Welding

[JT58]

With all of the problems that I have had with body shops, a guy on the side and was scammed for over 11K I could have been working on and welding my Bronco myself and been way ahead by now instead of just starting.

Now that the Bronco is home I can see how all the body parts fit together- the floor cross rails, door posts, rockers, etc. The rails are bolted on, floors then welded. The door posts and rockers seem to fit nicely together.

My GF's son is supposed to do the welding with a brand new welder that he specified. It was purchased (not sure of the brand or make) and it is on back order...and he is getting busy with a lot of other jobs so the Bronco may still take a back seat if we ever do get the welder he wants.

What kind of welder is needed to weld the floors and body panels and how hard is it to weld and line everything up? Is it something I could learn if I bought a welder? I have excellent mechanical skill, college degree in engineering. I do almost all of my mechanical work on cars and trucks myself, including some heavy work. I also know machining. I have done so many things in my life but unfortunately not welding and it is the only thing holding up build of my Bronco- for over a year now.

 

[Maddog B]

I’m sorry you got taken for all that cash but congrats on the drive to do it yourself. You will definitely have a good feeling of accomplishment when someone ask who did the work and you respond, I did! I would recommend at least a 120 amp MIG with .030 wire. If you have access to 240v service, get a 180 amp machine. You’ll be able to weld anything you want, from sheet metal to shock towers and bumpers. I learned to weld when I was 14 so I know you can do it. Good luck.

 

[Timmy390]

You want the best MIG (gas shielded) welder you can afford. More setting means more versatility. Sheet metal is not hard to weld but it's thin so you need a low setting. Research into the availability of GAS in your area. You have to lease or buy a bottle and then can only get it filled at the place you bought/leased it from (around here anyways).

Stay away from a "flux core" welder. Can it be used on sheet metal? YES and I've been doing it for years but it's hard due to the lack of settings (A, B, C, D) being the only choices. I spend more time grinding than welding......plus it splatters all over.

Tim

 

[bmc69]

I do all of the body welding in my shop with a cheap 110V Hobart Handler 120, running .023" wire and 75/25 Argon/CO2 gas.

 

[Maddog B]

Oh yeah, don’t bother with Flux Core. If your welding body panels with flux core, your asking for rust to come back through.

 

[Maddog B]

I second getting the best you can afford and the biggest your shop can support with the power and amperage you have.

 

[Scoop]

Get a good welding helmet too. You need to be able to see the weld pool and a good (>$100) helmet will help with that especially at the low amp settings you need for sheet metal work.

 

[JT58]

I don't have a 220V, just 110V. There are shops in town for the gas and bottle. I know he's ordered a MIG welder as he mentioned that it will need a bottle. This welder is for him so I will have to buy another one- will go for less expensive but good enough to get the job done.

I'll have to wait again (Ugh) to see if the welder he was going to buy comes off of back order. And if he's going to ever have time to do the job. The bad news is that the Bronco is so stripped down now with all the floors out and the body is barely being held together and it's too fragile to move. Some welding needs to be done so I can move it to a shop (if I can find one that will even do the work) or I must do it myself.

Where even look for MIG welders?

 

[EB70]

You can look online, but I would hit up a LWS (local welding store) and just talk to them. They make many dual voltage machines that would work well for you.

Something similar to a Miller 211 or something. Around 1k-ish would get you a decent machine.

I have taught junior high kids to wire feed weld in a very short time frame. Personally, I'd do it myself, buy a friend dinner and have them show you. Heck, just watch a video or something.

It is not too difficult, just don't warp the metal.

I know buying online is tempting, but the support from a local is likely hard to overlook and could be real handy when needed.

 

[Maddog B]

Since you’re running 120v, you can get a decent 140amp Lincoln MIG at one of the big box stores for $500 or less. You will be able to weld anything on the Bronco with that machine.

 

[Timmy390]

I don't have a 220V, just 110V. There are shops in town for the gas and bottle. I know he's ordered a MIG welder as he mentioned that it will need a bottle. This welder is for him so I will have to buy another one- will go for less expensive but good enough to get the job done.

I'll have to wait again (Ugh) to see if the welder he was going to buy comes off of back order. And if he's going to ever have time to do the job. The bad news is that the Bronco is so stripped down now with all the floors out and the body is barely being held together and it's too fragile to move. Some welding needs to be done so I can move it to a shop (if I can find one that will even do the work) or I must do it myself.

Where even look for MIG welders?

You can do everything you want to do with a Hobart 140 (Lincoln has one in that same price range). It comes with everything but a bottle. You will need to get different diameter wire for the different jobs. They run about $500 at T-Supply, Home Depot, Northern Tool, Lowes, etc. It's a good all around hobby 110 welder.

My only issue with the smaller lessor priced welders come down to settings. On the H-140 you have 5 "heat" settings. My Lincoln has 4. The only adjustment is wire speed. While this gets the job done it's takes some getting used to. Sometimes it's a give and take as you fine your either too hot or too cold. Wire diameter helps this and so does the wire speed. I do lots of test welds on scrap before I hit the real metal.

My neighbor has a Miller 255 and it fricken ROCKS. Sure its twice or three times more than a good "hobby" welder but it's worth it in the end. Digital readouts fine tune adjustments......The only thing it's missing is a "spool gun" which can be added....

Tim

 

[Yeller]

If you can afford it, the miller 211 is the best "learning to weld" machine I have ever used and will run on 120v or 240v. They have a 120v only machine with the same technology, I just don't remember the model. No need to understand what everything means, set it to your wire size, gas mix and material thickness and it will do its part. You can do this, with the abilities that you mentioned it should be a walk in the park once you do it.

