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Posted: 1/30/2026 8:21:53 PM EDT
[Last Edit: EagleArmsHBAR][Edited]
| I'd like to try to do some welding based on the parts kits that are out there. Can this be done with a wire feed welder like those sold at harbor freight, or will something like that not work? I haven't welded much since high school ag class and I don't remember much about welder settings. Most of my experience is with stick welding, but i think that would just make a mess on guns or parts. |
| Not a gunsmith, nor a professional welder, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I'm sure it COULD be done with a wire feed, but that's smokey, spattery, imprecise, and messy. If this is more than just "a couple of projects", I'd personally go TIG. I assume that you're not going to be laying down tens of feet of weld in a single run, etc., and other than "doesn't work well in windy conditions", TIG is the most flexible process out there. |
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My understanding is that nearly all gun welding is done with TIG. I'm sure you could make a wirefeed work, but it won't look nice. But, grinder and paint and all. I do wonder if arc and a 6013 rod would work. 6013 is for sheet metal in general. But the problem is thin parts heating up so fast. You'd probably have to start, stop, cool, restart constantly. |
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Originally Posted By GlutealCleft: Not a gunsmith, nor a professional welder, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I'm sure it COULD be done with a wire feed, but that's smokey, spattery, imprecise, and messy. If this is more than just "a couple of projects", I'd personally go TIG. I assume that you're not going to be laying down tens of feet of weld in a single run, etc., and other than "doesn't work well in windy conditions", TIG is the most flexible process out there. |
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The big thing about wire feed welders is getting the setting correct. Start with a low feed speed to see how it goes. I have found that seems to be the best for my cheapo Harbor Freight welder. It causes less splatter. For very small jobs, very small, I turn off the feed completely and just touch the work with the wire that sticks out of the head. |
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| I'm interested in this discussion. I have enough experience with wire feed to make pieces of structural steel stick together. I'm interested in a TIG welder for some small projects, and once I have a fair bit of experience, some gunsmithing. What's the bare minimum one needs to spend to get a TIG welder that can join 2 small pieces of steel? |
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Originally Posted By jreinke: Try stick welding with a 6013 on straight polarity (DSEN), works great on thin pipe and tube, wide shallow puddle. Originally Posted By jreinke: Originally Posted By heat762: Not a pro Thin stuff sucks....can't imagine trying to weld up thin sheet metal with either Try stick welding with a 6013 on straight polarity (DSEN), works great on thin pipe and tube, wide shallow puddle. You right...I have used 6013 and noticed penetration is shallow. Still ...I shudder to think of trying to weld a receiver with stick. |
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Look at the different welders Primeweld offers. I picked up one of their Tig 225x machines last year....it's been awesome! And if you have questions, they have live, real people here in the USA to help you out. I also have some Miller welders.....and good luck getting much help out of them. Primeweld has been awesome....and their prices are very good too! |
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Originally Posted By ELittlefield: I'm interested in this discussion. I have enough experience with wire feed to make pieces of structural steel stick together. I'm interested in a TIG welder for some small projects, and once I have a fair bit of experience, some gunsmithing. What's the bare minimum one needs to spend to get a TIG welder that can join 2 small pieces of steel? TIG welder, some gas, a regulator, tungsten electrodes, and some filler rod. You might want some TIG gloves as well, they're a lot more... dexterous. Primeweld makes a very decent budget TIG that comes with a decent regulator and torch/shield kit. OK, looking at their side, the 225x has the regulator, the 200-D doesn't. 200-D is also only DC, which is fine for steel, but if you want to do aluminum, the 225X would be the choice. |
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Depending on what specific ones you’re looking at, you might be able to do them with a wire feed welder. BUT, you’ll really want to use solid wire(not flux core) and c25 gas. You’ll have a much easier time getting good welds. That cheap flux core crap (meaning the Chinese stuff, not the good flux core wire)they sell with the less expensive machines is garbage and it’s basically only good for sticking 2 pieces of metal together, maybe. It’s really difficult to get good looking welds with it. And the good stuff isn’t really for this kinda thing. |
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TIG or Oxy/Acy. It is the only way to have really good heat & puddle control. Think about it- TIG is basically Oxy/Acy-your just using an electric torch. The basic principles are the same. Heat Puddle Fill |
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When I was starting up my shop I had the same choice to make. My intent was the same, almost exclusively gun work and building kits. I am not a welder, but I do have a welder  I got a Miller Diversion180 TIG machine and it has been good for my work. For any of the fine gun stuff, you are pretty much going to HAVE to use shield gas either in MIG or TIG. And TIG gives you a lot more control. Im OK at it, but I am not a professional welder by any means. I did put together my first PPSH kit with a stick welder through. I dont recommend it
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" Laziness is an essential part of all walks of engineering."
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Buy one of the inexpensive TIG welders , learn how to use it and never look back. MIG with gas would be the other usable option but TIG is really what you want to use. TIG gives you complete control of heat , filler used / no filler for some instances and can reach into areas you cant do properly any other way. TIG welder , bottle of Argon and torch with a gas lens and decent gas flow control. ER70 filler rod is perfect for most gun applications. |
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My $0.02. I have used AHP and Harbor Freight TIG machines, as well as low end ESAB. They work fine and you get a lot of value for the beginner around $1k. However, they don't last long. On 2 of 3 machines I used, the arc starting began to become erratic after maybe 5 hrs of use. Sometimes the arc won't start at low amps. Sometimes it won't start at all. Then sometimes it does. I think my next machine is going to be an HTP, made in Italy. Around $5k but I think you get what you pay for with welders. Good machines hold value. |
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Consider your power supply when picking a welder. Inverter machines are light weight , portable and typically do not require a high amp supply line. Older / large transformer machine that have a big copper wound transformer inside can sometimes be had for cheap but most will require a +50 amp supply line. They are stupid stable for welding and might last a lifetime where inverter machines use circuitry and boards to work it output magic. |
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I just got the AHP AlphaTIG 203xi and I really like it so far. I got it largely because of the rapid set feature where you pick the tungsten size and material thickness and the machine does the rest. You can change all the setting manually too, but it takes a lot of the trial and error out of it. Bonus for me that it's not made in China. https://ahpwelds.com/collections/tig-welders/products/alphatig-203i |
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