Advice first welder

[SteveMini]

Hi guys

Last year I inherited my dads large tool collection and he had a Clarke Pro 90 mig welder. He did teach me the basics with welding but it was that long ago all I remember is that it has to sound like bacon cooking and what you are welding has to be completely clean of paint or rust.

I have a 89 Classic mini that I'm slowly restoring but it needs a outer sill and new front wings will my dads trusty old pro 90 mig be up to the job or will I need a more powerful mig


Many thanks

Steve

 

[cumbriasteve]

Welcome to the forum:

Your welder will have more than enough power, top end power is not important and on Mini bodywork I doubt you will be on anything other than the lowest setting.

It would be advisable to get some scrap steel around 2mm to 3mm and get some practice in first with your runs, playing around with power and wire speeds before moving onto some thinner scrap when you are feeling confident you are getting the hang of it.

Also of course have a good read of the tutorials on this forum.

 

[SteveMini]

Welcome to the forum:

Your welder will have more than enough power, top end power is not important and on Mini bodywork I doubt you will be on anything other than the lowest setting.

It would be advisable to get some scrap steel around 2mm to 3mm and get some practice in first with your runs, playing around with power and wire speeds before moving onto some thinner scrap when you are feeling confident you are getting the hang of it.

Also of course have a good read of the tutorials on this forum.

Thanks for the reply

That's good I'm glad I'm gonna get some use out of my dads welder I think as I get more confident and build my skill up I might look into a slightly more powerful welder for tougher jobs

I remember my dad buying it to weld the outer sills on his triumph dolomite 1500tc but really couldn't remember if he had any problems with the welder

I am looking into getting some old scrap plate and will definitely be on the look out for 2mm and 3mm I have two old doors off my mini I can use for thin stuff.

I am slowly reading through the tutorials on the forum and it's slowly bringing back things my dad taught me I was 11 at the time lol.

I just can't wait for the weather to improve and get practicing

Many thanks

Steve

 

[cumbriasteve]

What about gas?

You don't mention what you have, if it is the disposable bottles then use the bad weather time to try and get sorted with some Co2 at least and argon mix if you can manage it is even better, disposables are very poor on both cost and weld time.

If you were just doing the one panel and did not require practice time then a disposable or two may have been acceptable but considering you are already toying with the idea of other machines and projects then best to get sorted once and for all.

If you are planning to use gasless then it's a bit more difficult, especially on a Mini where the bodywork was certainly not the most generous thickness, even when new.

 

[SteveMini]

What about gas?

You don't mention what you have, if it is the disposable bottles then use the bad weather time to try and get sorted with some Co2 at least and argon mix if you can manage it is even better, disposables are very poor on both cost and weld time.

If you were just doing the one panel and did not require practice time then a disposable or two may have been acceptable but considering you are already toying with the idea of other machines and projects then best to get sorted once and for all.

If you are planning to use gasless then it's a bit more difficult, especially on a Mini where the bodywork was certainly not the most generous thickness, even when new.

I was planning to use the disposable bottles as I have a full one still but thinking about it them little bottles are expensive and I remember now my dad saying how the small bottles never gave him long to weld.

I will look into buying a big bottle and then get it refilled for it as you said in the long run it will be cost effective


Thanks for the info

Steve

 

[skotl]

The disposables will only give around 10 minutes of welding so, especially for practise, you're going to want more. Have a look in the Shielding Gas section at the Volkzone thread (probably start ~4 pages from the end rather than reading the whole lot).

 

[steveo3002]

theyre not a bad little welder for car bodys , dont expect it penetrate much beyond 2mm but there wont be much over 2mm on a mini

 

[optima21]

yeah the Pro Mig 90's are fine for normal car bodywork, I was was using on for 15 years on my polos before I got a clarke 151te welder. I ended up giving the pro mig 90 to a mate.