Ryder

Ryder

Having a senior moment
Hi folks...

As some of you will know already Kai has a gasless fairly cheap mig welder. I am planning that he/I will be repairing a few ventillation gaps that have appeared on my Disco's bodywork. I am told, however, that welding Ali is nigh on impossible... (though I have seen it done!)

Is there a real trick to getting it right? I am not overly worried about how neat the final job is... I won't be getting it up to a professional standard of course but I would like to have a go... big holes in the boot floor could do with being sorted out (not mot failure though apparently)... and will need to affix two new sills (Also not mot failure despite being mostly missing!

Any advice gladly received.

Cheers

R
 
Cheers MHM - My mig is gasless but I am reading that 100% Argon is a must... is this so or are they just being scaremongers?
 
Its probably worth mentioning that I am welding thin steel to the ali... is this silly?
 
boot floor and sills on a disco are steel so no problem welding them with a mig :)
 
EeEk said:
boot floor and sills on a disco are steel so no problem welding them with a mig :)
Click to expand...

What about the door posts? Have a hole at the botyom of the door post... though I saw Classic Kev weld the one on my v8 so I guess that must be steel too!
 
Ryder said:
Hi folks...

As some of you will know already Kai has a gasless fairly cheap mig welder. I am planning that he/I will be repairing a few ventillation gaps that have appeared on my Disco's bodywork. I am told, however, that welding Ali is nigh on impossible... (though I have seen it done!)

Is there a real trick to getting it right? I am not overly worried about how neat the final job is... I won't be getting it up to a professional standard of course but I would like to have a go... big holes in the boot floor could do with being sorted out (not mot failure though apparently)... and will need to affix two new sills (Also not mot failure despite being mostly missing!

Any advice gladly received.

Cheers

R
Click to expand...


Boys; you need the right tool for the right job. a mig welder for steel is different from the one for aluminum. And if you buy a mig that is gas less:hysterically_laughi then you are making a very big mistake. It would be like a one legged man in a ass kicken contest:rolleyes::rolleyes:. Like bringing a knife to a gun fight.
I've got the experience to back this statement up . Good day and have fun:D
 
Pretty sure you need an AC mig set to weld Ali (something to do with the oxidation properties of ali). Also pure argon gas. Then change your liner and use oversized copper nozzle thingys for the gauge of wire you're using.

Chances are your gasless mig can be set up to use gas. But if its a DC set your onto a non starter there. (most cheaper mig sets are DC).
 
The Mad Hat Man said:
can it be modified to take gas - a lot can?
Click to expand...
The electricity in the boxes are different. need a ac reverse poliarty with high frequency for it to work. You guys have Miller welders over there to see what works. I checked to see if mine here will work in brit land and it will. I know their are other brands that will do the same.They make mig welders that will on both steel and ali. Go on line miller welders .co.uk will ekplain the difference. Is this a test MR.HAT:D:D
 
Guys... thanks for the comments I appreciate it. Looks like I avoid the ali and only repair the steel sections... get someone with a bit of experienc and the right gear to do any ali repairs I might need.

Cheers

R
 
Ryder,

I have my Mig welder here and some Ali wire and a small can of Pure Argon However everything I have been reading and from What Spitfiremk1uk says its not nowhere near as easy as steel. Also to weld thin panels is a bitch with a mig thicker ali is better apparently. I have not tried it yet give me a few weeks to try it but I believe that your not going to repair the body like this. I have used aluweld or similar on my front wing but that was an expensive exercise but it stuck it together no problem but its a bit of an art with a stainless brush, stailness rod, ali rods and keeping it hot enough but twas ok after a while.
 
I tried it with some scrap bits of chequered plate - it's bloody difficult. In the end I gave up after considering buying an add-on ali spooler thingie, the price put me off as I'd probably almost never use it. Later I came across the tip (already mentioned above) about using an oversized nozzle for the thickness of wire you are using, this allegedly will let the ali wire (which is so soft it tangles up inside the lining) run freely, I haven't tried it yet, but will eventually.
 
your all as mad as hatters...

as was said earlier... the structure of the disco is steel.... weldable with a gasless mig.... maybe the welds dont look as pretty as those done with a gas mig.... mabe i need more practise.... i bought a wolf which has the small bottle kit to use gas... but as im welding outside in the wind im persevering with gasless , the bits ive stuck on aint going to fall out and its only me and the mot guy thats ever going to look at the welds.

all the ally panels are bolt on ... why waste time and money trying to learn to weld them.... theres pleanty of used panels about for peanuts.

on the subject of cills.... do i leave those plastic covers on to hide my welding..... or do they just hold water and mud to make the cills rot quicker? i leanin towards the view that their only purpose is looks and they cause the cill rot .
 
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