Basic Welding Technique - Chicago Electric MIG 170 Owner's Manual & Safety Instructions

Basic Welding Technique

1. Press (and hold) Trigger and contact area to
be welded with electrode wire to ignite arc.
2. For a narrow weld, you can usually draw the wire in
a steady straight line,
this is called a stringer bead.
For a wider weld, draw the wire back and forth
across the joint,
this is called a weave bead and takes
practice to perform properly.
3. Hold Torch in one hand and the face shield in
the other. If a hands-free welding shield (not
included, see #6, page 4 for guidelines) is used,
then both hands can be used to control Torch.
4. Direct the welding wire straight into the joint.
This gives an angle of 90° (straight up and
down) for butt (end to end) welds, and an
angle of 45° for fillet (T-shaped) welds.
5. The end of torch should be tilted so that wire
is angled anywhere in-between straight on
and 15° in the direction you are welding. The
amount of tilt is called the drag angle.
6. The welding wire should extend no more than
past the tip.
This distance is called stickout or CTWD
- Contact Tip to Work Distance.
SKU 68885
1
/ "
2
For technical questions, please call 1-800-444-3353.
stringer bead
Weld Torch angles,
viewed from front of weld joint.
45°
fillet weld joint
Drag Angle
0-15°
Weld
Direction
weave bead
90°
butt weld joint
Stickout
1
(up to / ")
2
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