# Learning to TIG Weld?  Having Trouble Feeding Wire?  Check This Out!



## Weldo (Aug 20, 2020)

Might be worth a look!


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## Reddinr (Aug 20, 2020)

So, I ordered one.  Worth a look.

Afterwards, I started thinking about a pen shaped feeder that feeds when a button is pushed.  Motorized maybe?  Tiny little motor, rechargeable?  I thought I would call it Tig-pen!  I like puns.   I did a couple of sketches and figured I should search around before doing much more.  So, here's the deal.  Tig-pen exists already (of course).  Not motorized but looks pretty cool I think.  tigpen.com.  I'm not affiliated.  

Ripping up my sketches now...  If I can't call it tig-pen I don't want to do it anymore.


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## General Zod (Aug 21, 2020)

I have one already.  It's definitely interesting.  I would not way anything motorized personally.  There are many subtle movements that are sometimes done on-the-spot that a motorized system would hinder simply because it cannot read the human mind.


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## DavidR8 (Aug 21, 2020)

I also have one. I managed to get one when they shipped int'l for free. 
It definitely helps me as a new tig'er


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## Weldo (Aug 21, 2020)

Cool!  I ordered one as well.  I've been tiggin' for quite a while but I've never been super proficient at feeding wire.  I cut my teeth in manufacturing making welds that were usually no more than 2" long, so I never got very good at feeding as I go.


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## rwm (Aug 21, 2020)

I am good for about 2" of bead then I break my arc to advance the wire. Otherwise I risk contaminating the W. Let me know if you find this helpful.
Robert


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 22, 2020)

Anybody familiar with the Kane Rush's style of Kung-fu/crane style of wire feeding? He's a great welder, got himself a captains seat welder on Diesel Brothers... I met him at Fabtech last year, and it's really his style of feeding wire that got him noticed. Tried it, I think it would take me a decade to be able t pull it off.
KidKane


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## DavidR8 (Aug 22, 2020)

GunsOfNavarone said:


> Anybody familiar with the Kane Rush's style of Kung-fu/crane style of wire feeding? He's a great welder, got himself a captains seat welder on Diesel Brothers... I met him at Fabtech last year, and it's really his style of feeding wire that got him noticed. Tried it, I think it would take me a decade to be able t pull it off.
> KidKane


I watched him with Bob Moffat on a Weld.com video. Interesting style for sure that I would have a very hard time mastering!


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 22, 2020)

I guess back on point, I bought a tig pen, maybe 3 years ago (before Blue Demon bought them out and made them socially acceptable to use) It does work, but I can't seem to break old habits. I tend to want to feed it in the normal way so I end up dabbing and moving closer with it. I ordered that CK version, this may be a best overall answer if I'm honest. Most people have a problem keeping the wire steady while feeding. You get that problem solved and the push/feeding action will be much easier. We'll all have to post back here (with video?) when we get them in.


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## Gaffer (Aug 22, 2020)

I just ordered one too. I'm only now learning tig, and have only played with arc control. I haven't tried feeding wire.


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 22, 2020)

Agreed. Learn puddle control, speed/angle/torch height before adding wire. Don't want to have too many variables going while learning.


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## General Zod (Aug 22, 2020)

GunsOfNavarone said:


> Anybody familiar with the Kane Rush's style of Kung-fu/crane style of wire feeding? He's a great welder, got himself a captains seat welder on Diesel Brothers... I met him at Fabtech last year, and it's really his style of feeding wire that got him noticed. Tried it, I think it would take me a decade to be able t pull it off.
> KidKane



The absolute best style of feeding tig rod is the one that feels good/comfortable/flexible for _you_. For example, with the CK EZ Dab'er, once you get to the end of the rod, or to a certain joint inside a structure like a small box/inside corner, it becomes a hindrance. When the rod is brand new 36" it's all good. Wait until it's 3-4" long.  Also, he doesn't always use that Kung-fu feeding style. Sometimes he just holds the filler pinched and dabs with his hand as well.


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 22, 2020)

Yeah, I have about 4 pair of thoroughly roasted finger tips..I get down to an inch of rod left baby! You get in the zone and your like, "just a couple more dabs...just a couple more dabs...." Feeding with your finger nails, there is no good technique for that!


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## General Zod (Aug 22, 2020)

GunsOfNavarone said:


> Yeah, I have about 4 pair of thoroughly roasted finger tips..I get down to an inch of rod left baby! You get in the zone and your like, "just a couple more dabs...just a couple more dabs...." Feeding with your finger nails, there is no good technique for that!


