I would listen to Greg.He has Weld in his Name.:welder:

You are using 3/16 tungsten, are you sure?

That huge stick, you dont need that big anywhere in automotive welding.

You get by every task with 1/16 (1.6mm) and 3/32 (2.4mm).

Highest amps 250A, I ever used was when welding an 3/4" 8"x10" plate to intake manifold. But not every day you fabricate a Roots-blower intake manifold.

Sorry... you are right... 3/32... not 3/16!!

Lincoln TIG video on amperage, voltage, and speed relationship

Great Info Sieg! Thanks!

I learned one new thing today. thanks Greg.
Now on ward and upward...


Mick

/\/\/\/\/\/\

Don't remember if I threw in this .02 about the cleaning comment. Greg mentioned non-clorinated brake cleaner. I started buying acetone in gallon cans and keeping a small squeeze bottle on my welder cart. That way I have a small supply of acetone that I can use to clean things before welding. Squeeze bottle helps with more accurate delivery and less waste.

X2!
Very good info. The description and demonstration of long arc length looks exactly like the problem I'm having.


Jeff-

Hit me between the eyes too. :thumbsup:

I just picked up a used JMR tube notcher so I have more welding challenges and practice are on the horizon for this winter. Here's the first attempt with .75" OD 4130 tubing.

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-R...-RGdgVdC-L.jpg

Didn't take long to notice 4130 welds much nicer than some of the junk I've been practicing with! Now I need to find a source of affordable 4130 practice scrap. That stuff is :G-Dub:

Spruce Aircraft offers a scrap pack for sale. It's a bundle +-1' sections of different size 4130 tubing in different wall thickness. I have purchased some of these scrap packs for small parts and shim stock.

Thank Brett! I'll check them out. I just grabbed some 1-5/8 .135 mild steel scrap pieces today and notched and fit up a few practice joints tonight. Hopefully the more I practice the luckier I'll get.

damn, I just toss the cage scrap out, some good 6" fishies on both ends too ...i'll try to save you a bunch next time around....hurry up and get better with the alloys and move up to stainless...im starting to get the hang of it...after 90 hours of welding. :getout: I'll save some 3" 409 for you.

Thanks Vince! :thumbsup:

OK, yesterday and today's practice was 1.5" .120" wall round tubing.....real world stuff for a change.

Fitment and tack
http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-S...-SKCGjMP-L.jpg

Final weld sections
http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-p...-pmchVQ2-L.jpg

Completed piece
http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-n...-nFgXGK2-L.jpg

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-6...-6mpjVLN-L.jpg

Interiors
http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-z...-z48CMDV-L.jpg

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-x...-x3dJK2W-L.jpg

I'm guessing the welds got hotter than ideal so embrittlement could be an issue. Please let me know what flaws you see in my techniques.


I keep laughing at myself because when I decided I wanted to learn how to weld I totally underestimated the amount of fabrication and prep a couple stupid pieces of metal require to make a respectable finished product. Since I purchased the MIG & TIG units the amount of elementary fab equipment I've bought is silly...............

The latest time saver:
http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-R...RTX3rQT-X2.jpg

Well......



HAHAHAHAHAHA




Ya got to pick up the pace and move the puddle more... It looks to me like you're really barely moving -- and that's what is adding heat like crazy.



I got a great laugh out of your statement about tools to make things go better. It's so true and most people just never understand that part of the process.... they think you just watch these pro builds on here - and go home and "do it". Yeah - right.... The pros have SKILLZ and TOOLZ....

Regarding fab and prep.........I don't think it's possible to have too many really nice expensive tools. :bang:

Regarding speed.........I think I'm overly fixated on weld penetration. Tomorrow I'll repeat the process and try to double the pace/space between puddles. Appears I have opposite heat issues with TIG and MIG. :sieg:

Thanks for the input.

Guilty as charged. :underchair:


Jeff-

ME TOO!!!!

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-K...-KxXc8gq-L.jpg

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-J...-JX27szD-L.jpg

Getting mo bedder? :sieg:

100 amps @ 13 cfh (Miller charts says 110-140 add 10% for mild steel)

Bedder....



1 amp per .001 material is a good "gauge" --- so .120 thickness -- 120 amps


SPEED of travel has every bit as much to do with heat input as the amperage itself.... slow travel speed puts in more heat. Period. So speed is every bit as important as the amperage chosen. That's the tough part in the beginning. That's the learning curve...

