welding tubing for a frame

By michiwelder Date 04-09-2005 17:01

I have decide to go with the dom pipe for my frame i belive it is 1.25"x .120" DOM and i was curious about the gap for the pipe and what it should be? should there be one if i mill the joints? like in school we use like 1/8" gap and land for pipe in arc welding and mig i know its a totally different application but here again i want to do it right and i know i want to get good penetration and what not, i have a hobart handler 140 i believe its 115v and it runs off 220....my question is i have flux core in right now and i believe i am running .030 diameter flux core wire in my machine right now....what setting should i run this at to achieve proper penetration and should i go with gas instead of the fluzx core and what kind of wire and diameter should i use? and should i get a 95:5 tank or a 75:5 tank?

By Bill Mc (**)

Date 04-11-2005 13:27

I'd cut some short pieces of the tube and make some test welds with different joint configurations until you find one you feel comfortable with. Use short lengths so you can look inside and inspect the root side.

Not sure if this is correct in this application but can you use a backing bar...like a short piece of 1" dia round stock inserted into the I.D. and then leave a 1/8" root opening?