TIG Welding

Welding Techniques, Theory, Machines and Questions.

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redneckalbertan
Posts: 1274
Joined: Thu Nov 01, 2012 10:39 am
Location: South Central Alberta

Re: TIG Welding

Post by redneckalbertan »

golfpin wrote:Rednek.
thank you so much for the reply, the part that staggers me is about the metal in my legs!!!!!!!!!!never new about that so at least I am informed. The machine does not have hifreq. it is a scratch start type, I was a very experienced welder able to weld sheet aly wiyh oxy/actlyne but old age and the fading eyesight have taken there toll. Thank you again for your trouble but obviously the info re the metal in the legs has put a different slant on things. Perhaps you could help with this question how thin a metal can be welded with a Mig type machine?
Golfpin
If the machine does not have hi frequency you have nothing to worry about! Try running in reverse polarity to TIG weld it. Aluminum does not give a whole lot of visual clues, compared to steel, to know when your puddle is going to drop out so be careful. I've welded 12ga aluminum sheet when I was 20ish with a pulsed mig setup and it worked very well. With a simple spool gun I weld 1/8" think aluminum. I have welded lighter aluminum 16ga ish to something heavier. Welding light material to heavier stuff I find easy because the larger material acts like a heat sink and you concentrate your heat there bring it over to fuse with the light stuff. I don't do a lot of aluminum welding with a MIG probably a week scattered throughout the year. A person can probably weld thinner successfully with the material on chill blocks or strips.
BadDog wrote:I've got pins, rods, screws and plates all over my body; and I've never heard of (or experienced) a welder interfering with them. Doesn't seem to me the effect would be sufficient unless maybe I coiled the leads around my leg. Radiated power drops with the cube of distance, so it doesn't seem much risk.
BadDod,
That's what I was told in school, I've never been around hi frequency TIG welding and was not allowed in the class when it was being done. My instructed had said that in the 90's they had a student in the class get a pretty good burn from that. I can't comment any further than that, that's just what I was told.
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steamin10
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Joined: Sun Jun 08, 2003 11:52 pm
Location: NW Indiana. Close to Lake Michigan S. tip

Re: TIG Welding

Post by steamin10 »

The warning is essentially true about the inductance to stray meals. watches, jewelry and chains cannot be in the area of an induction furnace, as it acts as an antenae for the flux that surrounds the power flow. It is true with AC power lines, and high freq welders. Distance is indeed the diference. Some welders have trouble with their fillings getting a jaw ache without understanding the jaw ache is triggered by a temprature rise.

The danger is small, but imagine sitting with the cable over your leg. It would be close enough to cause concern for rods or pins in that area. This is true of any high frequency, high power equipment. It is also a reason it is inadvisable to loop a lot of lead on the floor, as the welding will cause that loop to heat up significantly, as you have made a coil, without a core. Anyone working on coil operated equipment, knows you have to stick a screwdriver or similar iron object in the coils field, or you melt the coil post haste. Coiling or leaving coiled leads on the side of the machine is not good, as it induces a current to ground on the flat steel case of the machine, and cause problems with computer controls, and feedback circuits, that read the relative grounds.

Just some thoughts, about the magic of welding, with TIG.

Steel can be tigged without freq, Aluminum needs freq to move the metal in the puddle. (Same with Stainless). A pedel is for finer control of the arc, mostly crucial for starting on aluminum, and no-touch welding from the tip.
Big Dave, former Millwright, Electrician, Environmental conditioning, and back yard Fixxit guy. Now retired, persuing boats, trains, and broken relics.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of Smart. My computer beat me at chess, but not kickboxing
It is not getting caught in the rain, its learning to dance in it. People saying good morning, should have to prove it.
golfpin

Re: TIG Welding

Post by golfpin »

Thanks to all for the input
Golfpin
kazlx
Posts: 74
Joined: Thu Dec 02, 2010 12:47 pm
Location: Orange, CA

Re: TIG Welding

Post by kazlx »

Not to be a stick in the mud, but please don't learn from watching Mr. Tig. Jody at weldingtipsandtricks.com or his youtube is a much better place to start. Mr. Tig is painful to watch and gives nothing but bad info. Poke around the welding forums if you want more opinions...
Ruger338
Posts: 7
Joined: Sun Dec 14, 2014 12:23 pm

Re: TIG Welding

Post by Ruger338 »

Just a couple tips I did not see mentioned. I was a Journeyman Boilermaker for quite a few years, being followed around by an x-Ray crew you get focused on things like sharp/balled tungsten and contamination. I have a Hobart Tig in my shop which I use infrequently but love the results.

