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Understanding Contact Tips for MIG Welding

Posted by Matthew Sciannella on Jul 19, 2019 2:49:11 PM POSTS BY TOPIC

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Welding contact tips are highly misunderstood components in a MIG gun setup.
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Choosing the correct contact tip for your welding application and understanding how to
keep it performing at its best are just as critical as anything else needed to produce a
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As one of the most replaced items in a MIG gun, it also tends to be one of the most
costly MIG gun parts per year. Consider a contact tip takes about 10 minutes to change.
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you run 2 shifts, you're losing more than $13,000 a year in labor at that welding station
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a savings of over $7,500 a year at a single welding station. And a great deal of that cost
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Contact Tip Size Matters

Contact tip size determines what wire size you can use and the amount of ller material
that will be distributed during welding. When a contact tip begins to wear, the through-
hole elongates and loses electrical conductivity, which greatly a ects the gun’s ability to
transfer current to the welding wire. Additionally, the tool center point (TCP) begins to
uctuate as the wire dances around inside the now oversized tip. These conditions lead
to poor arc starts, lower penetration, and decreased weld quality.

Sizes for welding contact tips range from .024" to .094" in terms of a wire size it can
guide. Generally speaking, the larger the wire, the higher the parameters and the faster
the deposition rate. It's highly recommended that to match the contact tip size to the
wire size with your MIG gun. 

Likewise, contact tip threads come in a range of sizes from M6 to M12. These sizes are
entirely dependent of the contact tip holder size, but the thread sizes correlate directly
to the rating of the MIG gun. You won't see a 500-amp MIG gun, for instance, using an
M6 contact tip. Similarly, you won't see a 200-amp MIG gun using an M10 contact tip
because it's unnecessary. 

Choosing the correct contact tip for your welding application and understanding how to
keep it performing at its best are just as critical as choosing all the other components
and parameters needed to produce a quality weld.
Common Welding Contact Tip Types
Four types of contact tip types are most commonly used in welding applications (as well
as one for laser welding), and each has its pros and cons:

#1: Standard Copper Welding Contact Tip (E-Cu)

A standard copper welding contact tip has a relatively high current transfer rate at
greater than 55 S/m* electrical conductivity, and it is used mostly in hand-held
welding applications.

Although standard copper o ers the highest conductivity of all of the standard
alloys, it is more susceptible to mechanical wear than other materials. As a raw
mineral, copper naturally is relatively soft, which means it makes current transfer
easier, but it also means the material has a lower melting point. As the temperature
rises in an E-Cu tip, it becomes softer than the wire that is being fed through it. As
the copper softens, the wire wears and deforms the internal diameter of the tip.
This prevents the wire from contacting the tip correctly, which decreases
conductivity and leads to arc-start issues, burnback, and poor welds.

The E-Cu tip is usually the most a ordable, so it’s generally an acceptable trade-o
to frequently replace it when precise wire targeting is not critical.

#2: Copper-Chrome-Zirconium Welding Contact Tip (CuCrZr)

A copper-chrome-zirconium welding contact tip tip generally is used in automated

and robotic welding applications where precise TCP, or Tool Center Point, is needed
and high duty cycles occur. Although there is some decline in electrical conductivity
compared with the standard copper tip (50 S/m), it is su cient for most steel
applications.

However, since CuCrZr alloy softens at a much higher temperature, it tends to have
a longer life span than standard copper tips. Generally speaking, the tip maintains
its shape up to approximately 932 degrees F versus 500 degrees for E-Cu.
Therefore, the higher-density material leads to a lower wear rate and increases the
tip’s performance and productivity.
 For hot wire feeding processes in laser welding optics, copper chrome zirconium
welding contact tips are must-use because of their ability to hold up to hot wire
feeding processes.

#3: Silver-Plated Welding Contact Tip

Over the years technological advancements in contact tips have revealed that silver
plating the interior and exterior of a contact tip further enhances its overall
performance.