At this speed I feel like I'm going to have an off-track experience. :drowninga:

I need to experiment with pulsing to see if that style better suits my age and lack of talent. :sieg:

Don't forget a couple things --- you have a foot control -- let up on it as you weld because the heat it takes to stay going is far less than when you started the puddle.... these are small parts! Think of it as you're boiling down the freeway ---- you let up off the gas when you start to see traffic back up. Same with welding.

Also -- if you want to slow up -- THEN FOR SURE you let off the foot pedal. That foot pedal is there to use it -- you won't wear it out... HAHAHAHAHA

The pedal isn't close to pinned......seldom if it ever is it's only momentary. :sieg:

Maybe my welder is rated like the '69 DZ motor? :D

Ain't real purdy but........

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-D...-DZbSL9d-L.jpg

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-J...JN3sPDs-XL.jpg

you can tell by the metal you are getting better with the heat control.

rhythm and pace will come with more practice.

EGG SACK LEE!!

So my lack of talent (frustration) with steel has basically left me scared to attempt aluminum :underchair: Wednesday I attempted aluminum for the first time. The box and tube are 16g 6061. I don't know why but it seems much easier for me, maybe because I can see the work area better?

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-H...HCSx3XC-XL.jpg

While the beads are far from perfect it feels like a victory.......now which scotch do I reward myself with?

A real celebration would be 60 year old The Macallan in a Lalique bottle....


I still wonder how well you see the bead when you're welding steel? Versus the brighter A/C TIG of aluminum. A small thing like that will make all the difference in the world.

BTW --- On a box like that --- always weld the corners FIRST... otherwise you chase the bead to the end and all the heat is built up and it just blows the corner away.

IF you've done a bunch of welding on a "small" part like that -- let it cool way down before attempting to stitch it closed - otherwise the expanding heated air inside the container will give you fits...

Send me that bottle, I'll let you know if it's any good. :whistling:

Hopefully it's better than their 18 because that Glenlivet 12 and Glenmorangie 15 smoke the Mac 18.....IMHO. :D

I too wonder how well I'm seeing on DC, it's probably not the Jackson Truesight helmet. I was running shade 9-10 on AC and typically run 7-8 on DC.

The box is open on one side, plan is to make a lid for it.

I tacked each seam .75" in from the corners and one in the center then started the weld on the corner and paused once or twice in the runs to reposition or grind tungsten. :rolleyes: No issue with blowing the ends, I intentionally did it that way to see if I could ramp down the amperage properly. 55 amps 65 bal 200 freq (max) Argon @ 16 cfh.

I noticed that too but playing with the bead on AL will make you a better steel weldor. IMHO

I usually weld 2-3 ft worth of scrap before I do a production piece.

I think it has something to do with the cleaning you get with AL. You can see it happening. Just a theory.

2¢ from another "hobby" welder on steel tube junctions. I start with 4 good tack welds 1/2 way down the fish mouth, if that makes sense, which leaves you with 4 segments to weld. I start welding the long legs of the fish, which require the least heat, and finish with the 90° Fillet weld sections, which require more heat. You have to adjust your amps for the geometry of the joint, less for an outside joint, more for an inside corner. Also, with pieces that small, you will have to stop welding a few times to let it cool down. I don't even fully weld junctions in one shot on a full frame. It puts in too much heat, and things tend to move around more.

Visibility is also crucial. I often divide small tube joints into 1/8th's so I can reposition. You can't see the puddle if you're looking "through" the arc glare due to a bad working angle.

or just to get a better lense angle too. thanks

I keep seeing clear hand piece cups in pics... Is this for better visibility or do they offer some other benefit?

Visibility!


If you can't see - you can't weld....


They are, of course, gas lens cups so you've already gotten improved gas flow just by switching over to the gas lens - regardless of whether or not you're using clear cups.

Here's what we're talking about Revved....




http://www.usaweld.com/TIG-Pyrex-Cups-Kits-s/67.htm

My welding has improved by so much since switching to a lense. Easier puddle control and much easier when working with tubing. Highly recommend if you are serious about your work.

These are the two gas lens setups I use:

http://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-2...265Pwxf-XL.jpg

The Pyrex nozzle is a little fat for inside corners at times, the Alumina nozzle looks fat but the taper allows it to get into corners without excessive tungsten stick-out.

I switched to the Alumina lens and haven't went back to the Pyrex, I need to put the Pyrex back on and see what my impressions are with a little more experience under my belt.

I think I finally see your "issue"...... the grind groves on that tungsten look like someone carved the Grand F'n Canyon on the end of that poor thing!


What grit wheel are you using boy? OMG!