sheet metal work Q?

I have a project in mind that involves a sand bag, mallet, mild steel sheet metal and a mig welder. My question is; What is the ideal guage steel that will form without heat and still be able to weld together without burning through?

 

I work with 18 gauge cold rolled and am very happy with it.

 

X2 !
I use 18 ga. all the time and works great too !
Problem is you can still burn through with a welder . When using sheet metal . just do a quick tack weld and either go to the opposite corner and criss cross the welding process and then you will start to "Stitch" weld . You can still burn thought BUT turn down to the lowest settings and try a piece of scrap sheet metal to set your wire speed .
Hope this helps .

Retro Jim

 

second that, go with 18 for general purpose......

 

depends on the project 18ga here for most body type panels, 16 ga for floor pans, tanks & more structural type items
cold rolled, or pickled and oiled here

 

I agree.......18 guage for most, but it may depend on how intricate you're going to be with the part......I'd opt for something lighter and annealled if you need to stretch and shrink very much.......and I've had better luck with higher amperage on the welds....it gets you in and out quicker!

 

Also remember if it isn't structural than hot rolled steel is cheaper and softer

 

Do most places carry hot and cold rolled?

 

anywhere between 14ga and 24ga, try to match what the factory did, go thicker if stiffens up a body. trying to weld a 18ga to 24ga is harder than 24g to itself. Generally sheet metal shop/suppliers for the HVAC carry even number gauges, many old cars and trucks use 19ga, sometimes harder to find.

 

im building a sleeper for my coe,,,what gauge should i use????using 1x1 or 1x2 ribbing