[maddog1]

Are there any major differences in Mig welding mild, hot rolled & cold rolled steel. I'm trying to teach myself basic Mig welding up to 1/4" thick materials.

Can I combine various materials on the same project. Example: weld hot rolled & cold rolled together, or mild steel & hot or cold rolled together. Thanks.

 

[SPS-1]

My welding skills are pretty rough. But the steels that you are going to readily find are all low carbon and going to weld pretty well. Just that cold rolled steel is going to have a lot of surface stresses and will warp more when welding (and costs more).

Mild steel just means its low carbon, low alloy. CRS or HRS only indicates how it was finished. But if you ask for hot rolled steel and specify nothing else, you will get something around 1020 steel, which is mild steel, and will weld about as good as anything you can find.

You can weld HRS to CRS.

 

[maddog1]

My welding skills are pretty rough. But the steels that you are going to readily find are all low carbon and going to weld pretty well. Just that cold rolled steel is going to have a lot of surface stresses and will warp more when welding (and costs more).

Mild steel just means its low carbon, low alloy. CRS or HRS only indicates how it was finished. But if you ask for hot rolled steel and specify nothing else, you will get something around 1020 steel, which is mild steel, and will weld about as good as anything you can find.

You can weld HRS to CRS.

Thanks. I was thinking that it can all be done, but I wasn't sure about the CRS. With the CRS I will just have to play around with it a little & observe how it reacts under various conditions. I'm just doing hobby stuff with no critical applications. Thank you!

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,..... In my experience, with what materials you've mentioned,.... it'll mig just fine,....

 

[Missouri Bound]

May I ask why Mig on 1/4"
From my albeit limited welding experience, I have found that arc welding is better suited for steel that thick.
Unless of course you get a big-ass Mig welder.
But since you said you are teaching yourself I suspect you have started with a more economical welder.
I always use the arc for the thicker metals while the Mig is fine for thinner ones.