floorboard welding advice needed

[Guest HighwaystaR]

I am fixin to patch up a hole or two in the ol floorboards of the 280zx. the question i have relates pretty much to if a 110 volt mig welder will do a good a job as a 240 or w/e they are. try as i might i have no access to a welding outlet or anyone with a mig welder so i have to rent one. any help is much appreciated thank you!

[wheelman]

A 110 MIG will do fine as long as it's a good quaility unit. If it has infinitely adjustable wire speed and current then it's even better because you can tune it to the thin sheet used for the floor.

Make sure the unit is a Hobart, Lincoln or Miller and at least 125 AMP.

 

When you weld make small tacks rather than trying to do long runs. To much heat will burn through the thin sheet very quickly then you're left with another hole to fix. Take your time and you should be fine.

 

I'm not an experienced welder at all, in fact I just learned while patching rust holes on my 240 but I've found that the flux cored wire is easier to use and the solid wire with shield gas makes much cleaner welds.

 

Wheelman

[Z-TARD]

I have yet to do the floor boards in my car, but I have done a little welding with a $200 Wal Mart wire feed to fill in the rear marker lights and antenna hole. I'm confident the machine would be capable of doing floorbards as well, but like Wheelman said, stick to short tack welds to weld everything up. Long beads will just burn holes, and worse yet will most likely cause the piece you are welding on to shift alignment so it wont fit as precisely. Treat the tack welds like you are torquing down head bolts, use an alternating pattern so the welding heat is evenly distributed and it should work out Ok. Hope this helps,

 

Mike

[datsunlover]

I'm not a pro welder, but I learned on my car as I went, and it's something you just jave to practice. I used a Lincoln 110 volt (flux core wire) to put my entire 280z back together Floor boards, quarters, hatch/panels, rear floor, door bottoms, rad sadle and front unibody/frame. Oh yah, and my frame conectors (.125" wall 2.5 square tube) but those were a bit of work.. I hate welding above my head/upside down.. Tacking is the way to go, but you can get short beads if you're carefull. I'd lay about .5" (or less) and let it cool, skip .5" and go again. You can go back after and fill in the spaces, and get a very solid weld. If you're getting a lot of blow through, just do little tacks and lay them over eachother to slowly work in one direction.

[datsunan]

Make sure both peaces being welded are ground clean on both sides a minimum of 1 inch from where you are welding or it will flame up and you will not get a good weld. If you are welding from under the car have someone standing by with an exstiguisher.

[spork]

A 110 volt welder will work fine, but you'll be a lot happier if you can get one taht uses gas instead of that flux coated wire stuff. You'll get a lot nicer welds with the gas and be much happier in the end. Flux coated will get the job done, but won't look near as nice. I prefer the lincoln over a miller becuase it allows fine adjustment of wire speed and amps while the miller will generally have a nkow with "clicks" for each adjustment. I never seem to be happy and want a setting inbetween the "clicks". Thats why I bought a lincoln!

[Brad-ManQ45]

Spork's right - make sure it is a MIG welder - not just a flux core.

 

Also, as you don't have much experience, I would recommend usung Harris Twenty Guage wire. This is witr that is not solid, but has powder in the core designed for use with gas. It's real hard to burn through with this stuff if you are stiching like has vbeen recommended.

 

It costs, but the time and metal you save...

[Guest HighwaystaR]

thank you all so much for the advice. so so helpful!