Can you weld 409 stainless with standard steel MIG? I will be changing from standard exhaust manifolds to factory headers and i'll need to cut & splice on the head pipes.

Tom

yes, no problem. Mike

you might wont to wear a respirator or have good ventilation the fumes can be deadly can cause lung problems

i've done SS with tig. used ss rods .i would think wire needs to be changed? i know regular wire will work to.

the carbon steel wire will work, BUT the weld will be prone to rusting as well as the imediate area on either side of the weld

x

if you want to do it right get some SS wire with the same metallurgy as the tubing and get a bottle C-Ar mix with less than 5% carbon dioxide. Anymore and you risk oxidation from the CO2. The weld shop guys will probably try to sell you trimix; a shielding gas that is something like 90% helium, 7.5% argon, and 2.5% carbon dioxide. I've used it and it welds fine but there is a lot of conflicting info about how necessary the helium is. I don't weld enough stainless to care so I've normally use C2 Ar98 gas.

You cannot run with a straight Argon shielding gas with MIG. It will turn to plasma under the heat and the wire will melt before it hits the metal (which is why we use straight Ar for TIG).

You can get good results with straight CO2 but again you risk oxidation (rust) issues around the weld and HAZ.

If you don't live in an area where they salt the roads or if you only run your ride in fair weather you can probably get away with just burning it together with mild wire and COZ or C25.


Good Luck!!!