Easier Ways to Weld Wire

FCAW Welding

• The abbreviation FCAW stands for flux cored arc welding. It's also known as tubular wire welding. The inert gas, such as argon or carbon dioxide, is used to protect the region being welded. An electric arc is created between the wire being melted and an electrode. A pull feed pulls the wire from a spool, while a gas feeds through the same cables that the wire is being spooled from. It's an easier method for welding because part of the process is left up to the machine instead of the welder. The welder manages the trigger handle to guide the feed. This method is an easier way of welding because part of the process is automated.

Welding Robots

• Robots are no longer a thing of the future. Welding robots have been used in the U.S. since the 1960s. Robots are more often used for high-production facilities. The robots have arms that feed wires through conduits and motorized wheels that power its movements. In the book, "Welding Robots," J. Norberto Pires writes, "In normal robot systems, the wire feed unit is mounted on the robot arm rather close (the order of 1 m) to the weld torch, giving a reliable pushfeed to the wire during the welding process." This process originated from the Metal Inert Gas welding, which is used for both steel and wire welding.

TIG

• Tungsten inert gas welding (TIG) or gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) is similar to FCAW welding as it uses a gas to protect the metal from being contaminated by atmospheric elements. However, it uses tungsten electrodes for the job and a filler rod as a guide for the welding. An alternative to tungsten is plasma arc welding, which uses a partly automated system to weld copper wires with extremely hot plasma.

Oxygen/Acetylene

• With a welding torch and pure oxygen, you can boost the heat temperature of your torch and complete welding projects quickly and easily. Called Oxygen/Acetylene or Oxyfuel Welding, this welding method works by using compressed, pure oxygen to ignite a faster burning flame. Acetylene is used to power the system up to six thousand degree for a fast, powerful welding job.