Refresh my memory:
Can I MIG weld stainless or does it need to be TIG'd? I'd assume that I need stainless wire but what about the gas mixture?
Refresh my memory:
Can I MIG weld stainless or does it need to be TIG'd? I'd assume that I need stainless wire but what about the gas mixture?
I've never tried it, but it should be possible. Looking at discussion on the miller forum, it seems as though you may need trimix gas.
You need SS wire to maintain the qualities of SS, but mild steel wire, or rod will weld it just as good. In other words, no different than mild steel. Remember, welding is welding. You are joining 2 metals with a filler rod/wire. For the most part, one is not usually any better than the other, just a matter of convenience.
cleanliness, but not brake cleaner.
^ What ZW said.
I cobbled an exhaust for my race car with mixed bits of SS, mild and zinc coated crap. It all welded just fine with regular .030 steel wire.
You can MIG, stick, and TIG weld:
you can stick and TIG everything else
but each one requires different types of equipment, gas, etc.
SS flux core MIG wire is adequate
and cheaper than buying a bottle of trimix Helium/ Argon/ CO2
I was always told to use SS wire and straight argon. And it worked just fine.
I use 308 wire and straight Argon to weld 304. Or stick with stainless rod. I MIG welded some 304 yesterday, as a matter of fact.
Is stainless flux core wire available now? I've never seen it.
You guys are crazy. I am not sure about the scope of the project but why spend the money on SS parts and not tig it with the correct rod. It been 15 years but TIG-ing SS is some of the most fun you can have with a welder. If it is just one small part to another then it won't mater much, but if it a whole exhaust I would tack it with what you have then have it TIG-ed. I have never heard of MIG-ing SS and it looking great (I am sure some one can do it).
snipes wrote: TIG-ing SS is some of the most fun you can have with a welder.
You're not wrong....
DILYSI Dave wrote:snipes wrote: TIG-ing SS is some of the most fun you can have with a welder.You're not wrong....
OH, now that looks NICE. Dr. Hess how does your MIG-ed stuff look?
for what it's worth, 409 rod is supposedly the cats meow for welding stainless to mild
One problem with TIGing SS is that you sometimes need to protect the back side of the metal with shielding gas as well. Most welding books show how to do that. On an SS exhaust pipe it's not hard. It's not required but a weld protected this way is better looking and stronger.
My MIG jobs hold together. I would not say they look nice. After 20 years of doing it, I think they look "fair." Yesterday I welded a piece of 1" square to the side of a piece of 2" square to put the lower inner pivot points for the Europa suspension in place. I would say that 3 sides looked OK and 1 side looked a bit ugly but was strong. When I need something to look "nice" or otherwise if it's critical it be airtight, like this exhaust manifold for my Esprit:
which I made from scratch, then I fit and tack it together with my MIG:
and bring it to the chicken manufacturing plant where they have a true artist with a TIG.
For an exhaust system (after the manifold), MIG is fine for me. I can get it gas tight and looking OK, and anything not OK can get a touch of grinder and look OK.
jimbbski wrote: One problem with TIGing SS is that you sometimes need to protect the back side of the metal with shielding gas as well. Most welding books show how to do that. On an SS exhaust pipe it's not hard. It's not required but a weld protected this way is better looking and stronger.
An alternative is Solar Flux
Dr.Linda's Europa frame:
I used stick (SMAW) for the 1/8" plate parts and MIG for the rest.
Dr. Tell me more about this project. It looks like you are replacing the whole frame. Did you move any of the pick up points? I must say you new one looks much better than the old one. On the Esprit manifold I really like the way the turbo is supported. And one last thing. You seem like just the guy to ask this question. Why do Europa's look so funny? I have never seen one in person so maybe it is lost on me. But what were they going for? 
Sorry to get so off topic.
Well, I asked Dr.Linda if she wanted a Europa and she said "I was thinking about a Miata, but I really want a Lotus. OK." So we dragged one home. The original frame, as you can see in the background, was Swiss Cheese. I could have replaced the front cross piece, patched the middle and built a new rear section to handle the new Toyota drivetrain, or just replace the whole thing, so I just replaced the whole thing. I build tube frames, so that's what I built to replace it. I will admit, though, that it probably would have been easier to build a 4' sheet metal brake and build the new frame the way the old one was, but that would have still required an all new rear design. My civil engineer friend, who I consulted on the project, said that the original design was quite well thought out and only needed some internal bracing. If I was to just straight replace another Europa frame (and I have another Europa on the other side of the shop, coincidentally,) I may do that.
My goal is to duplicate the original suspension geometry. No one ever says it doesn't work. The rear Lower Inner is now in place, so I need to tie it in to the locations for the motor mounts and figger out where to put the upper inners and how to attach the upper outers to the uprights. The original design had the drive shafts working as the upper control arm, which I can't do with the transverse mount Toyota transaxle/CV joints, so that's going to take some more design work.
Europas don't look funny. Europa bodies are only what's necessary to cover the drive train and frame. All your other cars look funny with all that extra crap attached that doesn't make you go faster.
On the Esprit manifold, yeah, one of the problems with the original design is that it wasn't strong enough to hold up the turbo and half the rest of the exhaust system. All the OEM ones crack, it's just a matter of when. Even the revised, revised, revised ones will crack, at a cost of one large a pop a few years ago. Probably more now with the inflation we don't have.
Here's my manifold tacked together next to a revised revised OEM version:
Dr. Hess wrote: Europas don't look funny. Europa bodies are only what's necessary to cover the drive train and frame. All your other cars look funny with all that extra crap attached that doesn't make you go faster.
I knew you were the guy to ask! It makes sense now.
Dr. Hess wrote: Europas don't look funny. Europa bodies are only what's necessary to cover the drive train and frame. All your other cars look funny with all that extra crap attached that doesn't make you go faster.
I don't know about that... The rear is enormous compared to the drivetrain it houses...
SVreX wrote:Dr. Hess wrote: Europas don't look funny. Europa bodies are only what's necessary to cover the drive train and frame. All your other cars look funny with all that extra crap attached that doesn't make you go faster.I don't know about that... The rear is enormous compared to the drivetrain it houses...
That's an expansion slot for a blown sbc
jimbbski wrote: One problem with TIGing SS is that you sometimes need to protect the back side of the metal with shielding gas as well. Most welding books show how to do that. On an SS exhaust pipe it's not hard. It's not required but a weld protected this way is better looking and stronger.
I don't see how this is a problem with TIG welding in particular. In the same situation you would want to back purge a MIG welded joint as well.
In most cases, I think a back purge in not needed.
Dr. Hess, the Europa frame looks good. You win a hotlink of a 47.
What are you going to use for the rear "Y"? And is it any lighter than the original?
The original frame is right at 100 lbs. Pretty hard to get lighter than that. 1" square 16 ga tubing is about a pound a foot. My goal is to be stiffer and hopefully around the same weight.
For the rear, I'm building tubes out to the rear suspension points. I have the center in now, replacing the lower inner mount that was on the bottom of the transaxle. It all has to fit around the new drivetrain and yet be stiff. The body only weighs around 120 lbs, give or take, plus things like seats, etc., so the frame really only has to hold the suspension together and keep the motor off the ground.
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