I teach a lot of guys n gals that have never welded to be welder operators for work. I have access to about any machine you can imagine and always start with the 211. It lets them work the mechanics without worrying about how to set it up. about 85% of the experienced welders that I interview have no clue what the settings on a machine really do or how to properly adjust it, they get it to work good enough but most of the time is not right and the 211 cures that problem by removing that need to know, its a science not and art. Most believe its the other way around.

 

[gnpenning]

If you have an electric dryer or stove you have 220. It comes down to how easy it is to run a cord. Or better yet where is your power panel and does it have any blank slots?

If you plan on getting a good compressor or other equipment down the road it might be worth adding a sub panel???

Get a machine you can grow into not grow out of. For example the Miller 211 is dual voltage and you can add a spool gun down the road.

 

[bronconut73]

I’m sorry you got taken for all that cash but congrats on the drive to do it yourself. You will definitely have a good feeling of accomplishment when someone ask who did the work and you respond, I did! I would recommend at least a 120 amp MIG with .030 wire. If you have access to 240v service, get a 180 amp machine. You’ll be able to weld anything you want, from sheet metal to shock towers and bumpers. I learned to weld when I was 14 so I know you can do it. Good luck.

I was going to say this/\/\ exact statement but I guess I do not need to now, lol.

 

[rydog1130]

If you can afford it, the miller 211 is the best "learning to weld" machine I have ever used and will run on 120v or 240v. They have a 120v only machine with the same technology, I just don't remember the model. No need to understand what everything means, set it to your wire size, gas mix and material thickness and it will do its part. You can do this, with the abilities that you mentioned it should be a walk in the park once you do it.

I teach a lot of guys n gals that have never welded to be welder operators for work. I have access to about any machine you can imagine and always start with the 211. It lets them work the mechanics without worrying about how to set it up. about 85% of the experienced welders that I interview have no clue what the settings on a machine really do or how to properly adjust it, they get it to work good enough but most of the time is not right and the 211 cures that problem by removing that need to know, its a science not and art. Most believe its the other way around.

The machine he's referring to is the millermatic 141 and I have it and I love it. I had 2 years of welding in highschool and was good enough to get through all the various types of welding (gas/rod, arc, mig, and tig). This machine runs on 120 and will weld thin sheet metal up to 1/4" thick. It also has an auto set feature where all you do is select the thickness of the metal and burn away. The majority of your welding will be spot welding or plug welding holes from the sheet metal screws which is super easy. I believe Hobart who is owned by miller has a similar machine but it has some plastic components and is cheaper. There are guys that love it but personally I'd spend the extra cash!

 

[ransil]

buying ( borrowing) a welder is how I learned started on some scrap and went straight to the floor pans , still have that borrowed welder after 15 years.
get something with infinite adjustment ( not the A B C D setting) on feed and voltage, run .023 wire and 75/25 gas get a 125 bottle a 40 or 80 will just make a lot of trips for about the same cost.

cant say Im a good welder, you might want to pick up a grinder or 2 , but I get it done and have seen crappier welds.

 

[gnpenning]

Another out side the box option at least for here even though auto manufacturers have been using it for years is panel adhesive. I tried it for the first time last fall and it was stupid easy even for me. You need a place with knowledgeable parts people. You can buy adhesives with a wide range of applications. Seam sealer can be included, setup time, etc. My local parts place had me put a deposit on the gun and refunded it when I returned it clean.

It's been talked about here some, after using it I'm surprised more don't.

 

[Seventee]

I upgraded to a Miller 211i just before Christmas. What I found is that the machine prices were about the same no matter where you purchased. I believe Miller and other name brands have rules about this, at least for their authorized sellers (I was also looking at ESAB and found the same thing). The difference is how much the sellers are willing to deal on accessories.

I decided to purchase a Miller through my local supply shop because they had the machine in stock and their customer service is great. They knocked $30 off a Digital Elite hood and threw in a 10# spool of wire at no request. Bottom line is they were as good or better deal as the popular online supply stores and I got to deal locally.

I took advantage of a rebate before Christmas, but I see Miller currently has a $200 rebate on the 211i, so net price would be ~$1,115.00.

If the 211 is outside your budget, the 141 is ~$875.00 and would be great machine if you only intend to do body work and not get into heavier fabrication. Even if you change your mind later, you will have absolutely no problem selling a good name brand machine.

 

[JT58]

Thanks for the replies! Sounds like the welding is easy to learn. I wish I would have done this to begin with. I don't know what kind of welder he ordered that is on back order but it was 2K. At least I did not pay for it yet- getting him the welder was supposed to be his enticement to do the job for me. If he's too busy and takes the welder to other jobs and does not do the job I won't pay for it. Then I'll have to find a place for me to move to so I can do the work in my own garage. I'll get there but wow what a journey!!!

 

[blubuckaroo]

I'm pin pretty much the same situation.
I just bought a Hobart 140 to do the floor and body work on my '62 Ranchero project.
One thing that's confusing to me is the wire and tip sizing Hobart has.
They have .024" wire and .023" tips. How could that fit?
I asked the salesman at Tractor Supply about it, and of course, he couldn't help.
On line, I found the same thing.

https://www.hobartwelders.com/consumables/filler-metal-wire-rod/solid-wire/steel-m30201
https://www.hobartwelders.com/consumables/contact-tips

I guess the advice I got to go to a "bonafide" weld shop went on deaf ears with me.?:?