Welding question

[Mr Lee]

I just bought a multi-process welder which will MIG and TIG weld.  I am a beginner welder. 

How should I fill in the little tiny pits in my bumper?

I tried filling them in with the TIG torch and some filler wire.  Well, this made the metal warp and sunken in ... Which left me worse off than before. 

How do I prevent this warpage?  How would you fill in these little pits? 

Pic shows the little pits in blue.  And the yellow arrow points to one I filled in which is now sunken in.   



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[GoodysGotaCuda]

I just bought a multi-process welder which will MIG and TIG weld.  I am a beginner welder. 

How should I fill in the little tiny pits in my bumper?

I tried filling them in with the TIG torch and some filler wire.  Well, this made the metal warp and sunken in ... Which left me worse off than before. 

How do I prevent this warpage?  How would you fill in these little pits? 

Pic shows the little pits in blue.  And the yellow arrow points to one I filled in which is now sunken in.   


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You can touch it off with a MIG, depending on what you plan on doing with the bumper, lead or body filler may be a reasonable alternative.

[cuda hunter]

If it's going to be chromed it can't be body filler.

[Mr Lee]

Yeah i want to chrome it.  I was also thinking about the lead.  I've never worked with it before but think that would probably do a nice job. 

I tried using the MIG also but im getting warpage. 
Its better to have the volts high and do a short quick shot than it is to have a lower temp and hold it there longer, yes?   
What I probably need is something I dont have a lot of.   Experience.  Ha.


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[cuda hunter]

Can any of yal out there vouch that the chroming process will adhere to the lead? 

[hanksemenec]

Tig silicon bronze over the pits, much lower melting point. It will chrome. https://www.muggyweld.com/product/super-alloy-1/ I did pot metal repairs with this, do not know if it will chrome.

[hanksemenec]

https://www.muggyweld.com/video/shots-muggy-weld-repairs/ looks like there is an example of chrome plated Alloy 1.

[cuda hunter]

Those welds are like artwork!  Hang that on the wall !

[Mr Lee]

Tig silicon bronze over the pits, much lower melting point. It will chrome. https://www.muggyweld.com/product/super-alloy-1/ I did pot metal repairs with this, do not know if it will chrome.

Muggy weld was probably gonna be my next attempt.  I've used that stuff on a badly pitted pot metal side marker housing and then had it chromed.  It will chrome.  I found it a lot harder to use than it looks in the video.  They make it look so easy.   I had a real hard time getting it to stick where i wanted.  Even with the flux.
I've never tried it on a bumper but I guess it might work.  It says it works on steel so maybe i'll give it a try.  Just afraid of making my bumper worse than it is. 
Heres the side marker I did awhile back to show that it does indeed take the chrome.
There are still some remnants of pits there but compared to what it looked like before, I'll take it.




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[soundcontrol]

What MIG/TIG did you get, and how do you like it?
My TIG just broke and I'm in the market for a new one, looking at the new ESAB Rebel.

[Mr Lee]

Well, i wound up spending way more than i wanted to, but I figured its a good investment to buy something I can grow into.  I went with the Everlast Lightning MTS 225.  I wanted to be able to TIG aluminum, and to do that you need a machine that can do AC as well as DC.  This seemed like the best bang for the buck in that department.  It also does stick.  So its MIG, TIG, Stick.  And I offset the cost by selling a bunch of stuff (like old mopar parts and motorcycle stuff, i wasnt using).  Hehe.
So far, I really like it.  Easy to use interface.  Lots of adjustability.  Nice warranty... i think 5 years.  I've only used like 3 or 4 other welders in my life and dont have a lot of experience with them but from what I can tell, it welds really nicely.  It's my first time TIG welding too and I love it.  Looking fwd to getting good with it.  It's a pretty large machine but at least I have three machines in one to take up less space in my garage.  I've already used it a lot in the short time I've had it and made a tool with it to install some plank  flooring. 


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[soundcontrol]

TIG is great, love it, I use it on all my panel stuff except for plug welding, MIG works better there for me.

I practiced for years before I dared to weld visible panels on my Challenger, but now I can do it with almost no distorsion at all, (check my resto thread). Too bad Everlast is not available here, (Sweden) need a brand that I can get parts for easy if it breaks. The TIG I have now do not have a reseller anymore, no parts available...
So this time I'm going with a local good brand name. Swedish ESAB or finish Kemppi I think.

I wanna learn how to weld aluminum also, not that I need to right now, but if I spend around 3 grand on a new welder, might as well be AC/DC. I do have a fairly new MIG so questions is if I should sell that and buy the combo machine to save space, or just get a AC/DC TIG. 

[Mr Lee]

Hmm yeah I dont know. I guess you'd have to weigh your options with what you could sell your current welder for ($).  Tough call.
Cool i will check out your build thread. Maybe I can learn something about distortion because, I need to. Lol.

I am gonna have to modify my exhaust because I have a fast ratio idler arm hitting my down pipe from the manifold. So, im gonna get some scrap exhaust and start practicing because im sure im going to melt right through it at first.


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[YellowThumper]

To eliminate small pitting holes you should grind them larger so they are thoroughly cleaned out. Larger but clean well will fill with less heat than trying to power thru the embedded impurities that caused pitting in the first place. Tig would be my choice.
Does your tig have the lift arc option? This would be where you actually place tungsten on the steel. Press power lever and lift tip off. This option will allow for minuscule power levels from the start as the arc spark doesn't have to "search" a path when starting. Also what diameter is your tig rod? If it is too large in diameter. Because these would just be spot filling. You can just grind the rod diameter down smaller for a short length.
Make sure grounding is close and proper as well.
Tungsten should have a smooth taper from diameter to the point. Typically taper to point is minimum 3x length of diameter. Point should not be dead sharp. After grinding. Blunt it ever so slightly. When grinding the taper I also will grind it along the direction of its length. As in the grinding grains flow same direction as the argon flow.

Good luck.
Mike.

[MoparLeo]

Here is the best and most obvious recommendation. Practice, practice, practice...You can't teach or explain experience. You can't do chroming yourself so why are you trying to prep for it. The chrome company will weld, grind, buff and plate it. Practice on old bumpers just to get to know what you can do with your welder. It takes time and lots of practice. The skill will serve you well in the future if you stick with it.