So rules of the Boilermaker trade:

Use a General Tools 93 Adjustable Pin Vise to hold the tungsten when you sharpen them, preferably on a stone (wheel) dedicated to that purpose. Use a copper tube 1/2" or so with one soldered end and one open end to keep your tungsten in. Non-ferrous and clean so the tungsten stays pristine.

Never leave filler wire on a workbench or lay it down on your weldment, put a small bend on the end so you can hang it (also helps so you don't pick up the hot end) you will be surprised what a wire laid on a clean surface picks up. When you are ready to start again snip the end you have been welding with off, a nice smooth start w/o contamination is then assured.

Use a good set of Tig gloves, use them for nothing else, don't set them on a bench either.

Invest in a good welding hood, self-darkening high-quality hoods are worth every penny.

Wear long sleeve shirts and add a leather flap to your hood front, don't be like the geniuses on OCC or similar shows.

Collets, screens and cups pick-up contamination by small spatter particles, have spares, a screen with lots of build-up can have an effect on gas coverage and quality.

Shut off the Argon bottle if you stop welding for any length of time, a leak or small flow will drain very expensive gas very quickly.

Finally keeping things as clean as possible is good practice, a finger print or dirty glove on some materials is enough to make rework your companion.

This does not seem important perhaps on some jobs, but safety and quality coupled with attention to detail is the difference between a hack and a professional.
rrnut-2
Posts: 691
Joined: Mon Jul 18, 2011 7:40 pm
Location: Bennington, NH

Re: TIG Welding

Post by rrnut-2 »

Ruger338, Thank you for the advice.

I have picked up new tig gloves, a new helmet, a new set of leathers and a tungsten grinder.

Still trying to get the hang of not sticking the tungsten.

Jim B
rbertalotto
Posts: 71
Joined: Sat Aug 16, 2008 11:38 am
Location: Dartmouth, MA

Re: TIG Welding

Post by rbertalotto »

Right here is easily the best site I've found when I started TIG welding a few years ago.

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/sti ... -rods.html

I took a course at the local trade school where we were TIG welding with $10,000 welders. Made it seem easy. Then I got home to my Transformer based SyncroTIG 180 and couldn't do anything. I sold it and bought a Miller Diversion 180 which is INVERTER based and I can weld with it like a pro!

This is the welder that seems to be getting a ton of attention lately. 200amp AC/DC Tig for $699....Three year warrantee. All the right bells and whistles...

http://www.eastwood.com/tig-welders-eas ... elder.html

"Welding is knitting for men!"
GaryD
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue Jan 20, 2015 9:17 pm
Location: Prosser WA. USA

Re: TIG Welding

Post by GaryD »

redneckalbertan wrote:
steamin10 wrote:Also always sharpen your electrodes to a point pushing up above the wheel, not rolling it sideways. It makes a diference on how the arc spreads, due to the scratches made by the wheel.
I came across a picture that illustrates your advice and thought I'd share.
You can also get what is called Chem sharp from the welding supply store, I have been using it for about 25 years no grinding necessary..
Sandman north
Posts: 41
Joined: Thu Jan 29, 2015 8:02 pm
Location: Parry Sound Ont

Re: TIG Welding

Post by Sandman north »

My best trick.... get some 2 or 3 " copper pipe and split it, and make flat. I use pipe as it is thicker than sheet and usually you can get some scrap pipe.
Clamp your copper under the weld and it will give some shielding from wind and support the weld.

u tube videos I wish they were around when I was learning.

I weld steel DC electrode +

aluminum in ac for the ac wave cleaning + penetration

Just practice once you have 50 hours or so it gets easier




Sandman
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