Welding Help
Turbo Mini Forums

Hi chaps

Quick bit of help please.

I was welding (badly) on my bmw yesterday with a Clarke 130 turbo thing, and ran into a problem that I didn't really know how to solve.

I was welding and blowing holes in the metal, but at the same time the welds were just sitting on the surface and not really penetrating - I can't just turn up the power (which was on 1/min). I tried with different wire speeds but it didn't seem to help other than making it to PUT PUT -- PUT and just blob everywhere.

So; what the fuck?

-a

Edited by AlexB on 30th Jan, 2014.

Angle of the torch maybe? If your butt welding the gap could be too big in places?

I'm no expert, but were you using enough gas?

In the 13's at last!.. Just

Is it gas or gas less if gas what gas and reg you using. Because if its a disposable bottle and total waist of time f*****g s**t not regulator be a good chance it will be that.i dint have al the same probs as u but I couldn't get mine to weld right I could lay a weld but not evary time (wierd) it was. Another good place to ask is migwelding forum but give as much info as you can ...askey

I was using gas, yes. some argon mix. No reg, just the thing that came with the welder with the twisty knob.

By the sounds of it its a disposable bottle and "gauge" probably a clarck I would highly recommend a proper bottle and gauge mate 100 mabilion times better evan if its only co2.....

were you doing a lot of continuous welding? just wondering if the panel was getting too hot?

The disposable bottles have a reg on top, the "twisty knob". Just put the torch to your ear, as the gauge is useless, with the welder off and pull the trigger. you want a light whoosh of gas.

Then it sounds like the steel is too thin, after being ground clean before welding perhaps?

To weld a gap up you'll have to learn to slowly stitch the gap up with spots every few mm. then stitch these together with a spot seam weld.

is the metal clean and rust free , both sides of everything .

Medusa + injection = too much torque for the dyno ..https://youtu.be/qg5o0_tJxYM

I was trying to pulse weld as I seem to be terrible at seam welding!

Thanks guys - I have a spare mini door in the garage so I am going to cut it to bits and see if I can improve my skills on that.

I seriously doubt it!

Do you have a hand held mask or a proper helmet?

Are you steadying the hand you use to hold the torch with the other?

I seriously doubt it!

Proper mask, yes. It's still shit though. I was lying on my back welding under the car so it all felt wrong.

I think it's a mix of dirty metal, shitty welder (me, not the machine) and too much gas.

welding from below needs different settings to welding from above. Welding from below, gravity pulls the molten pool away from the panels. I find a little more wire speed and a shallower angle of attack and deffo pulsing/ spotting the welds yields better results, but I still have problems, the welds still look shit.