Posted on Jul 27, 2021
Once you’ve bought your Mig gun, it’s easy to imagine you’re sorted – the torch does the hard work. Surely you can just buy any generic low-cost Mig torch consumables that will fit…they all do the same thing?
Not all Mig consumables are the same. They may look similar and appear to fit the gun, but they don’t all perform to the same standards.
Mig torch consumables are a hugely important component in the welding process. After all, front- end consumables diffuse the shielding gas and play a major role in the introduction of the welding wire to the weld pool. The performance and quality of consumables such as nozzles, tips and diffusers can make or break the quality of your welds.
Precision Engineering
Our high-quality consumables are expertly designed and tested to ensure the best performance possible, and then manufactured to precise tolerances, backed up by stringent quality control. Low-cost, low-quality component manufacture needs to keep costs down, so it is unlikely that all these steps are followed in production.
Precision manufacturing is key to weld quality. For example, if the contact tip and the diffuser do not fit together perfectly, this can lead to electrical resistance which affects quality and increase stress on the parts. If parts aren’t machined carefully this can also lead to other issues.
Contact tips that are not smooth and clean inside can the affect arc start as well as contaminate the weld. If the nozzle surface is not smooth, spatter can more easily affix to the rough surface. In addition, low-quality materials used in production may be more prone to defects.
It’s not just how well the material is machined; it’s also the precision of the design. Holes in a diffuser are vital for gas flow, so if these are not accurately machined then this can cause turbulence in the stream or changes the flow entirely. This has negative effects on the shielding process.
Operator Downtime Costs
All these issues will have a direct impact on the quality of the weld, meaning more rework and scrappage will be required, leading to increased operator downtime as parts will need to be changed more often. Our high-quality Mig gun parts are designed for long life, so are unlikely to need to be changed as frequently.
Think Long-Term
While the upfront price of a low-quality Mig torch part is attractive, the overall long-term costs are likely to be higher than that of the premium, high-quality consumables. Replacement consumables are an unavoidable cost in welding, and undoubtedly present an opportunity to reducing operational outgoings. However, to get an accurate picture of the actual costs, you need to consider not just the purchase price, but the lifespan of the consumables, and what impact they will have on the productivity of the welder.
Our Mig gun parts are thoughtfully designed, extensively tested and precision engineered from high-quality materials, so you can be confident in their longevity and performance.