Is a flux cored welder any good?

Okay I know I'm gonna catch some flak for this post. I am not a welder by any means, and I learned how to weld in high school on a old giant ugly stick welder. I have a Lincoln stick welder which I use occassionally for odd jobs and such (my rusty bulkhead). So I was thinking of getting a cheap flux cored welder, seems to be alot cleaner and user friendly. Can someone tell me what they think about them/ personal experience?

 

Flatblackstude, I'd save up a few more dollars and get one that is capable of MIG shielding. Most of the MIG machines can run the flux-cored wire, so you'll have capability to do either. Flux cored might be just a bit cleaner than stick, but will still make smoke. MIG on clean metal is almost smoke-free. The flux-core machines are OK, but if you start doing a lot more welding you'll soon want to move on to MIG. I've always liked to see my weld, and not guess about what it looks like under the pool of flux.

 

You'll get alot of negative replies on a flux core welder. All I can say is I am so happy I started with a flux core. I built alot of stuff with it and had 1 failure due to not fish plating something. When I bought a gas welder my quality jumped dramatically.
You won't get show quality welds with a flux core but you will be able to build and enjoy whatever on a budget.
I recommend it.


BloodyKnuckles

 

Definitely big differernce in the two... I'd save up for the better one.
Even go with the 220 volts and then you can weld much thicker material.
If you go with the 110 volts,be sure you have good source of power and good extension cord is important. good luck

 

Most of the negative responses you will get are going to be from people who can't weld very well with any kind of method. Flux core is great if you are going to be welding outside where there might be a breeze as the gas won't blow away. The preparation for flux core is the same, clean metal, good ground, and the proper machine settings. Once the slag is chipped away, you should be left with a clean weld. I use mine, and it works great.

 

I have had mine for about 15 years, love it. I suck at welding, so I just blame it on the welder !!! But seriously, for sheetmetal and minor fab work, it does good. I just wouldn't trust it for any suspension or important structural work. I bought mine at Sams and have had NO problems with it.

 

Amen to that. I saw one at the local Hardware store for $300.00 and said to my self, I should buy that. I keep watching it, and to make a long story short, bought it for $50.00 out of the box, on sale. Its not a MIG, but it gets the job done. and for what i'm doing, its great, I can weld with gas or stick, so I have a choise. Great for sheet metal. Ice man

 

i bought one when i started out and it didn't take long for me to swape it over to a gas bottle. save up and get one that you can at least upgrade to gas later on you will be thankful

 

The small Lincolns, like the ones at Home Depot, are cheap, and bulletproof. As long as you get the right model ,you can get a kit later to change it over to gas also. It's an easy changover, we do it all the time depending on what's easiest for the situation out in the field. Nothing wrong with fluxcore, for a long time all most of us ever had was stick anyhow.It will still smoke like stick, but you will probably like it better for light gage stuff. Stay away from the Chinamen stuff, unless you don't care about parts, not to mention your job. Good luck.

 

A key disadvantage to flux core is the spatter. If you were trying to weld a patch on your dash, for instance, you'd have to cover a hell of a lot more than if using MIG. For welding brackets, etc., on a welding table, it's less of a concern.

 

I bought a HD175 Lincoln from Home Depot. It's a 220v Mig and can be used for flux core as well.

I tried using the flux core. Now, I'll admit I'm no great welder, and that I still have a TON to learn. However, I get decent welds with Mig.

I tried using the flux core for something, and before I ever do that again, I'll try welding the two pieces of metal by rubbing them back and forth really, really fast and hope the friction makes them stick.

Some guys are good at it--I'm not one of them. Mig is pretty much fool-proof though.

Save for the Mig.

-Brad

 

Go for it! I bought a Century 80GL ( made by Lincoln ) about 2 years ago. It is great for light work. I bought it mainly for doing patch panels/sheetmetal. If all your doing is spot welding and not trying to run beads, they work fine. If your planning on doing heavier stuff then I would go with a 220/shielded unit.

FYI... Be sure to connect to a grounded receptical which is connected to a 20 amp branch circuit with a nominal voltage of 115 to 125 volts, 60 hertz. If connected to circuit protected by fuses, be sure to use time delay fuse marked "D".

 

What they said. If it's your budget, don't take bread off the table, you'll be plenty happy with the flux-core. If it's just a matter of saving up a couple of paydays, get the MIG. Take any diss of fluxcore with a grain of salt. Wipe the smoke off with a rag.

