Spool gun aluminum MIG on a 200-amp machine: what to expect
Difficultyhard
Aluminum MIG works on a hobby machine with a spool gun, 100% argon, 4043 or 5356 wire, and the machine turned up higher than you think (aluminum conducts heat away fast). Push angle, fast travel, hot start. Clean with a dedicated stainless brush right before welding. Expect to practice on scrap for an hour before you get a bead that is not black and sooty.
For anything structural or under 1/8" thick, TIG is still the right answer. For a trailer gate repair or a bracket, the spool gun is fine.
#aluminum#spool-gun#mig#welding
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Bookmarking. I have exactly this problem and was about to pay someone.
Tried this over the weekend and it worked first time. Thanks for writing it up properly.
The "what went wrong" section is the most useful part of this. More people should do that.
Nice. What did the whole thing end up costing you?
Yep, same here. The second time is always faster.
Would this work on the older model? Mine is about ten years older than the one shown.