Mig Welding Wire Size For Sheet Metal

Small wires also provide more control over the weld bead and a better chance of recovering from mistakes due to lower deposition rates.

Mig welding wire size for sheet metal.

Keep the stick out short stickout of your mig wire is important when welding any type of metal but especially sheet metal. For thinner gauge sheet metal like 18 or 20 gauge we suggest 023 6mm wire in your mig welder. I keep it short and to the point in this welding instructional video and show how ve. For mig welding sheet metal it is often recommended to use an electrode wire of the smallest diameter to prevent burn through and warping.

The metals that can be welded with a mig machine can be grouped into three basic classifications. The type of metal that you will be welding has a great influence on mig welder settings. Learn how to mig weld automotive sheet metal in about 5 minutes or less. In this video we cover which size welding wire you should use when to change sizes and how to adjust your mig welder machine settings for different wires.

In addition mig requires lower operator skills levels than stick or tig. From automotive parts to fabricated structures shipbuilding metal buildings and sheet metal applications all have often reaped benefits from the switch to mig wire. Advantages include slag free welding with less clean up even in multiple pass operations. Mig welding is the preferred method for most automotive bodywork and since sheet metal is the thinnest of metals a large expensive mig unit is usually not required.

The main reason to use a smaller diameter wire is that it takes less heat for melting and hence the metal around the weld is not heated to a very great extent. Mig welding sheet metal always use the smallest wire diameter possible since smaller wires take less heat to melt and heat the metal less.