Welding Tips and Tricks

Hi all,
I am a beginner aluminum MIG hobbyist with a brand new setup described below. So far, I have been unable to lay a clean bead. I am only able to get spattering/popping and am looking for guidance on what to try next.

My setup:
- Lincoln Electric Easy MIG 140 115V Flux Cored/MIG Welder - 140 Amp Output, Model# K2697-1
- Lincoln Electric Magnum 100SG Welding Spool Gun
- 20 CF pure Argon tank

What I've tried:
1) Varying work material thickness between 22 Ga - 0.125"
2) Varying argon flow rate between 20-40 SCFH
3) Varying feed rate and voltage settings across the full ranges
4) Extreme cleaning of surfaces prior to welding

See the photos attached for my horrible results. Anyone have ideas/suggestions? I greatly appreciate it.

Make sure the spool gun is hooked up to positive polarity.... Keep about. . 75 stick out.

Also make sure the spoolgun connection to the machine is pushed the whole way in and not blocking your gas flow.

Len

Yep, my first guess is that the polarity is wrong...

You said it was a flux-core/MIG machine, and those usualy come set up for flux-core. Check your manual for how to reverse polarity. That information should be there.

Steve S

Hi all,
Thanks for your comments!
Turns out the machine was wired by default with the opposite polarity. Somehow, despite multiple checks I still missed it . I will be able to swap the polarity on Friday and make some attempts again. I'm sure I will be in need of more help
Thanks again,
W