Thanks for the prompt replies and information. I think I will have to get some 1/2 plate and just weld a bunch of it, experimenting and noting the voltages and wire speeds that work best. Unlike most of what professional welders point toward I'm always interested more in appearance of the finished p...

Here it is. I'm using .035 wire btw. Thanks for your patience.

Richard

Thanks for the reply. I know I'll need multiple passes for 3/8 and 1/2 inch; that's how I did my last piece which was 3/8 with some 1/2 inch. It just took forever and a lot of grinding to smooth things out. Most of my pieces are not subject to heavy stresses so I hope multi passes will work. I will ...

I am a sculptor, not a professional welder, but as I've started using heavier gauges of steel in some of my pieces it became obvious that my little Lincoln 180 was fighting way over its weight class. I recently purchased an ESAB 235 EM (MIG only) welder. I've been using the sMIG feature to start off...

Thank you Oscar. That takes a load off my mind.
Richard

Thanks, but I made a mistake in my description. What I meant was the flexible cable/liner that the gun is attached to, which I mistakenly thought was called the shielding gas hose. After thinking about it I should have realized that that would have been the name of the hose connecting the gas cylind...

This may sound basic, but what is the best way to store the shielding gas hose on my MIG welder? I've always been afraid to coil it too tightly for fear of kinking it but i need to keep it out of the way when I'm not welding. I Googled this subject but found nothing useful. Any suggestions would be...