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: could someone explain the difference between mig and tig welding? MIG stands for Metal-Inert-Gas. It is an arc-welding process in which the arc is between the electrode in the "gun" or handpiece, and the metal being welded. The electrode is wire, and is fed automaticaly into the weld as needed. The weld area is surrounded by inert gas (such as argon, helium, or carbon dioxide) to prevent oxidation. One type of MIG welding uses a flux-cored wire which produces its own gas. Welds are generally very good, and the process is quite easy to learn. TIG is Tungsten-Inert-Gas, and is a little different. The arc is between the electrode and the base metal being welded, as in the MIG process, BUT the electrode is NOT consumed or melted into the weld. The arc between the electrode and the base metal melts the weld area, and filler rod must be fed in manually with the other hand. The weld area is again flooded with inert gas to prevent oxidation. MIG is even easier than traditional arc welding; TIG is tricky. It's more difficult to do well than oxy-acetylene, MIG, or traditional arc welding, but produces outstanding welds. Comparatively few people ever master this process. I've done it, but not very well. I always tell my students that welding is a little like playing a guitar. Just about anyone can learn to do it, but very few learn to do it extremely well. MIG makes a decent welder out of almost anyone, TIG requires hand-eye coordination and a sense of what's going on that few ever develop.
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