Minimizing spatter

[Kevin B.]

Using a Lincoln 100 with .35 Lincoln flux core wire. I've been playing with voltage, wire speed, and how close I hold the gun to my puddle, but the amount of spatter I get still seems really random. Sometimes it's real clean, sometimes it spatters everywhere.

I know I should expect some spatter with flux core, but the way it changes from just a little to spatter everywhere makes me think something I'm doing isn't consistent. Any tips?

Also, how much should I expect to spend on a usable set of gloves? The HF gloves I have aren't cutting it.

 

[skippy]

Spatter is usually a sign of contamination in the weld try cleaning it batter and investing in a bottle of 75/25 I also noticed with flux core you have to turn the wire speed down a little more than you would with regular wire.... What diameter wire you running?

 

[thenag]

As for gloves, I love Tillman gloves from US Welding. I don't remember what I paid but my welding gloves have lasted years. I also swear by their work gloves and will frequently tack weld with the work gloves.

Nathan

 

[driver920]

aggree with above clean is the big thing but also metals will have pockets of slight impurities in it they do make a spray that while it doesnt stop splatter it will stop 90% of it from sticking to your work when used properly

 

[blznnp]

For welding gloves, I use to buy the nicer elk skin ones i believe, tillman brand. But then I starting using costco leather gloves, three pack for 19.99 i believe. They worked the best for me for all around work, which was welding structural/ornamental steel and then installing bolts, columns, beams, cutting, torching. They were cheaper than the gloves that I only wanted to use for welding, but lasted longer and I didn't have to worry as much about using them for everything else. Turning the wire down will help some but that spatter that you have there in the picture, doesn't look that bad to me, just take a file or a chisel to it real quick, or the end of a piece of metal. You can use the anti-spatter spray that is for nozzles on the material, just try to not get it where you are welding. It always would mess with me for the first part of the weld and then create a smell or smoke, can't remember which.

 

[Kevin B.]

Thanks guys. I clean my surfaces down to shiny metal, but my flap wheel probably isn't the cleanest, should I have a dedicated "clean" flap wheel? Should I hit the surface with brake cleaner or something before I weld?

 

[frieed]

Never use chlorinated products for cleaning metal for welding (creates phosgene, a form of nerve gas, when heated). Acetone is your friend here

 

[jeeper]

Are you buying HF weld wire also? It has 100x the splatter of Home Depot wire, and is not as reliable with weld consistency. Last time I checked it actual cost more at HF also..

 

[jeeper]

Should I hit the surface with brake cleaner or something before I weld?

NNOOOOOOOOO!!! I had done some research on brake cleaner.. If it vaporizes, the fumes are super deadly.. almost kill you on the spot deadly.. It may have changed over the years, but I do not allow brake cleaner in my shop..

 

[UNSTUCK]

As with most things, you get what you pay for. Lots of the more expensive welders have arc control that you can dial in for more or less spatter. Too much wire speed tends to cause it as well. Straight CO2 will burn hotter and works better if you have a low power machine, but will cause more spatter. The more argon in your mix, the less spatter you will get, but the price goes way up for anything other then 75/25.

I pretty much only use foam nitrile gloves for everything now. I get good ones super cheap at work. They tend to burn up if they get to close to the action, but I love having tight glove on for finger work and stuff like that.

 

[clfrnacwby]

Happened to stop by Home Depot today so I checked out their gloves for you

 

[blznnp]

Your wire wheel should be just fine. Like stated, don't use brake cleaner. The metal in the picture looks plenty clean enough. With any inner shield wire (flux core only, no gas needed) you will get splatter, at least from all the types I have used.

As nice as those heaver welding gloves are for protecting your hands, the biggest draw back is that when you get them close to the arc they tend to get hard an become not so....flexible. At least when welding with stick an bigger welding machines.

 

[carsonc1974]

I dont have alot of experience with fluxcore, but my experience is similar in that I get lots of splatter... The few times I ever used a small welder with flux, I have had to turn the wirespeed all the way down, and the voltage 3/4 to full power to make it do what I wanted... I gave up on small welders and flux long ago, way too frustrating for what I was doing.

Like others have said clean, and yours looks pretty good. I dont think you should have to acetone or anything like that, but it will never hurt. Only other thing I can add is possible to fast of wire speed?

I Know its not reducing splater, but have you ever used an antisplatter spray? makes removing the splatter you get much easier to remove. PAM even works and smells like french fries!

 

[Kevin B.]

Never use chlorinated products for cleaning metal for welding (creates phosgene, a form of nerve gas, when heated). Acetone is your friend here

NNOOOOOOOOO!!! I had done some research on brake cleaner.. If it vaporizes, the fumes are super deadly.. almost kill you on the spot deadly.. It may have changed over the years, but I do not allow brake cleaner in my shop..

Ok then, I'm gonna go ahead and not do that.

Are you buying HF weld wire also? It has 100x the splatter of Home Depot wire, and is not as reliable with weld consistency. Last time I checked it actual cost more at HF also..

No, switching from HF to Lincoln wire was the first thing I did.

Thanks for all the advice, guys. I'll turn down the speed even more and maybe I'll try that PAM. I like french fries.

 

[sLcREX]

Make your you have a good solid ground to what you are welding to.

Clean an your welding area which sounds like you are doing just fine. No need to have an exclusive flap disc for it.

Maintaining around 3/4" distance from your puddle would probably be ideal so you're not too far from it but you can still see the puddle.

Lower your wire speed or increase the amp power going in.

These are just some basics of it to add to what everyone else has said. And yeah wire quality will matter.

As as for gloves I just use insulated leather Tillman work gloves. I don't use welding gloves unless I am burning up some structural steel on the field.

 

[Herzog]

Never use chlorinated products for cleaning metal for welding (creates phosgene, a form of nerve gas, when heated). Acetone is your friend here

I use mineral spirits in a spray bottle for all my cleaning now. Best thing ever.

 

[Kevin B.]

I Know its not reducing splater, but have you ever used an antisplatter spray? makes removing the splatter you get much easier to remove. PAM even works and smells like french fries!

Crisco canola oil spray. Almost completely eliminated the spatter, and what did stick wiped off with a shop rag. Thanks so much for the tip!

It didn't smell like french fries though.