cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
I have access now to a good 220 Miller wire welder and I may want to weld on a drum. How easy is it to weld a 55 gallon drum without warping and curling the steel? Thanks
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Wire welding a drum
- Thread starter cmwr
- Start date
MisterChrister
Quintessential Chatty Farker
You'll need to turn the machine down and skip weld it, but it works fine.
ebijack
Babbling Farker
Do you have 220v or 440v wired to the unit as they can be wired for either. You want 440 if ever switching over to mig welding aluminum.
Your main problem is getting the current setting and wire speed low enough to not burn thru the steel. If you are not used to welding with a 220 mig.
Even the 120v units are set around 50% power and 40% wire speed to weld a cast iron fitting on a drum.
Welding just steel, 30 -40% power and 30% wire speed on a 120V
Depending on the mig you have access too. You might not be able to dial the power/speed down low enough.
Your main problem is getting the current setting and wire speed low enough to not burn thru the steel. If you are not used to welding with a 220 mig.
Even the 120v units are set around 50% power and 40% wire speed to weld a cast iron fitting on a drum.
Welding just steel, 30 -40% power and 30% wire speed on a 120V
Depending on the mig you have access too. You might not be able to dial the power/speed down low enough.
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
It’s a millermatic 210. I used to be a welder and I have welding experience but these days I don’t weld a whole lot so my welds don’t look as good as they used to back in the day LOL. But I can still get the job done typically. I just remember about eight or nine years ago trying to weld a patch on a 55 gallon drum and it wrinkled really bad and didn’t turn out very good. That was with a 110 wire feed that my cousin had.
ebijack
Babbling Farker
Was that welding with gas or flux where you had that problem.
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
If I remember correctly it was with flux wire.
ebijack
Babbling Farker
That was your problem.
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
Does flux wire weld hotter than using solid core and gas?
ebijack
Babbling Farker
Without going into all the details. In most cases, Yes.
Some 120V migs max can weld 1/4" using flux. 3/16" using gas. Single pass.
Some 120V migs max can weld 1/4" using flux. 3/16" using gas. Single pass.
SmokerKing
is One Chatty Farker
I've done a lot of welding on drums to make my smokers. Haven't seen much warpage except when welding exhaust vents on drum lids, hard to keep them from distorting if you weld on them. I've used 220 VAC and 120 VAC machines. Have welded drums withe Millermatic and Lincol 210's and 140's
Mig weld with gas
Sand and clean areas to be welded thoroughly
Good ground
.025 - .030 wire
Spot - stitch weld - kind of like welding in a patch panel on a car body
Overall, there isn't really anything that is so large that you'll warp your drum. I've welded in a few fire box access doors in my day and they wouldn't warp the drum, had some burn throughs though.
Believe it or not, I've used heat resistant RTV and heat resistant JB Weld to fill in between the areas where I didn't completely fill in the seam with weld.
Mig weld with gas
Sand and clean areas to be welded thoroughly
Good ground
.025 - .030 wire
Spot - stitch weld - kind of like welding in a patch panel on a car body
Overall, there isn't really anything that is so large that you'll warp your drum. I've welded in a few fire box access doors in my day and they wouldn't warp the drum, had some burn throughs though.
Believe it or not, I've used heat resistant RTV and heat resistant JB Weld to fill in between the areas where I didn't completely fill in the seam with weld.
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
My stubby used a ring cut from the top and I pop riveted the two halves together. I used red rtv before sliding the two pieces together. I grill with this also and have had temps around 450 on up and rtv is holding up fine. So you were saying to go around the entire drum with spot welds? I figured I would tack weld to hold in place then go around entire drum with a continuous bead. Maybe that’s too much heat?
SmokerKing
is One Chatty Farker
What are you welding to the drum?
Once you get a bead started, you'll burn through the drum. I built my first fire door access using spot welds until the entire perimeter of the door frame was welded in. No warpage, but I didn't do a continuous bead.
For small pieces that I weld to the drum, yes, small beads. Large pieces, spot weld and ffill with RTV or JB Weld.
In some cases, bolts or screws are options.
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
I’m planning on building another stubby. I cut a section out of the drum and put the two pieces together. I built my first stubby a couple years ago and I used a shim out of the scrap piece to pop rivet the two pieces together.
https://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=245694
SmittyJonz
somebody shut me the fark up.
My cheap flux core wire welder burns holes in drums. I can do small tacks but can’t run a bead - plus I don’t know how to weld............
Rockinar
is Blowin Smoke!
No way you can run a bead. You will blow right through it. You're going to have to do tac-tac-tac method and skip around.
frankenfab
Take a breath!
I would consider it really easy.
Dr. Weld
Knows what a fatty is.
It's easy if you know what you are doing.
First: How thick is your drum?
Second: What size wire you plan on running? This will play a factor on how well this drum will turn out and if it's the appropriate size for said drum.
Third: What gas you running with the wire? If it's in a thin drum, I would use GMAW short circuit mode of metal transfer.
If you are uncomfortable with welding on it, see if you have a Local CTC or College with a welding program that can assist you..
Also, be very cautious on welding on a drum, especially if it's sealed already; expansion of metal is dangerous, deathly dangerous. If you ware welding to seal it, the same applies, so be careful..
First: How thick is your drum?
Second: What size wire you plan on running? This will play a factor on how well this drum will turn out and if it's the appropriate size for said drum.
Third: What gas you running with the wire? If it's in a thin drum, I would use GMAW short circuit mode of metal transfer.
If you are uncomfortable with welding on it, see if you have a Local CTC or College with a welding program that can assist you..
Also, be very cautious on welding on a drum, especially if it's sealed already; expansion of metal is dangerous, deathly dangerous. If you ware welding to seal it, the same applies, so be careful..
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
Thanks to ideas from ebijack I may not have to weld now. But to answer one of your questions I am using .023” wire. Gas? Idk just whatever gas is used with a wire welder lol. Drum thickness I haven’t miced it to know.
ebijack
Babbling Farker
There is no reason to weld all the way around two pieces of drum put together if over lapped joint. Drill 5/16" holes on the outer piece every 4 to 6". Puddle weld the holes closed attaching/welding the pieces together. Same as a spot weld. No RTV required. After seasoning and a few cooks. That joint will be junked up and sealed.
IMHO, unless you use a 220v machine alot.
You will blow lots of holes. Most folks who say they weld, blow holes using a 120v mig when welding on thin gauge metals.
It can be done with a 220v. But doing yourself, might cause more problems and starting over.
Pretty sure the 220 you have access to is using 80/20 or 75/25 NOX common mix.
Unless they also switch over to using the gun and mig welding alum. Then you use different gas.
cmwr
is Blowin Smoke!
After seeing your idea for cutting above the second rib I now am
Not planning on welding a top section to a bottom section. At the time I posted this however I was planning on butt welding a top rolled lip to a bottom half of a drum. Thankfully now that’s not in the plan.
