Learning to TIG

[7milesup]

Oh, one other thing DaveR8..
Please wear a jacket that covers your neck when you TIG weld. TIG welding emits significantly more radiation than other forms of welding. I have burnt my neck/upper chest area too many times until I finally bought a welding jacket. One of the best $30 I have spent.

Revco BSX Royal Blue welding jacket

I have the Lincoln 3350 and it works well. Optrel would be awesome but I found my Lincoln on eBay new for $100. Some random liquidator had it.

 

[DavidR8]

I’ve been away from this thread for too long.
I made a big discovery tonight.
Feeding with my right hand reduces my tungsten contamination by 100%
My left hand just doesn’t have the control (yet) of my right hand.

As I build up the coordination I’ll keep switching back and forth.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[erikmannie]

I’ve been away from this thread for too long.
I made a big discovery tonight.
Feeding with my right hand reduces my tungsten contamination by 100%
My left hand just doesn’t have the control (yet) as my right hand.

As I build up the coordination I’ll keep switching back and forth.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I usually use one of these. Sometimes people mistake it for a vaping pen.

Powerweld TIG Finger Feeder PW1550

PowerWeld® TIG Finger Feeder PW1550The Powerweld® TIG Finger Feeder "TIG-Pen" smoothly feeds TIG filler wire using just your index finger. Feeder wheel automatically adjusts to TIG welding wire diameters from .030 to 1/8 inch. TIG finger feeder is 9.25 inches long and fits comfortably into your...

store.cyberweld.com

 

[NC Rick]

Dave, I think practice on thinner material is a good thing, it amplifies the control aspect which combines the arc length and amps via the peddle. Leaving rod out of the equation for a while is worthwhile also. I did much of my practice on aluminum and learned about heat control and filler rod need at a faster pace since the heat effects are amplified and insufficient filler lead to hot cracking of my welds. The difference between aluminum and stainless steel is pretty extreme since they are on other ends of the extreme on heating.
I fixed a buddy's Easy-Up last night welding the thin aluminum square tubes to the way thicker feet which had broken off. I am so very far from being "Good" at Tig but have been able to make very workable welds on all types of things and that was my objective.

 

[rwm]

When you get to TIG on thinner aluminum here is a "cheat." I call it that but I use it every time as insurance. For aluminum 1/8 or less I use a steel backer. This prevents blow through and reduces the chance of a large area of melt down. It can also be part of your clamping setup. For example I have a piece of angle machined to exactly 90 deg. I clamp that on an inside corner while I weld the outside. Works like a charm and the inside corners look much nicer with a smaller HAZ.

You can also do this with copper on thin steel I am told.
Robert

 

[DavidR8]

I usually use one of these. Sometimes people mistake it for a vaping pen.

Powerweld TIG Finger Feeder PW1550

PowerWeld® TIG Finger Feeder PW1550The Powerweld® TIG Finger Feeder "TIG-Pen" smoothly feeds TIG filler wire using just your index finger. Feeder wheel automatically adjusts to TIG welding wire diameters from .030 to 1/8 inch. TIG finger feeder is 9.25 inches long and fits comfortably into your...

store.cyberweld.com

View attachment 340597

Thanks Erik, I''ll have a look at those.
Switching to feeding with my right hand was actually pretty good. Far more control than with my left.

 

[DavidR8]

Dave, I think practice on thinner material is a good thing, it amplifies the control aspect which combines the arc length and amps via the peddle. Leaving rod out of the equation for a while is worthwhile also. I did much of my practice on aluminum and learned about heat control and filler rod need at a faster pace since the heat effects are amplified and insufficient filler lead to hot cracking of my welds. The difference between aluminum and stainless steel is pretty extreme since they are on other ends of the extreme on heating.
I fixed a buddy's Easy-Up last night welding the thin aluminum square tubes to the way thicker feet which had broken off. I am so very far from being "Good" at Tig but have been able to make very workable welds on all types of things and that was my objective.

Thanks for your perspective Rick, I was pleasantly surprised by the few beads I ran on aluminum last night. I didn't clean the material as much l as I should have and my travel speed was too fast on the bottom bead or I should have backed off on the amps.

 

[kb58]

I tried one and didn't care for the finger feeder; for me it was just another variable in a situation where I already had too many to juggle.

 

[kb58]

Thanks for your perspective Rick, I was pleasantly surprised by the few beads I ran on aluminum last night. I didn't clean the material as much l as I should have and my travel speed was too fast on the bottom bead or I should have backed off on the amps.
View attachment 340640

Oh just wait until you try butt-welding two thin pieces of aluminum together. It'll test your resourcefulness at recalling long-forgotten swear words. What happens is that the arc will reach out to one side but not the other, instantly burning the material back and opening up a hole. You have to get right in there close and give it a burst of heat that hits both simultaneously, then quickly add a dab of rod to connect the two. Once that happens, it becomes much easier to control the weld.

Here's one of my so-so okay welds in that department:

 

[DavidR8]

Oh just wait until you try butt-welding two thin pieces of aluminum together. It'll test your resourcefulness at recalling long-forgotten swear words.

I can imagine how challenging that will be