MIG welder

Bill from Scotland · Apr 8, 2018

Ive got a MIG welder which until the other day has always worked very well. A problem has developed however, symtoms are of no Co2 gas being available and as such the weld seems very splattery and poor quality. According to the gauges on the Co2 tank there is plenty of gas and when pressing the button on the welding torch its clear that gas is still coming through. My question is could the gas tank still be pressurised with air but be empty of Co2? Any thoughts or suggestions welcome.To all intent it seems as if the weld isnt being shielded by the Co2 gas when welding.

Steve@Advance · Apr 8, 2018

There won't be air in the tank, only co2.

Are you sure gas is actually coming through the gun nozzle? You can turn the wire feed down or open the roller, and should be able to feel gas blowing through the nozzle.

Another possibility, if there was a fan blowing, or wind, the gas will be blown away from the weld. Also trying to weld contaminated metal, water or solvent, burning paint outgassing from under the weld will cause splatter.

An unshielded weld will typically have the appearance of lava, porous and bubbly.

504 · Apr 8, 2018

Has the lead been run over? Is the defuser clear of splatter? The line between the regulator and the machine may be collapsing on the inside. good luck.

carvel minne farmer · Apr 8, 2018

(quoted from post at 16:04:16 04/08/18) Ive got a MIG welder which until the other day has always worked very well. A problem has developed however, symtoms are of no Co2 gas being available and as such the weld seems very splattery and poor quality. According to the gauges on the Co2 tank there is plenty of gas and when pressing the button on the welding torch its clear that gas is still coming through. My question is could the gas tank still be pressurised with air but be empty of Co2? Any thoughts or suggestions welcome.To all intent it seems as if the weld isnt being shielded by the Co2 gas when welding.

bill do you have a pair of gauges on the bottle or a flow meter for migs? I do welder repair for a living and for some reason welder sales people are great for selling customers a set of gauges instead of a flow meter, the difference is a flow meter has one guage for bottle pressure and a glass tube marked off in cf./minute lines with a steel ball in the tube. when you pull the trigger on the gun the valve opens sending pressure to the tube and the gun, you open or close the valve on the tube to set your flow rate, (appx 40 cfm) and you maintain an even steady flow of shielding gas. what happens with the dual guage type over time the spring in the flow guage weakens to the point it won,t maintain a steady flow, what happens is you get a blast of gas when you first hit the trigger and then it drops off to nothing and you end up with perocity in the weld. if you have the dual guage set up change it out for a flow meter and you won't have any more problems. I get service calls to go out and do this on aregular basis. john.

TJV · Apr 8, 2018

I had a similar problem a few years back with mine and a new regular/flow meter on the tank solved the problem the only other thing could be the electric valve that starts and stops the flow could be hanging up and limiting flow. I took my in for service that time and the first thing they did was eliminate my tank ad regulator and hooked up their tank and regulator and it worked like it should so it narrowed down the possible problem quickly

grizz02 · Apr 8, 2018

had that problem last week put the gun up to my ear no flow looked at my flow meter it had got bumped so there was no flow I just reset it all was good

Bill from Scotland · Apr 9, 2018

Hi Guys
Thanks for all the help and advice. Looks like flow meter was
sticking, I increased the press adjustment and it?s working
good now. Happy welding for me again.
Bill

Crazy Horse · Apr 9, 2018

When I shut down my mig welder, I was told (by a fellow who repaired my gauges once) to turn off the main bottle valve every time when my job was finished, and then back off the flow meter (the one controlling gas to the gun) so that gauge backs off to zero.

Later when I use it next time. turn the bottle valve on VERY VERY slowly and then adjust the flow meter to the level of gas you want delivered to the gun. That last part was critical he said (about opening the main bottle valve very slowly and having the flow meter off when you do it). He said that rapid opening of the main bottle valve when the flow valve is partially open can damage the flow valve.

MIG welder

Bill from Scotland

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Steve@Advance

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504

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carvel minne farmer

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TJV

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grizz02

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Bill from Scotland

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Crazy Horse

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