When a contact tip begins to wear, the through-hole elongates and loses electrical
conductivity, which greatly a ects the gun’s ability to transfer current to the welding
wire.

Silver is more conductive than copper (62.1 S/m), which reduces micro-arcing,
extends contact tip life, improves arc starts, and provides consistent weld quality.
Silver is approximately 17 percent denser than copper and it has a higher melting
point. Silver’s shiny surface helps to re ect heat. As a result, spatter doesn’t adhere
to the tip as easily and it doesn’t wear down quite as quickly. In fact, the life span of
a silver-plated contact tip can be nine times longer than that of a standard
precision-drawn copper tip.

With signi cant improvements in material, a silver-plated contact tip can cost up to
50 percent more than the standard non-plated CuCrZr tip. Welders who choose to
use a silver-plated contact tip usually do so for one reason—less welding downtime.
The more the welding robot welds, the greater the throughput. Based on the overall
longevity, current transfer, and quality of material, the silver-plated tips are an
excellent choice for automatic and robotic welding applications.

#4: Heavy Duty Silver-Plated CuCrZr Contact Tip

Using a process called dispersion-hardening, which basically keeps the properties of

metal from dispersing at elevated temperature, the Heavy Duty Silver-Plated
welding contact tips can last even longer than the Silver-Plated contact tips noted
above.

This make of contact tip carries a hardness value of 180, and won't experience wear
until the contact tip temperature reaches upwards of 1472 degree F (800 degrees
 C)! Because of it's conductivity, it will also experience a lot less spatter adhesion
than copper or non-plated copper chrome zirconium.

Heavy Duty Silver-Plated welding contact tips are always made using CuCrZr contact
tips as the base because it combines the better hardening of the copper chrome
zirconium with the superior conductivity of the silver. This produces an overall
better electrical conductivity pro le while still being harder. They are more
expensive than the standard silver-plated welding contact tips, but have a low cost
of ownership in right application - typically heavy amperage robotic processes.

#5: Stainless Steel Contact Tip X8CrNi18-9 

Stainless steel contact tips only really have an application in laser optic processes.
Stainless is good to use for Cold Wire Feeding processes.

Steel welding contact tips have very poor electrical conductivity, but do have good
wear resistance. Stainless steel as a material is also harder than copper, so there's
usually less wear experience in the contact tip bore.

Stainless steel welding contact tips are recommended when using copper wire in
laser optic processes. If you use Aluminum, it would be better to look to copper or
copper chrome zirconium, because this contact tip pro le is often too hard for a
soft aluminum wire pro le.

Welding Contact Tips: Drawn vs. Drilled

Beyond the material of the contact you use, and just as important when deciding on
MIG guns or on changing contact tip makers, is how your welding contact tip
was manufactured in the rst place.

There are two ways in which welding contact tips are made. The most common way is
by using a mandrel and drawing out the copper into the tip shape then letting it cool. A
drilled contact tip adds an additional step into this drawn contact tip making process
and drills the bore using high speed, cold drill after drawing the copper or alloyed metal
out. What that process does is create a smoother bore surface inside the contact tip's
inner diameter and it mitigates most of the problems welders run into often with their
contact tips.
The distinction between the drawn and drilled
process really comes down to the smoothness
of the contact tip's inner diameter. It's a critical
feature to adding life to the welding contact tip.
Because of the way tips are made using a drawn
process, there are a lot more high points inside
the inner diameter because as the copper cools
it doesn't settle smoothly across the inner
diameter. 

When you use a drilled welding contact tip, all

those high points are eliminated, and you get a
much smoother inner diameter surface and
tighter tolerance. And because of that, your
contact tips last a lot longer. Within those high
points while you weld is going to be the wire cast
coming in contact with these high points. This
welding at high temperatures is the feature
that creates many of the problems that cause contact tips to fail, like burnback, micro
arcing, or cooking on one side. And this is often what causes contact tips to fail more
quickly from one contact tip manufacturer compared to others.

