Pros And Cons of MIG Welding (Detail Explained)
MIG welding offers us numerous advantages that make it unique from the other welding processes. On the other hand, it has some disadvantages too.
This article is based on a special kind of welding called MIG. We are going to discuss what are the advantages and disadvantages of MIG welding.
Hopefully, this article will be able to give you a clear idea of the pros and cons of the MIG welding process. Let’s dive into the discussion.
Table of Contents
The Pros & Cons of MIG Welding
The MIG welding process has both advantages and disadvantages. And knowing its benefits and drawbacks will allow you to utilize each one appropriate for your purposes.
Advantages And Disadvantages of MIG Welding
In this portion of the article, we will discuss 10 advantages and disadvantages of MIG welding. What are they? Let’s have a look at them.
What Are the Advantages of Mig Welding?
Do you have questions like what are the pros of MIG welding in your mind? Here goes the answer:
Better Welding Speed
The MIG welding process is made faster by the continually fed wire, which frees both arms. Additionally, it enhances overall controls and guarantees the weld’s quality.
Versatile
MIG welding is incredibly adaptable and capable of joining a wide range of metals and metal alloys. Additionally, it has a range of operating modes, including semi- and highly automated.
MIG welding is advantageous for numerous DIY welding tasks and is also utilized by numerous industries. Aluminum, mild steel, copper, stainless steel, and several of their compounds, along with irons are among the metals that are typically used for MIG.
Read More: MIG Welding Aluminum Without Spool Gun
It’s easy to clean and time efficient
There is extremely minimal waste of additives as the material crosses across the flame in MIG because the protective film is used to guard the arc. Stick welding usually involves the removal of slag.
This procedure only results in a very slight amount of weld slag. MIG welders will be returned to work in a short amount of time after just a quick cleaning.
Excellent and Simple Welding process
An improved weld pool view is provided by MIG. That is why the procedure has gotten easier. Precise control is also provided by the auto-feed wiring. As a result, MIG produces excellent-looking welds with ease.
Easy to Learn
The ease of MIG Welding processes is one of its main benefits. MIG welding may be learned within a couple of hours, as well as some teachers say they may teach the basics in just 20 minutes.
Most welders engaged in creative projects would not like to devote the necessary time to learning TIG welding because it takes a lot of practice. MIG welding was defined as a “point and shoot” procedure by one of the instructors.
Higher efficiency
The rods do not need to be changed frequently during the MIG welding process, and the slag also does not need to be chipped away. In addition to making the process faster than conventional welding procedures, these components also help to keep it clean.
Quality of MIG Welds
MIG welding procedure enables you to swiftly produce welds of exceptionally good quality. As was previously noted, MIG is flux-free, which means there is no possibility of slag becoming trapped in the welding.
Excellent penetration range
You may get excellent depth using MIG as well as be certain of a robust, flawless bead. The best part is that this can be done on many dissimilar materials with different thicknesses.
In-Line Welding
Here’s another justification behind MIG’s speed rating. With every MIG flame stroke, additional weld metal can be deposited.
Less stopping and starting
When it concerns reducing the number of instances, you will have to halt and resume welding throughout a project, that constantly-fed MIG electrode scores once more.
What are some disadvantages to MIG welding?
Although using MIG for commercial welding jobs provides a lot of benefits, you must be mindful of some drawbacks as well. They are as follows:
Higher set-up cost
Comparatively speaking, good quality MIG welding equipment is much more expensive. Additionally, you may conduct other tasks like TIG welding, plasma cutting, stick welding, and so on with the majority of elevated MIG welding equipment.
Undercutting and burn-throughs
Due to their consistent power supply, MIG welding systems are prone to burn-throughs and undercutting. When welding thin metal, burn-through refers to the layer of the substance being penetrated.
An undissolved electrode results from undercutting, which happens when tungsten is improperly insulated from the purge gas. Although they can happen from both surfaces, undercuts are often visible on the object’s bottom.
Disturbances and Hot Spots
MIG uses a steady power supply, so there are no prime locations on the welds caused by output fluctuations. Warping and distortion may arise from this.
Not the best in a windy environment
For MIG welding to generate a uniform and flawless weld, a continuous gas flow is necessary. Wind, rain, as well as other unfavorable weather circumstances, can obstruct the gas flow and compromise the quality of your MIG welding work.
Regular gas changing is necessary.
You must often switch the inert gas when welding with MIG because it involves a continual wire feed, which increases the risk of the weld zone becoming contaminated.
Fewer Positions
Because of the mobility of the welding pool and the excessive heat input of a MIG welder, vertical or ceiling welding is not feasible.
More Maintenance Is Necessary
You will be required to carry out certain regular maintenance procedures because the MIG welding equipment is more complicated than other types, such as the stick welder.
Fast Weld Pool Cooling
MIG welds produce thick and wide weld beads because they cool quickly after welding due to their being clean and slag-free.
Unsuitable for Thick Metals
MIG welding can be employed on thin sections, but due to the tremendous heat input, it is unsuitable for use on heavier metals.
Which Is Better MIG or Arc Welding?
Arc and MIG welding- each has its perks and drawbacks. MIG welding works well for construction in the wind- and dust-free environments with clean, uncoated material.
However, since they allow them to operate from everywhere, many expert welders prefer AC or AC-DC-controlled welding equipment that uses stick-type electrodes.
Arc welding may be a better choice if you intend to perform general fixes where you will be required to weld rusted or coated metal or even want to work outside in the environment.
Read More: How Does Underwater Welding Work? (Explained In-Depth)
Conclusion
Throughout this article, we have tried to highlight the pros and cons of MIG welding. The MIG welding process is very useful for some of the fabrications that are mentioned above.
Even the disadvantages it creates are also mentioned in this article. One can easily get the idea of when to use it and when to avoid it going through this article.
