nice for projects at the neighbors (Been there done that!!)....No complaints............Tom
Anonymous Poster
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Sounds like your kinda new to welding also. RICHARD GAUTHIER
Guys, First of all thanks for the advise and posts. I am very new to welding and I've got a weld pac 100 on order. I dont have time for a college course in welding (I know that would be best), So I'm going to read books and practice on scrap metal. Any safety tips/welding tips you can give me at this point would be very appreciated. For instance, how do you avoid getting shocked? Essentially I know nothing about welding, but I like learning new things and doing things on my own. Any good books on the subject that you recommend? thanks again, bw
Tractors4u
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1. Get a good set of welding gloves, the leather ones that go way up your forearm.
2. Never wear shorts when you are welding!
3. If you do wear shorts, make sure you are wearing socks! Hot sparks and slag in your sneakers will make you dance a little jig around the garage!
4. Never weld over a garbage can with paper in it!
5. Jeans that have holes in the knees with little frayed strings around the hole are suceptible to combustion!
2. Never wear shorts when you are welding!
3. If you do wear shorts, make sure you are wearing socks! Hot sparks and slag in your sneakers will make you dance a little jig around the garage!
4. Never weld over a garbage can with paper in it!
5. Jeans that have holes in the knees with little frayed strings around the hole are suceptible to combustion!
Anonymous Poster
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Don't get wet or let your eguipment get wet and you won't get shocked when you are welding. Get some scrap metal and practice on and adjust your heat on and that molten puddle you make is the weld,so you got to see it and learn to control it. There is a lot of books and videos out that could help you,HOBERT welding is one you could look up,as well as LINCOLN welding and THE AMERICAN WELDING SOCIETY. RICHARD GAUTHIER
davesisk
Platinum Member
I agree with all the above, plus:
1) Wear long sleeve shirt (if it just isn't too hot) in addition to long pants and big thick gloves. Arc rays will give you a serious sun-burn!
2) Wear a welding hood. Arc-rays will give you cornea blisters that I've never had, but have heard are QUITE painful. If you can swing it, get an auto-darkening hood (Harbor Freight has a cheap model that is pretty decent after you replace the head-ratchet)...you'll be amazed at how much better you weld!
3) Don't weld around anything flammable. Really. 3200 degree molten metal will set things on fire that you never thought would burn, let along gasoline vapors, hydraulic oil, wood, dried paint, grease on the workpiece or table, etc. Metal conducts heat, so you can weld in one spot and set something on fire a few inches away. Be aware of this.
4) 3200 degree molten metal stays hot for longer than you'd think, even after it's not red anymore. Don't touch it without gloves until you're sure it's cool!
5) Get good at welding the same way you get good at anything else: study it, then practice, practice, practice, then repeat.
6) Start with mild steel. That's about the easiest thing to weld. (If you don't know what steel alloy you're buying or salvaging, it's probably mild steel.)
7) Try not to breath any of the fumes from welding. Most fumes won't kill you within seconds or anything, but they're not exactly the healthiest thing you can breath either.
8) Don't weld anything with zinc (galvanized), chromium (Chrom-moly steel or stainless steel), or particularly cadmium (some nuts and bolts)...these range from making you sick for a couple of days with the former to serious health risks around the latter. I'd pretty much suggest to stay away from anything except mild steel until you fully educate yourself (be patient, it'll take some time...see #5!)
9) With just a few exceptions, clean/grind/wire-brush/etc. the parts you are going to weld. You can get away with rust and paint when stick welding with some stick electrodes (6013), but most welding processes (like yours, MIG) don't like contaminants getting into the weld pool.
10) For MIG, you want it to sound like a Geiger counter that's right on top of something radioactive. Set the voltage setting first (to the right amount of heat, you'll probably have to experiment to get a feel for the heat required for different thicknesses and joint types), then set the wire-feed speed to get that right sound. Again, practice makes perfect. Always try a new joint on scrap first!
One of the better books I started with was the "Welder's Handbook". It's a quick read, and I still refer to it from time to time.
Another suggestion: take a look at HTP's web-site ( www.htpweld.com )...they have a video about their MIG machines that has some great content for new welders. They sell it, but if you inquire seeking advice, they might send you one for free.
Good luck and welcome to the somewhat unusual "hobby" of fusing metal... /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
Dave
1) Wear long sleeve shirt (if it just isn't too hot) in addition to long pants and big thick gloves. Arc rays will give you a serious sun-burn!
2) Wear a welding hood. Arc-rays will give you cornea blisters that I've never had, but have heard are QUITE painful. If you can swing it, get an auto-darkening hood (Harbor Freight has a cheap model that is pretty decent after you replace the head-ratchet)...you'll be amazed at how much better you weld!
3) Don't weld around anything flammable. Really. 3200 degree molten metal will set things on fire that you never thought would burn, let along gasoline vapors, hydraulic oil, wood, dried paint, grease on the workpiece or table, etc. Metal conducts heat, so you can weld in one spot and set something on fire a few inches away. Be aware of this.
4) 3200 degree molten metal stays hot for longer than you'd think, even after it's not red anymore. Don't touch it without gloves until you're sure it's cool!
5) Get good at welding the same way you get good at anything else: study it, then practice, practice, practice, then repeat.
6) Start with mild steel. That's about the easiest thing to weld. (If you don't know what steel alloy you're buying or salvaging, it's probably mild steel.)
7) Try not to breath any of the fumes from welding. Most fumes won't kill you within seconds or anything, but they're not exactly the healthiest thing you can breath either.
8) Don't weld anything with zinc (galvanized), chromium (Chrom-moly steel or stainless steel), or particularly cadmium (some nuts and bolts)...these range from making you sick for a couple of days with the former to serious health risks around the latter. I'd pretty much suggest to stay away from anything except mild steel until you fully educate yourself (be patient, it'll take some time...see #5!)
9) With just a few exceptions, clean/grind/wire-brush/etc. the parts you are going to weld. You can get away with rust and paint when stick welding with some stick electrodes (6013), but most welding processes (like yours, MIG) don't like contaminants getting into the weld pool.
10) For MIG, you want it to sound like a Geiger counter that's right on top of something radioactive. Set the voltage setting first (to the right amount of heat, you'll probably have to experiment to get a feel for the heat required for different thicknesses and joint types), then set the wire-feed speed to get that right sound. Again, practice makes perfect. Always try a new joint on scrap first!
One of the better books I started with was the "Welder's Handbook". It's a quick read, and I still refer to it from time to time.
Another suggestion: take a look at HTP's web-site ( www.htpweld.com )...they have a video about their MIG machines that has some great content for new welders. They sell it, but if you inquire seeking advice, they might send you one for free.
Good luck and welcome to the somewhat unusual "hobby" of fusing metal... /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
Dave