Need welding wire advise

Ok, so my dad taught me to arch (stick) weld about 10 years ago and I haven’t welded much since.

I got a $200.00 craftsman wire feed welder 110V about 3 years ago and barley used it, now I'm installing new frame rails and an entire new truck floor in my 65 and I have ran out of the wire that came w/ the welder. I'm now on the second frame rail.

I go to home depot w/o doing any research and buy some more welding wire but I cant weld worth a $hit w/ this wire. So I start doing my research and it looks as if I purchased a solid wire when I should have purchased a flux core wire? Am I right? I have no gas attachment to my welder.

Thanks!

RajinCajun said:

Yup, you are right, if you got solid wire you must have shielding gas to use it. It was probably quite a bit cheaper is why you grabbed it. Flux core should fix the problem.

Heads up though, after a while you will develope your welding skills much above that cheap welder, when that time comes check into the Lincoln or Hobart's, or if you can afford it, the Millers to me are better quality... not bashing other brands I just love my blue machines MM135xp, and MM251 in my shop. If you ever weld with shielding gas and solid wire with a quality machine you will never go back to flux.

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Super thanks! I just needed someone to confirm this before I go an purchase more wire.