Wire feed for manifold?

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HoboNasty
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Wire feed for manifold?

Post by HoboNasty »

Can you use a wire feed to weld a turbo manifold together?

This is the exact wire feed that I have.


http://www.google.com/products/catalog? ... CHEQ8wIwAA#
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TinyT
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Post by TinyT »

you can wirefeed manifolds all day, but that welder is a fluxcore, and fluxcore sucks. Im not sure if it has the ability to be used with solid wire and gas or not. id look into that
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eazye2000
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Post by eazye2000 »

At 88 AMPS of output, you might want to reconsider... I know a few tricks to heat up flux-core to make it penetrate a bit more, but you have to at least have an idea of what you're doing before you even start.

If you used gas, you could see how much you penetrate as you weld. And I would personally go this route if you could. Gas is really nice... Solid wire/gas = win. Plus it's a pain to clean flux-core.

If you were making a simple LOG manifold, I would give it a try. Would be a nice learning experience. If it cracks, you have take it and have it gone over for a few bones and chalk it up to learning.

I would say MAYBE if you can grind a decent sized 'V' into your butt-welds, you might be able to make a few passes. But I don't know. I've not used such a small welder to try and do something like a manifold. Others may have better advice than me. I'm a newb.
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TinyT
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Post by TinyT »

sch 10 manifolds are welded at less than 88 amps
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eazye2000
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Post by eazye2000 »

TinyT wrote:sch 10 manifolds are welded at less than 88 amps
Yeah, I'm not a seasoned welder. I don't know how much is good for what 'gauge/sch'. I just know that if you don't have enough heat, it's like soldering sh!t together.

OP:
Just take two pieces of the material you're going to use, and weld them together. Then look inside and see how well you have penetrated. I don't know what else to suggest. Give it hell with what you got!
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Post by HoboNasty »

Thanks for the replies. I'll buy two pieces of pipe and try it out sometime this spring. The problem with my wire feed is that it doesn't include any accessory bungs. All it is is the gun/welder/ground/plug. I've welded my own down pipe together, I used pretty thin metal and so far its holding up pretty good. I also have this problem with major spatter, but its probably just my bad skills lol
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Post by Lucient »

You can use it but it will require a little more skill. When you fit up the schedule 40 fittings you will need to leave a gap between the fittings to ensure penetration. I would recommend a 3/32" gap and you will have to move fairly quickly. I would practice with some pieces first. Also its really awkward to get the gun into some positions so think it through first before you begin welding.
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Post by Kfred »

If you aren't good at welding (like me) then I don't suggest you leave a gap for penetration. Butt the two fittings up and make a v-groove at the joint almost all the way through the material instead.

You are going to have some splatter using flux core. However, you can greatly reduce the amount of splatter by doing the following:
Clean your weld area before welding (do not use chlorinated brake cleaner)
Keep the gun as close to the metal as possible without arcing out
Make sure you have a good gun angle
Don't stop then start again without chipping

Take your time making everything butt up nicely, and the welding will be much easier. I used flux core on my turbo manifold and it is holding up fine.
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Post by trk240sx »

+1 to solid wire and gas. This welder will work, just make sure you get the correct wire for your purpose.
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Post by p00t »

I can see you getting sched 40 piping to weld if you make the bevels bigger than how steampipe comes new. Your biggest issue will be the flanges, the thicker metal wants to stay cold and your welds will not stick unless you preheat the flange in an oven or with a torch.

So its certainly possible but you need to learn some "tricks" to make the welder think its stronger than it really is. The more the metal's thickness is over the welders capability the more tricks you must do.

But you will never know unless you practice and try.
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Post by Jackasknissan »

heat is not what you thnk , it equates to voltage, which actually detemines arc lentgh

sounds like to much wire speed/ not enough votage raise the volatge till you get a nice buzz with a litttle crackle, if youve ever ran 7018 rod, you want about the same sound, learn to tune it to achieve this, i bet the spatter is almost non existant.


t8 / t11 flux core is nicee i use it a lot at work looks sexy as ***** painted.

solid core works fine too, but keep in mind you need a shielding gas.


fyi tiny, i do my roots at 130 amps for sch40, if there is little to no gap, and 115 with a 3/32 gap and about a3/16; ish keyhole

fill is done at 75 ish
and cap at about the same pending how im feeling for being alert and steady.
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TinyT
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Post by TinyT »

thats a lot of heat. but I dont pay much attention to other peoples methods because what works for one person doesnt work for another in welding.

I just noticed you said sch, 40 though, and Iv never used that thick of stainless before. why would you use that stuff? lol. way overkill If your talking about using it in the motorsports world
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Post by Mark Washington »

Thats going to be an overkill header. Is this for the DE?
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Post by Jackasknissan »

its only .140 wall vs .095 wall for sch10

given my placement im better off with sch40

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