Random wound wire

[JayRS4]

I`ve got a Sif 316L Midi reel (3.75kg), is it normal for something like this to be random wound, it`s a nightmare, i`ve used a fair chunk of it now, so too late to complain. Its got kinks running through it too, making it a nightmare to feed and just balls up, thats when its not snagging because the bit it`s trying to feed has been wound over. I might expect this sort of thing with cheapo wire, then i just wouldn`t buy it, but at 80 plus quid it`s a bit of a joke.

 

[chunkolini]

Ridiculous we should not have to put up with this rubbish!! take it back especially at that price. if they wont accept it start unravelling it inside their shop to show them how rubbish it is.

I have had a couple of theses and it drives me mad. Kill Kill Kill.

Chunko'.

 

[weldequip]

And Chunk's a TV celeb now you know...so listen to the man
weldequip

 

[bawjaws]

so it wasnt you he got it from then weldequip?

 

[TechnicAl]

Most small spools are random wound and its usually fine. The kinks are probably the cause of the feeding problem.

Over the years the marketing people have messed about with descriptions and created confusion.

True random in some cases can feed better than the Layer Wound (PLW) but in many cases the random isnt random its failed PLW.

They start the spool as PLW but for some reason it fails and the wire goes random and this is the problem. In other words they are rejects.

If you start the spool random and continue all the way it feeds just as well as the PLW. In fact on some sets where the edge of the spool is in line with the inlet guide it releases earlier than PLW and you dont get the jumps. Its difficult to put into words.

I would take it back

 

[peterd51]

Hi,

I bought my 'no-name' wire off the internet about 7 - 8 years ago, ten reels of 5kg that worked out at about £8 a reel including postage, and it's never given me any problems.

£80? I've bought most of my cars for less than that!

Regards
Peter

 

[Sparkey]

Eeerrr....the only problem i had with that was with lincoln wire... sorry Al!

 

[TechnicAl]

Eeerrr....the only problem i had with that was with lincoln wire... sorry Al!

In France?

We keep the best stuff at home

 

[weldequip]

The French moan at everything Al...Spark's factory would be out on strike for a week after a badly wound reel of wire!
weldequip

 

[JayRS4]

Cheers folks, like I said, i`ve burnt a far chunk of it now (and a load in 3m lengths grrr) so it`d be a bit cheaky to take it back now. So i`ll do the true english thing and not complain. In future, if i buy any more, i shall check before handing any money over.

Iv`e also decided that stainless mig on thinner (sub 2mm) material is a horrible process(either that or i have become utterly useless)

Pity really, this was my first foray into anything other than M/S mig, and i think it`ll be my last.

 

[TechnicAl]

Pity really, this was my first foray into anything other than M/S mig, and i think it`ll be my last.

Was it 316LSi, if not I would try it in future. It welds a lot nier than the straight 316L

The higher Silicon makes it wet out better

 

[zst]

The kinks are probably the cause of the feeding problem.

Dear Sir, could you describe more what "the kinks" are?

And yes, marketing people love "precision layers wound", "special electrolitic copper plating" etc...

Is it true that all 250 kg bulk-packs are random wounded?

As far as I know no problem with bulk-packs from big players, but I know a company used wire from Turkey. They returned 4 bulk packs out of 11 received, due to feeding problems...

 

[JayRS4]

Yup, it was LSi, this one to be precise, i`ll keep hold of it for if i have anything heavier come up in future. I`m guessing that the silicon content would make it no good for light guage tig?

 

[TechnicAl]

Dear Sir, could you describe more what "the kinks" are?

And yes, marketing people love "precision layers wound", "special electrolitic copper plating" etc...

Is it true that all 250 kg bulk-packs are random wounded?

As far as I know no problem with bulk-packs from big players, but I know a company used wire from Turkey. They returned 4 bulk packs out of 11 received, due to feeding problems...

Drums cant be compared to spools.

The wire in drums is layered in elipses and like a "spirograph" if you pile enough elipses on top of each other you get a circle. Again its difficult to describe in words.

Kinks are usually caused by vibration somewhere in the process, either at the end of the wire drawing or when spooling.

 

[weldequip]

What's the script with this Flat-Wire welding Al, know anything about it?
weldequip

 

[TechnicAl]

Flat wire ?

In drums we talk about flat wire in a similar fashion to helix on a spool. In other words if you take some wire out of a drum it should lay on the ground "straight and flat". If it does it will feed well and placement (robot) will be consistent.

 

[weldequip]

Flat as in 0.5mm thick by 4mm wide ribbon wire...supposed to give 4x deposition rate
weldequip

 

[Paul.]

Spooky, I was having just the same discussion with a welding rep today, this is where he sent me,

 

[zst]

Flat wire

Dear TechnicAl thanks for answer! Could you advice about the best helix/cast for consistent feeding for both manual and robot applications...

As for flat wires, as far as I know it is used for extra high current/wire feeds/voltage, for example 30 m/s, 40 V , 600 A...

The point is that feeding of round wire over 20 m/s is very difficult from some reasons, so it is solved with flat wires... The transfer of droplets is across "rotational arc" (try google)... And it is used for extra high depositions per hour... In my country nobody use rotational arc and flat wires, but some companies in Hungury do it.

 

[TechnicAl]

Flat as in 0.5mm thick by 4mm wide ribbon wire...supposed to give 4x deposition rate
weldequip

Do you mean strip cladding?

If its actaully welding (as opposed to cladding) Ive never heard of it