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In Mig welding lessons a thin wire acts as the electrode. This wire is fed from a spool mounted on or inside the welding machine through a flexible tube and out of the nozzle on the welding gun or torch. The wire is fed continuously when the trigger on the welding gun is pulled. When the trigger is pulled, it also switches on the welding current and a “shielding gas.”

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An electric arc forms between this wire electrode and the workpiece and heats both metals above their melting point. These metals mix together or “coalesce” and solidify to join the workpieces together (or into a single piece). The metal in the parts to be joined is called the “base metal” and the metal that comes from the melting wire electrode is called “filler metal.” Because the wire electrode melts as it is being used, the MIG wire is a “consumable electrode.” MIG welding always adds filler metal to the joint.

Here is the MIG wire being fed through the wire feeder into the flexible tube or “conduit liner” The liner goes through the hose or “welding lead” all the way to the torch nozzle. At the nozzle, the wire is fed through a “contact tip” and comes out at the point of the weld.

Shielding gas is also fed through the welding lead. It goes a through a gas diffuser and flows out through the nozzle. This shielding gas, which is often a mix of Argon and CO2 protects the molten metal from reacting with oxygen, water vapor, and other things in the atmosphere.

The shielding gas is stored in high pressure cylinders like these. The pressure is reduced to a usable level by a device called a “regulator.”

In MIG welding school, all of the machine controls are set on the co2 welding machine itself. The most important of these are polarity, wire speed and voltage. The trigger on the gun is just and on/off switch. For most MIG welding, the current is Direct Current or DC. DC is like the current flowing from a car battery. One wire is always the negative and one is always the positive. In DC MIG welding, the electrode is usually positive, and the workpiece is negative. The term DCEP is used, indicating that the current is DC, and the electrode is positive. This is also called “reverse polarity,” but DCEP is a more descriptive term.

In an electric circuit the current flows in a loop. In MIG welding, the current has to flow in a complete circle from the machine, to the torch, into the work, and back to the machine. A work lead is clamped to the work to complete the circuit from the workpiece back to the machine.

So in summary,MIG Welding is an electric arc welding process. It uses a consumable wire electrode. Filler metal is added automatically, and the shielding gas comes from a high pressure cylinder.

SAFETY OF MIG WELDING OR ANY WELDING

Safety means keeping yourself and coworkers safe so always wear your personal protection equipment better known as PPE. Which include

1. Boots You need to have steel toe boots, leather boots coming up above your ankle, its a good safety boot to have
2. You need to have good jeans on without cuts, holes, loose threads which can be fire starters.
3. Mig welding puts off UV lights that are very bright that are harmful to the eyes and skin so you need to wear long sleeved(leather) or preferably a welding jacket to protect your skin from the sparks that come off when you weld.
4. The next thing to is that you need to protect your hands both from sparks, heat and the bright light that comes off from the weld using at least the medium thick gloves weather cuffs for protection of the upper arm. or the heavier duty welding gloves mainly used for stick or higher amperage welding.
5. You need a welding helmet with a minimum shade of 10, to protect your eyes and face from the bright light and the sparks to avoid a welders flash in your eyes or Z87 safety glasses
6. Grinding shield: Any time you going to to do your grinding, painting, wire willing, chipping you need a grinding to protect you from the flying metals

In conclusion be safe, watch out for your friends and surroundings

So in summary CO2 welding training is an electric arc welding process, it uses a consumable wire electrode, filler metal is added automatically and a shielding gas come from a high pressure cylinder.

MIG Welding school Requirements