.

 

I tell ya what i have been looking for and started saving on, Craftman is has a mig of their own for sale. It is $399 i believe. Does anyone on here have one or used one, what do you think? I have heard some good reviews about it.

 

these little welders are awsome for the fact that my wife can plug it into an extension cord and weld her craft stuff and i dont have to screw with it. they have their place.

 

I agree that you need to buy a machine that can be upgraded to mig. Flux core is OK for sticking stuff together but you will never get the quality weld or penetration that you will with the gas and solid wire. Mig does so much better at welding thin stuff too. I use mixed gas with mine argon/CO2. Takes a different regulator but its the same regulator thats required to run straight argon if your gonna weld aluminum or stainless. You'll never regret it if you spend a little extra and get a gas capable rig. Your will if you dont.

 

I bought one from the dreaded Harbor freight. I ued the wire that came with it pretty quickly. when I got more wire, my results immediatly improved. Not to say thay are professional but they are decent welds with decent penetratio. I have found that most of the spatter is from welding clean metal to rusty stuff, clean to clean works pretty well. So I would say that good uality wire is as much a factor as practice and the machine.

Check out your local Farm supply stores. Tractor Supply Company has some pretty decent stuff for not a lot much more than the HF stuff.

Again good for sheet metal and home needs. If yor fabbing chassis stuff, probably ok for tacking and then having someone finish with heavier duty machine. Mine is 110 30 amp. I pulled a circuit from half of the 220 dryer circuit.

One thing to look for is the effective duty cycle. The duty cycle refers to the portion of a minute that effective welds can be made. The higher that numbeer the better and likely the more costly the machine.

 

fux fluxcore!

 

If you don't understand how to watch the arc puddle when welding, don't buy the fluxcore. If you can get a grasp on it then a flux core is a good way to start out. When welding with any type, the most important thing is to watch the puddle. Where the puddle goes, so goes the bead. I have been welding for over 50 years and bought a cheapo flux core machine and once I got the speed and heat correct, I use it for every small job I have. Just don't try to use it for anything that needs any penetration on heavy metal.

 

I have a Hobart Handler 140. I've been using flux cored wire on it for patching body panels but I'm about to convert it over to gas shielded. It came with the regulators and just have to swap the ground wire over. Get the best of both worlds.

 

I think the flux cored welders are great.Built 4 or 5 rods with it. I use stick welder for frame work and fluxcore mig for everything else.Splatters a little but never having a good welder,I don't know the difference.

 

The trouble with fluxcore is the flux comes up through the moulting weld causing pocking of the finish weld. If the appearance of the weld does not mater then it's ok.

 

right on.

 

I started with a Lincoln 110 flux core welder, and had the gas conversion too. It will get you by, but the money you spend on grinding discs to clean up the spatter would put you into a nicer model. The 110 with a gas conversion makes for a great sheet metal welder. For bigger fab jobs, I upgraded to a Miller 180 and love it.

Watch Craigslist. My dad just bought a Miller 210 that retails for $2000.00...for the low price of $500.00. It included two tanks, and had never had a complete spool of wire ran through it..for all intents it was new. Alot of people hurting for money now makes for some good deals out there.

 

You can usually have them converted over to a gass shield process machine. Carl Hagan

 

I got a 110volt flux-core from tractor supply and love it about all of them can be converted to gas but for my use and ability I like the flux-core,can't weld too heavy stuff but you can use your stick welder for that.

 

I have a hobart handler 140 110volt and use it with flux wire all the time, it works great if you get it adjusted correctly and you can make some really nice looking welds with good penetration. If I do any welding on a frame or suspension parts I do use a MIG/220V welder. But for anything else a decent 110volt wirefeed fluxcore will do a good job.

 

I do most of my welding with my Mig, Tig, and O/A welder ( Henrob ).
I have a Stick Welder, but I dont use it much.

Recently I needed to weld something that was too far away for the cord of my 220 Mig to reach ( more extention was going to be expensive ), and it was too much of a heatsink for my O/A setup ( and too slow )

So I got one of those little H/F Fluxcore Welders, and I was expecting nothing off it.
To my surprise you can lay a decent weld with it...

Its a cool little tool for the money, but I wouldn't want it to be my only machine.

If I could only have one, it would be the O/A setup...

 

personally..i would save up a bit more to get the one that uses the Gas as a shielding..instead of flux