Welding How-To

Last updated: May 4, 1998

Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 09:00:35 -0700
From: Seth Bibler

Actually the TIG welders I have seen feeds the wire the same as a MIG welder. The only difference is the Argon gas (it's actually a mixture of gasses, but I'm not sure what) that the MIG welder uses to make a cleaner weld. It envelops the area you are welding with inflammable gas and the resultant weld is much purer and stronger. In fact the MIG welder my father owns was originally a TIG welder until he purchased the Argon gas tank and regulator to attach it to the welder.

The type of welder that uses rods is called an Arc welder (torh welders also use rods). Technically a TIG and MIG welder is the same basic principle (electrical welders), but they are much more versitile and use the gases to make a more pure weld (no cabon content).

Lincon makes many MIG and TIG welders, but they are not very well constructed. Ask your local welding supply shop for their reccomendations. We are using a Miller Millematic 130. It takes only 110 V AC instead of 220.

Unfortunatly the cost of a MIG or TIG welder is pretty high... $500-$1000+ (including the tank and regulator) from what I have seen. I think we paid near $600 for the Miller and accessories.

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Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 11:04:55 -0600
From: "Sterling, Chuck"

TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) uses a Tungsten electrode and a hand-held or externally-fed rod. TIG can be used on just about any material including chrome-moly steel, aluminum, and magnesium (with the right setup; don't try this at home).

MIG (Metal Inert Gas) uses a spool-fed welding wire as its electrode, which is fed through the handle and inert gas flow into the weld. The inert gas can be one or a mixture of many, including Helium, Argon, Carbon Dioxide, and probably others I don't know about; which you use depends on the materials you're welding and the weld characteristics you want.

Inflammable gases burn. So do flammable ones. Non-flammable gases do not burn.