step up to gas/technique advice

[christofloffer]

not been on here for a while as my health put an almost complete stop to welding for a while.
i finally made the step up to gas, got a 5kg reel of sif wire, got a BOC account and i have a Y-sized bottle of argoshield universal. got a good regulator and flow meter (pea shooter type). also got a adaptor pipe to knock it down to a push in pipe so its not stretching anything or going on its side when on the floor.
i took the plunge as i have some major structural work to do on my land rover and i wasnt keen on trusting gasless. i needed to up my game with it anyway. so i had a little practice with some thin scrap i had kicking around and then found out some thicker stuff to work on. the stuff in the photo's is around the same kind of thickness as the chassis. i am practicing vertical upwards as that is the really important part of the job. i was trying to use the triangular movement thing as that seemed to be recommended.
first attempt:

second attempt:

third attempt:

the welds are pretty strong. i stuck them in the vice and ragged them around but the metal was bending around the weld. i jammed a cold chisel behind them too and smacked it about and again it was the surrounding metal that was bending. so it seems to be holding.
i am getting this light brown deposit, which you can see in the photo's, is that down to the gas? too high/low flow rate maybe? they were all continuous beads rather than a stack of tacks, figured it was better to keep the heat moving if possible as the thickness could take it.
any additional pointers would be great as i want to get this right. i am not afraid of the work but i want to be sure of the welds.

p.s the bits to the right of the main bit in the first photo are just a few warm ups and setting experiments, its the corners that i am working on.

 

[Wendelspanswick]

The brown staining is common with MIG, I think it's just impurities burning off and is nothing to be concerned about.
Looks good though.

 

[Kent]

Is this a series Landy on the 14 swg chassis? if so forget V-up go v-down. v-up is really more for 1/4" up. Far better to get a good v-down than a bad v-up and those v-up need considerably more practice before they can outperform what can be easier done v-down, especially under a car. Those missed bits, undercut sections and what look like cold restarts will negate all advantages gained on penetration. Don't want to sound discouraging but v-up under an old Landy? very few could make an proper job of that.
I should like to say it looks great but to be honest and helpful to the quality of the finished project it don't, try the same tests v-down using a steepish angle pointing the torch up to hold the bead back with the arc all the time feeding into the very front of the pool the manipulation? don't think triangle it will only confuse you instead think joining all the bits weave

 

[gordon stephenson]

If you are mainly welding steel under 6mm, BOC argoshield light on the forum hobby deal would be a lump cheaper for you.

 

[christofloffer]

yeah it is a series landy. its the bulkhead outriggers that i am doing and the chassis rails are still nice and solid so i should have decent steel both sides to work with.
i havent tried vertical down yet as i figured it would actually be harder as the pool would dropping, hadnt thought about pushing it back with the arc. i will give it a try tomorrow and see how it goes. i am far from sold on going up, just seemed logical and i had heard people say it was the strongest way.
i know they dont look all that great. i am still trying to suss out how fast to move with it. logic would say you go faster with gas as you are laying down more metal but it actually seems better going slower but with more accuracy.
good to know the brown stuff is no great worry. i am still thinking in gasless terms and get concerned with inclusions. though the gas is already proving what i had been told, very glad i made the change.

i did consider the argoshield light, and i may go for that once this bottle is gone. for the moment it should be ok as i have a few scrap art projects involving leaf springs and things that i want to play with once the landy is done. the guy in the shop said it should be fine for now as its various thicknesses that i plan on doing. can always change if i find myself doing stuff of a regular thickness.

 

[Richard.]

The brown staining is common with MIG, I think it's just impurities burning off and is nothing to be concerned about.
Looks good though.

Silicon islands. Some wires produce more than others and as said above nothing to worry about with what your doing they are only a pita if your painting it after. You'll not get rid of them with a solid wire, metal core is about the best way I know to eliminate them.
Yep don't waste your time and effort trying to V up on that job as it's not an easy task under a Landy. V down is a fabricators technique for thinner or non structure joints but it is perfectly acceptable and in your case more appropriate. The pool won't run back if you keep the torch pointing up holding the pool and a slight weave.

 

[Cobbler]

I've got the same job to do soon on my son's 110, passenger side bulk head outrigger. Got the outrigger ready, just waiting for a nice weekend when he can come down, he's away a lot for work, so it's just trying to fit it in.