The weld on a MIG weld freezes quickly but you can make a few adjustments to make your life easier. You can drop your voltage a little and that might help. Just be sure not to go too far because weld appearance and penetration will suffer. If you are using shielding gas, look at the end of the wire when you complete a weld. If there is a little ball on the end of the wire consistantly, your voltage is too high. Increase your wire speed slightly or decrease weld voltage until the ball dissappears. I usually favor increasing wire speed when possible except when you are burning though thin materials easily. BTW, if you are welding on clean iron and your welder is set properly, there will be VERY little spatter.
I prefer to maintain a close stick-out distance and keep my weld speed up. It is easy to go to slow with a MIG and if you do your puddle will be too fluid and will fall out easily. Particularly with thicker metals (3/8"+) you would be better served using multiple passes. Go to
www.AWS.org - there is a wealth of welding info on that site. Also check out a book written by Ed Craig called MIG Welding Parameters--it is the best book I have seen regarding MIG welding.
