TA S E T O W e l d i n g M a t e r i a l s
Stainless Steel Electrodes
For Flux Cored Arc Welding
Guideline for Welding Stainless Steel with GFW Wires
Guideline for Welding Stainless Steel with GFW Wires
●Characteristics
GFW wires are electrodes consisting of a stainless steel sheath and flux consisting with
mineral and metal powder. They provide good arc stability, produce welds with beautiful bead
appearance, and enable joining and overlay welding of stainless steel with ease and at high
efficiency.
〈Wire diameter and power source〉
0.8 mm, 0.9 mm, 1.2 mm, and 1.6 mm of wire diameter are available. Constant potential DC
power source such as MAG and MIG power source is applicable. It is noted that pulsed
power source is not suitable for FCA welding.
〈Deposition rate and efficiency〉
As shown in Fig.1, deposition rate is high and the deposition efficiency is as high as 90%.
Therefore, GFW wires provide higher efficiency in joint and overlay welding compared with
SMAW.
120
Deposition rate (g/min)
100
φ1.2mm
80
φ1.6mm
φ0.9mm
60
40
SMAW with φ4.0mm electrode
20
0
50
100
150
250
200
Welding current (A)
300
350
Fig.1 Welding current and deposition rate
〈Shielding gas〉
Recommended shielding gas is CO2 or Ar-20％CO2（more than 20％CO2）. Please refer to the
page of each brand.
When CO2 is used as shielding gas, metal transfer becomes globular and provides deep
penetration and good wettabilty to the sidewall of weld pool, which minimize the weld
defects such as the lack of fusion or slag inclusions. Moreover air cooled light torch is
available in long time welding operation. On the other hand, Ar-20％CO2 shielding provides
metal transfer like splay arc, provides less spatter than CO2 shielding.
1
TASETO Co., Ltd
TA S E T O W e l d i n g M a t e r i a l s
Stainless Steel Electrodes
For Flux Cored Arc Welding
Guideline for Welding Stainless Steel with GFW Wires
〈Welding positions〉
Welding in flat position, horizontal position, and vertical position is possible. However,
the 1.6 mm wire is limited to flat or horizontal welding. For positional welding, AP series
wires are preferable. Please see “GFW AP Series”.
〈Welding conditions〉
As shown in Fig.2, because of a wide range of welding currents and voltages, it is easy to set
up welding conditions and can apply various thickness plate.
40
Welding voltage(V)
35
φ1.2mm
φ0.9mm
φ0.8
0.8 mm
30
φ1.6mm
25
20
15
10
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Welding current (A)
Fig.2 Recommended welding conditions
〈Bead appearance〉
As GFW wire produces a smooth weld with thin and easy removable slag, there is little post
weld cleaning required. Multi-pass welding is easy and there are minimal defects such as
porosity, slag inclusions or lack of fusion.
〈Standard packing style and unit weight〉
Spool
12.5 kg (1.2mm and 1.6 mm)
5.0 kg (0.8mm and 0.9 mm)
Pail-pack
150 kg (1.2mm)
2
TASETO Co., Ltd
TA S E T O W e l d i n g M a t e r i a l s
Stainless Steel Electrodes
For Flux Cored Arc Welding
Guideline for Welding Stainless Steel with GFW Wires
●Notes on Usage
〈Torch positioning〉
To control weld pool properly and promote defect free
sidewall fusion, trailing torch is preferable. In
horizontal fillet welding, please refer the torch
positioning shown in Fig.3.
40～50°
〈Overlay welding〉
In overlay welding with GFW wire on carbon steel,
welding parameters varies dilution rate of weld metal
0～2mm
with base metal, as shown in Fig.4 and Fig.5. Generally
Fig.3 Torch positioning in horizontal
speaking, properties of Type309, frequently used for
fillet welding
1st layer of overlay welding, weld metal overlayed on
carbon steel is affected by dilution rate, excess dilution provides hot cracking or hardening
by martensite formation, too little dilution results only slag inclusion or lack of fusion but
embrittlement of weld metal in severe PWHT condition. So, set up welding parameters
which provide 20～30% dilution rate. Dilution rate is varied with torch position, keep
constant welding parameter and torch position to keep constant dilution.
Stringer
Weaving
40
220A
220A
30
Dilution rate(%)
Dilution rate(%)
40
190A
160A
20
10
30
190A
160A
20
10
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
10
Welding speed(cm/min)
15
20
Welding speed(cm/min)
Wire position：tow of previous bead
Oscillate width：10mm, Oscillate cycle：0.75Hz
Fig. 4 Variation of dilution rate with welding parameters（wire diameter：1.2mm）
Stringer
Weaving
40
300A
250A
200A
30
Dilution rate(%)
Dilution rate(%)
40
20
10
300A
250A
30
200A
20
10
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
10
Welding speed(cm/min)
15
20
Welding speed(cm/min)
Wire position：tow of previous bead
Oscillate width：10mm, Oscillate cycle：0.75Hz
Fig. 5 Variation of dilution rate with welding parameters（wire diameter：1.6mm）
3
TASETO Co., Ltd
TA S E T O W e l d i n g M a t e r i a l s
Stainless Steel Electrodes
For Flux Cored Arc Welding
Guideline for Welding Stainless Steel with GFW Wires
rate（
（ %）
Dilution rate
35
〈Groove〉
Keep dry and remove scale, rust and
organic such as oil, greases and
paints from groove before welding.
Also, do not apply the spatter-guard
on welding groove.
30
25
－
＋
20
〈Shielding gas〉
15
-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3
Too little or excess flow rate of
Distance from tow（
tow（mm）
mm）
shielding gas cause weld defects
such as blowholes. Control the flow
Fig.6 Variation of dilution rate with torch position
rate of shielding gas at 20 to
25L/min for 1.6 mm and 1.2 mm diameter and 15to 20L/min for 0.9 mm and 0.8 mm
diameter. Wind decreases shielding effect and permits nitrogen mixing in molten pool. So it
is afraid of hot cracking or other defects such as blowholes in weld metal. Provide a proper
protection measure against the wind in windy condition.
〈Fume〉
Because of higher deposition rate, GFW wires generate more fumes than covered electrodes
do. For this reason, wear a dust repirator and use enough ventilation to keep fumes away
from breathing zone.
Before using, read and understand the safety data sheet (SDS) for the wire to be used.
〈Storage〉
GFW wires do not adsorb moisture as much as covered electrodes do. However, storage for
a long time in hot and humid environment or dew condensation on the wire surface caused
weld defects such as blowhole. Keep the wire storage situation in dry condition.
4
TASETO Co., Ltd