[acwelder]

hello I am buying a mig welder I was planning to use flux core wire with it but then I heard of co2 welding would this be a good idea for a beginner welder with some experience... this appeals to be because of the low cost and no slag would this be a good idea.,..

thanks

[Artie F. Emm]

I have only read about using co2 for shielding gas, but what I've read is that it can be used on thicker carbon steel. It provides good penetration but also a lot of heat. So you can use it, but probably not for auto body panels, for instance.

WT&T.com has some MIG with co2 videos:
http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/mig ... g-co2.html
http://welding-tv.com/2011/11/30/mig-we ... ing-gases/

Just a reminder- don't mean to sound preachy, sorry if you already know this- but flux core wire and solid wire use different polarities, so you'll need to set it accordingly.

Good luck with it!

[Superiorwelding]

For a beginning welder, either one will be fine. It will depend on what you are wanting to do. If your working outside most of the time, I would use self-shield flux core. The co2 is also a good choice as it I realitvely inexpensive to purchase. While it does promote good root penetration, it also has more spatter and slightly different settings. I would recommend learning both as you will have the need for them as you do more projects. If your budget allows it I would go for 75% argon/ 25% co2 mix as this produces great penetration, less spatter and your toes will wet out a little better.
Let us know which you go for.
-Jonathan

[acwelder]

thanks a lot guys, I think I will stick with the flux core because most of my welding will be outside and non-critical welds

thanks