 Long needle nose pliers


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 22, 2020)

And get out of the zone?! H3ll no! I just call it a man manicure, melted fingernail tips!


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## Weldo (Aug 23, 2020)

Haha, there's nothing quite like that feeling of super hot leather shrinking tightly around your index finger!

For a while, my buddy and I were welding some aluminum parts at the manufacturing job I used to work.  When the filler rods got too short to comfortably hold, maybe 6", we'd stop and melt the stub onto a new length of filler and keep going.  Zero waste!


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## rwm (Aug 23, 2020)

Seems like KidKane uses a lot of preset pulsed TIG. I have not really gotten into that. I often pulse with the pedal (especially on AL sheet) but maybe I should try dialing in the parameters? I basically never use high frequency pulse. I know it can tighten the arc but I am not sure if and when I should be considering it.
Can any of you TIG masters comment on pulse TIG and how you use it?
Robert

" In fact, Pulse tig welding at ranges of 10-12 has been known to make preachers cuss, monks break vows of silence, and perfectly good tig welders walk off the job and become florists. "
Jodi


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## General Zod (Aug 23, 2020)

rwm said:


> Seems like KidKane uses a lot of preset pulsed TIG. I have not really gotten into that. I often pulse with the pedal (especially on AL sheet) but maybe I should try dialing in the parameters? I basically never use high frequency pulse. I know it can tighten the arc but I am not sure if and when I should be considering it.
> Can any of you TIG masters comment on pulse TIG and how you use it?
> Robert
> 
> ...



I don't use it much, but high speed pulse where you have high peak amperage and a low background amperage helps to "stiffen" the arc and makes it less prone to wandering especially when you are at/near edges


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## Weldo (Aug 23, 2020)

Also, running any sort of pulse setting lessens total heat input.  It could be helpful for thin sheet and delicate sections.  Like Zod just mentioned you can have a higher than normal peak current and a much lower than normal background current.  Even if the background current is only "on" for say 10% of the weld time, it's still about 10% less heat input in total.

I've played around with pulse a little but haven't ever devoted much research or practice to it.


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 23, 2020)

There is an interesting video by Justin (the fabrication series) on youtube. He purchased one of these "cold welding" units from China. At the end of the day, He was duplicating the results with high amps, short pulses very little background amps. Ultimately you can keep down lower by using high amps for less time. I use pulse on AC and have only played with it on DC. I think it has its time and place and you should experiment with it. If you get everything done that you need to w/o using pulse, there maybe no reason to use it, but you don't know what you don't know. I plan on running a bunch of coupons trying to replicate the cold welder...see what happens.
"cold welding"


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## Weldo (Aug 23, 2020)

That was an interesting video.  The definition I know for "Cold Welding" is a process in which immense pressure is used to bond two base metals together.  He touches in that as well in the middle of the vid somewhere.

I often wondered if one could cold weld with a typical H frame shop press?


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## GunsOfNavarone (Aug 23, 2020)

he touches it..... quickly...and lightly!


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## rwm (Aug 24, 2020)

Anther thought- I may go ahead and make my own TIG pen.
Robert


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## pontiac428 (Aug 24, 2020)

You kids, with all your fancy computer-controlled real-time amperage settings and knobs all over your welders (when I was a kid, the welders had one knob and one switch, that's it!), looking through super rainbow-vision visors that "darken" to full-color automatically... If you need all that fancy technological help to weld, no wonder you need a special finger-operated pen to feed your finger-operated sticks of filler rod!


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## General Zod (Aug 24, 2020)

pontiac428 said:


> You kids, with all your fancy computer-controlled real-time amperage settings and knobs all over your welders (when I was a kid, the welders had one knob and one switch, that's it!), looking through super rainbow-vision visors that "darken" to full-color automatically... If you need all that fancy technological help to weld, no wonder you need a special finger-operated pen to feed your finger-operated sticks of filler rod!


 We don't need it, we just have more options now than you did.


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## Weldo (Aug 24, 2020)

Haha, I remember in welding school, every booth was set up with a CC/CV inverter from Miller, except one that had an old Lincoln Ideal-Arc 250 with the big crank on the front.  Guess which one I went for!  The old school-ness of that welder really intrigued me.  No computer chips or digital readouts, just a big ass transformer with a movable iron core.  We set it up with a water cooled TIG torch using an aquarium pump and 5 gallon bucket.  I use that set up to this day on my personal welder.  The only negative was that it didn't have the add-on high frequency unit.


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