Process selection

Welding Process Selection
OR: Which type of welding should I use?

At the request of several of our members I am writing this brief section. In this section I will briefly describe each process, it's pros and cons, and what metals it can weld. The idea being is that you can look at this guide and it will help you decide which welding application fits your particular needs.

GMAW (Mig)
Pros:
High Penetration (compared to SMAW)
High Travel Speed
Easy to learn
Cons:
Generally Requires very clean material
Requires Electricity
Requires shielding gas or a shelf shielding filler material
Porosity can be an issue
Requires consumables and periodic maintenance.
Requires self shielding Filler for outdoor use
Metals Welded:
Carbon Steel
Stainless Steel
Aluminum (requires special drive rolls, Teflon cable liner and generally a special torch)
Training Time: 2 hours for carbon steel

GTAW (Tig)
Pros:
The best way to weld Aluminum
Capable of welding almost any metal
Very clean welds
Capable of welding very thin material
Cons:
Slow Travel speed
High Heat input
Requires shielding gas
Can be difficult to learn
Requires Electricity
Material must be VERY clean
Metals Welded:
Every material you'd be interested in welding
Training Time: 8 hours to be reasonably good at carbon steel

SMAW (Stick, Arc)
Pros:
Simple, rock solid equipment design (very few moving parts to break)
Tolerant of dirty base material
Very strong welds (average weld material has 60 KSi Tensile Strength against GMAW/GTAW strength of 30 KSi)
Tolerant of windy outdoor conditions
Cons:
Dirty Process
Slow travel speed
Requires cleaning between passes
Several electrodes must be baked to prevent hydrogen porosity
Metals Welded:
Carbon steel
Stainless Steel
Aluminum (difficult)
Cast Iron
Cast Steel
Training Time: 4-5 hours for carbon steel

OFW (gas welding)
Pros:
Requires no electricity
Equipment can also be used for cutting/bending/brazing
Cons:
Requires clean base metal
Requires fuel gas and high grade oxygen
Highest danger of all processes
Not practical on materials thicker than 1/4"
Slow Travel Speed
High Heat input
Metals Welded:
Carbon Steel
Aluminum (very difficult to weld, brazing is a better choice)
Cast iron
Cast Steel
Training Time: 4 to 5 hours for thin carbon steel

brandon_a_boyer	Latest page update: made by brandon_a_boyer , Jun 25 2011, 5:32 PM EDT (about this update About This Update Created page - brandon_a_boyer 360 words added view changes - complete history)
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