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WELDING

WELDING

(OP)
which of the following electric arc welding best to use; smaw, gmaw, gtaw?

RE: WELDING

What do you wish to weld?

 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: WELDING

(OP)
ms plates, bars, shaft...ordinary metals used in construction...

RE: WELDING

Lincoln has some good info also.  Just depends on what you need to weld

RE: WELDING

There is more to this than what is being welded. It is set-up (field or shop), cost, configuration and service conditions.

RE: WELDING

The variables are so numerous, and their values are so widely spaced, that there is no single answer.

RE: WELDING

I agree that there are way too many variables to declare a "best" process.

Some general comments....
smaw
- usually the lowest investment, no gas cylinders to rent
- very portable and rugged, low/no maintenance
- wide variety of rods to handle many different situations
- can weld a wide variety of material thicknesses
- easiest to learn

gmaw
- usually better quality welds than stick, though it often takes some experimentation to get high grade welds with minimal splatter.
- better than smaw on thin materials, stainless and aluminium.

gtaw
- very good weld quality on thin material
- most difficult of the three to master
- good for non-ferrous materials

ISZ

RE: WELDING

Best option:  Take a night school course for beginning/ amateur welders.  When you are done with it, you will know exactly what you want.

 

Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

RE: WELDING

Good summary from IceStationZebra. I would add that the gas shielded processes are dubious in windy, outdoor locations.  Personally I found TIG easier to master than stick welding because it was easier to see the weld in progress and employs a similar technique to oxy-acetylene - which I like.

RE: WELDING

I agree TIG is neat, but if you are fixing ploughs and muckspreaders then a stick welder is the way to go.

Horses for courses

Cheers

Greg Locock

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