What is the Difference Between Mig and Tig Welding?
TIG and MIG welding are two types of arc welding, using an inert gas and metal electrode as a shield from oxidation at very high temperatures. Both welding types are easy to learn, and the process of welding can be carried on all common resources.
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What is the meaning of MIG welding?
MIG in full means metal inert gas and is also called metal active gas or gas metal arc welding. It is a method of welding using the shielding gas, and consumable metal electrodes are utilized to cover the area of welding from atmospheric oxygen and any other contaminants. Initially, it was discovered originally for aluminum welding but later developed to weld any other aspects. MIG welding offers a faster welding rate than other processes of welding.
MIG welding utilizes the electric arc to heat metals and joins the pieces together. In this welding, the electrode functions like a filler that is spent and is deposited on the destination of welding. The task can either be semi-automatic or automatic. The major gas used for shielding is argon gas, and sometimes gets combined with carbon IV oxide on the surface.
Advantages of this type of welding are the quickness and user-friendliness of the process of welding. It is also cheaper than TIG welding. The electrodes produce an arc that is less stable; therefore, the reliability of the sections of the weld becomes an issue. More sparks, fumes, and smoke are created during welding, making the procedure less clean.
What is the meaning of TIG welding?
TIG stands for Tungsten Inert Gas welding. The electrode utilized in the weld is a tungsten electrode, and Argon is the only utilized gas. Although the overall mechanism of the process of welding is similar to MIG welding, TIG welding has a crucial difference in the filling. Because the electrode is not consumable, the filler will be externally provided, or else, while welding thin metallic sheets, no padding is employed.
In working, TIG welding is a process that is semi-automatic where the arc continues to get controlled by the foot pedal. This welding is employed when joining non-ferrous metals but can also be employed for iron alloys also.
Tungsten electrode is utilized to reduce contamination during the process of welding. The electric current from tungsten electrode creates fewer fumes and sparks; therefore, the weld is cleaner than MIG cleaning. Because contamination is low, the welding precision is also high. Nevertheless, the complexity of the process of welding and cost are the main drawbacks in TIG welding against MIG welding where the welder needs to be proficient. The setup also requires more effort and time than MIG welding.
What is the dissimilarity between TIG and MIG Welding?
- The electrode used in MIG welding is the same metal undergoing weld while the tungsten electrode is used in TIG welding.
- Electrodes of MIG welding are consumable and act as filler, while the TIG electrodes are non-consumable and the filler needs to come from the external side.
- The utilized gas in MIG welding is a mixture of carbon dioxide and Argon while in TIG; argon is the only employed gas.
- MIG welding is employed for alloys that are non-ferrous but can be employed for steel welding while TIG welding can be utilized for other metals.
- TIG welding needs more practice than MIG because of tighter tolerances and complexity to be maintained, while MIG welding is user-friendly.
- TIG is cleaner than MIG and involves less contamination
Therefore, the major difference between TIG and MIG welding is that MIG utilizes a wire that feeds the welding machine, while TIG uses long rods that have to be separately held and fed in the weld puddle. As TIG needs both hands of the welder, it is easier to get grips with MIG.
The process of TIG is technical to learn and requires a technique that is refined, holding a torch at a particular angle, and the best deal of care. This is to mean that even though the results may be visually appealing and cleaner, it cannot be rushed, so it is not good if you require doing high welding volumes. As a choice, MIG is better for large-scale production as it does not require being very accurate to be strong.
Which One is better?
The answer is dependent on the application. As earlier noted, MIG welding is better for welding work where thicker, larger metal pieces are being joined since it employs the filler material.
Nevertheless, TIG welding can perform wonders for joining small metallic pieces like wires for the custom steel basket. Also, since the process of TIG welding joins two metals directly, there is no filler material for failure, meaning you will spend less money on supplies of welding.
With the robotic welding equipment, TIG can be lower-maintenance because the welding electrode is not consumed regularly by the process of welding. Nevertheless, the welding electrode needs to be polished and cleaned properly especially when welding steel. Choosing the solution needs to be done by each case.