My Gantry Crane Build

[av8or1]

That wasn't me that said that about the 75/25. I respect Zoama. I've done it with it, but there is no comparison, and so many more problems and much less stability. I said 80/20, which is recognized as the lower threshold. Personally, I use a C18. This is a good mix for both spray and short circuit, and you get a cleaner weld in short circuit. It's not as hot, but it works wonders in spray too. For spray it does run a bit hotter than 90/10, but it does offer true spray capability. Let's put it this way, you can spray with a lot lower settings with 90/10 instead of 75/25.

Oh sure, I understood who said what, I just mixed my reply so that it appeared as though I had things confused. Apologies for that. I've watched a few YouTube videos regarding spray arc, so I know what it is and how it differs from short circuit MIG. However the takeaway I had from those experiences was that while spray arc has its purpose, the majority of the time short circuit MIG will be all you need. It seemed like spray arc was for structural MIG welding, if I can express it in that manner. So if you weren't doing anything structural, short circuit MIG was sufficient. Furthermore, "light structural" could be done by short circuit MIG as well. Whatever "light structural" meant.

I would like to attempt spray arc someday, even if it is merely for the experience gain. For the remainder of this project however, I'll continue putting the Lincoln rods to work. Every weld on that gantry, regardless of where it is located, has a minimum of a 3 pass weld, with 6010 as the root and 7018 as the fill/caps. In a couple of instances, I ran another 3 beads of 7018 over that, making it a 5 pass weld. I'll likely remain with that formula for the pending mobility work. Some experimentation with that same thickness of mild steel tubing and plate (before I began welding the gantry) showed that 90A - 95A worked well for the 6010 and 125A - 135A was the range for 7018. FWIW.

What you welded should have been spray arced. It is for 3/16-1/4" and up. Not just structural...but what you have there IS structural. lol. I spray mostly.