Stainless Steel MIG WireThere are four main types of stainless steel, identified according to their predominant metallurgical structure they are austenitic, ferritic, martensitic and duplex. It is normal practice to use stainless steel MIG wires for welding stainless steels of many, but not all grades are available. The most widely used types of wire are for welding are the 300 series, austenitic stainless steel, although wires are available for welding some of the 400 series, ferritic and martensitic types as well as some duplex types. Within each type there are many different grades, which have different properties and are used in different applications. Each type behaves very differently to the others and must be treated separately in terms of filler metal selection if serious mistakes are to be avoided. Filler metals can be obtained which are designed to "match" the type of stainless being welded but sometimes it is necessary to use an over-alloyed filler or even use a filler of a different type of stainless. This choice is most often application dependent.
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