You can reasonably expect your welding contact tip to last two to three times longer, if
not more, as a result of using a drilled contact tip as opposed to a drawn.

Advice to Common Contact Tip Problems

Once you’ve matched your contact tip to your welding application, there are a few
things you can do to make sure you are getting the most out of it and not inadvertently
creating problems that could decrease its life span or e ectiveness.

Let the MIG gun cool before you change a contact tip. A hot MIG gun can make
changing a welding contact tip very di cult and hazardous. The presence of heat
makes it easier to cross-thread the new contact tip, ruining not only the tip, but
also the torch neck.
Use the correct contact tip size. Using an oversized welding contact tip results in
poor current transfer; increased micro-arcing; and hotter tip temperatures, which
lead to wire burnback. Using an undersized contact tip increases friction and
causes the wire to jam in the tip or feed erratically, which also results in wire
burnback.
Properly tighten the contact tip. A contact tip that has not been tightened down
correctly causes poor current transfer, micro-arcing, and overheating. When this
takes place you will most likely experience erratic wire feeding, poor arc starts,
and burnback of the weld wire into the tip.
Read your contact tip’s appearance for problems that you can’t necessarily
see. A welding contact tip that has turned blue or purple is generally a sign that
you have a poor connection (including the ground), your consumables are too big,
or you have exceeded the MIG gun's amperage rating or duty cycle. In severe
instances the contact tip’s exterior surface will become covered in scale.

For More Information on BINZEL Welding Products, Check Our Page Here

This blog post originally appeared in The Fabricator, and has updated multiple times since for greater detail.
Topics: Welding Consumables

JAGDISH ZANWAR 6/14/2017, 5:21:34 AM

contact tips M6,E-CU,0.8 mm reqd. in india distrubutor or dealer

Reply to JAGDISH ZANWAR

Matthew Sciannella 6/15/2017, 8:25:02 AM

Hi Jagdish!

If you are in India I de nitely recommend contact our o ce in India. I've pasted their
address below:

Abicor Binzel Production (India) Pvt. Ltd.

Phone #: 0091 20 6674 0732
Survey Nos. 297, Indo-German Technology Park,
Village Urawade, Taluka Mulshi, Dist. Pune.
PIN – 412 Maharashtra

Thank you for your interest!

Reply to Matthew Sciannella

Derek Jones 10/12/2017, 6:12:24 AM

Is there special contact tips for welding stainless steel on the mig mag welder. Standard
copper ones won't last. Keep sticking when u weld about 1 metre at 200 amps. 12 MTRS
of wire per minute.

Reply to Derek Jones

Matthew Sciannella 3/29/2018, 8:19:45 AM

Hi Derek! For that low an amperage it might be something di erent than the
Contact Tip pro le. Could be they're poorly drawn. What tips do you currently use?

If it's not that, then I'd recommend using copper chrome zirconium and seeing if
there's a noticeable di erence.

Sorry for taking so long to get back. Just saw this comment. You can our team in the
UK and they'd be happy to point you in the right direction!
 https://www.binzel-abicor.com/UK/eng/

NIKHIL BHAMBAR 8/31/2018, 2:13:58 AM

Hello I am preparing a report on contact tips used in GMAW, i am unable to nd any

material on internet for stainless steel contact tip can you please guide me or just tell
me more about it.

Reply to NIKHIL BHAMBAR

York LLC 12/4/2018, 7:14:32 AM

Nice blogs

Reply to York LLC

Mathew Heilman 8/5/2019, 12:38:30 PM

Hello

Reply to Mathew Heilman

Matthew Sciannella 8/5/2019, 4:05:34 PM

Hey Mathew, if there's any questions I can answer for you regarding contact tips let
me know.

diya sharan 10/17/2019, 6:03:16 AM

Aluminium sca olding dealears in chennai

Reply to diya sharan

diya sharan 10/19/2019, 3:46:11 AM

Aluminium sca olding dealears in chennai

 Reply to diya sharan

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