miller 130 wire speed

[stage20]

welder is new to me.
wire speed adjusts from 0 to 100.
no matter the heat, i can never weld with the wire speed over 10 on the wire setting, and i still have to move the gun fast so i dont leave a huge puddle.

i can crank it to 100 and it really starts flying out then, so the speed is working, i just need a way to fine tune it so im not getting in a hurry with the gun.

how hard can i crank down on the wire feed adjustment, or the spool itself? im not sure if there are tolerances or if these may even be the reason the wire seems to be comming out too fast. i figure more tension on the roll, or on the feed would slow the wire down, but i dont want to stress the parts in the welder.

 

[altersaddle]

How thick is your base metal? What size wire are you using? Flux cored or shielded?

I don't think you want to clamp down too tight with the wire feed or spool drag to slow down your wire feed. I've found that GMAW tends to unload a lot more filler than FCAW (since there's more filler material that isn't vaporizing) - and, if it's not penetrating, you get an even bulkier bead. I'm using .024 wire to weld thin stuff (16ga and thinner) with a bit of 1/8" to get some more practice.

I would double check the polarity (if necessary) and machine settings to see if something is out of spec.

 

[stage20]

How thick is your base metal? What size wire are you using? Flux cored or shielded?

I don't think you want to clamp down too tight with the wire feed or spool drag to slow down your wire feed. I've found that GMAW tends to unload a lot more filler than FCAW (since there's more filler material that isn't vaporizing) - and, if it's not penetrating, you get an even bulkier bead. I'm using .024 wire to weld thin stuff (16ga and thinner) with a bit of 1/8" to get some more practice.

I would double check the polarity (if necessary) and machine settings to see if something is out of spec.

i had a roll of .023 and .030. seems to do the same. for whatever reason i had trouble when i bought this welder and couldnt figure out why. it had .026 stainless wire in it and would pop and bang on mild steel. would leave that beige scale like a flux core wire, but it was solid wire, i looked at the roll. i couldnt get it to weld. put in a new roll of lincoln l56 and the welder sounds great, almost like a different machine. ive welded some 16 and 18ga and also some 1/8 and 1/4 and still leaves a big puddle unless i move very fast.

on the thin stuff i had to turn the heat way down so i wouldnt burn through, but it puddles high. good penetration, just too much wire speed, unless i just weld too slow? i can feel the wire kicking back on the gun.

i never even thought of checking polarity. it was setup for gas when i bought it, and i am using it with gas.

 

[altersaddle]

The polarity is probably fine. When I first hooked up my gas I forgot to reverse it (was running flux core), and the weld didn't stick at all.

This might help: http://www.millerwelds.com/resources/articles/MIG-GMAW-welding-basics/

Also, if you can, see if you can get a second opinion on using your machine. Maybe there's something wrong with the controls in the power supply and it's pushing too much for the arc. An experienced weldor can likely dial in your machine and/or give some advice on technique to help out.

You might also want to take some photos of some completed welds and post to weldingweb.com. Be ready to quote your settings and methods there, too.

 

[1950mercury]

What gas are you using. If it was set up for stainless you may be using the wrong gas. Also what is your regulator set at

 

[stage20]

75/25 mix of gas.
i had the bottle filled. unless the shop messed up my order, id hope it was argon/c02
ive played with the regulator from 20-30 psi and really havent noticed a difference.