Stainless Flux core versus hard wire

[chemoweld]

After 18 years of pulsed mig welding with hard wire and doing an acid wash to clean I had a welding inspector recommend using flux cored wire, non pulsed, for better penetration.

In a typical application I make hundreds of welds to 3/16" rods. The acid wash makes for easy clean up versus wire wheeling the gray mess left by flux core welds.

Flux core wire costs $27 per pound versus $10 or $12 for hard wire plus $70 for abraded rolls.

WHY should I USE FLUX CORED?

Anyone want a deal on 12.5lbs of .035 flux cored s.s. wire /abraded rolls?

 

[chemoweld]

I could really use ANY ADVICE from someone who has experience using flux cored stainless wire (shielded with 75/25). So far my attempts to weld some 22g 304 are achieving horrible results, quite the opposite of what the welding inspector led me to believe I would get.

 

[chemoweld]

OK, A few inquiries and some hands on welding later I find this flux cored stainless wire is the shiznit for 1/8" thick and up stainless mig welding. It penetrates deeper with a more controlled weld pool leaving a much nicer, almost perfectly flat butt or 90d weld. What the aws1.6-1999 stainless steel code book welding inspectors like to see when they come knocking at your door.

It also makes a sound like a fizzing martini instead of a mid caliber machine gun aka pulsed mig which is kinda nice.