TIG welding first attempt..

[Technical Ted]

This just came out and is a great beginning aluminum TIG welding "how to".

Have fun!
Ted

 

[brino]

I also don't remember you saying what you had your balance control set at??? Maybe you did and I missed it. 30% positive and 70% negative is a good place to start. You want good cleaning action without burning your tungsten up.

Yes, Ted I know about balance but it was not clear as far as how to set the welder up properly for 30/70. The main difficulty I have is
with the instructions and how to apply them. I need to learn how to set the balance with this machine.

AC Balance is one of the "funny" settings........different TIG vendors mark the knobs differently....

It's kinda like how some lathe vendors mark the compound slide angle with the zero degree mark meaning that the tool is perpendicular to the axis of the lathe, while other lathe vendors mark ninety degrees as being perpendicular to the lathe axis. That sure causes some confusion for threading using the compound!

Jody Collier at http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/ did a great series of videos talking about the Everlast 250EX, but I think even the folks that use the blue or red machines could learn a bunch from those videos. Here's a link to part 2 where he dicusses AC Balance:
http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/tig-welder-inverter-part2.html

Basically:
1) the electrode negative part gives better penetration (electron flow into workpiece),
2) the electrode positive part gives better cleaning of the aluminum workpiece (electron flow into the tungsten electrode),
3) BUT, you gotta know which way the scale on your welder goes......is higher more EN or more EP?

The manual for the Everlast 250EX (that I have) states:

AC Balance Control
10-90% of EP
Selects the percent of Electrode Positive (EP) used during AC welding to provide cleaning.
This divides the amount of time that the AC cycle is in Electrode Positive or Electrode
Negative during one full AC cycle. It controls the amount of cleaning and penetration via
a ratio to achieve the best balance while welding on AC. When the control knob is rotated
left, more Electrode Negative is present and more penetration will be achieved. When
the control knob is rotated right, more Electrode Positive is present and more cleaning
(cathodic etching) will be achieved.

However, the Miller Dynasty 280 Quick Reference shows:



and the Lincoln Square Wave TIG 200 Quick Reference says:


So here Everlast seems like "the odd man out" because they declare the inverse of the other guys......however, so far that's the biggest difference I have seen......

-brino

 

[cathead]

So.................... setting the balance on the Everlast 200 EXT at 70% is actually 30% cleaning apparently. I'm armed
with some new aluminum TIG rod from the welder supply house so will be doing my homework torch in hand.




It's tough enough to read a skewed manual( a grammatically correct version of Chinglish) especially to a left handed person
in a right handed world and to top it off it all being a Norwegian,




Then carefully blend in a measure of EN, EP, straight and reverse polarity and whip on high until smooth and top it off with a cherry.



Y'all have a good day!








EDIT: I think I spoke too soon. Before heading out to practice weld, I decided to read in the manual again about the AC balance part.
The manual is clear enough had I read it carefully in the first place so I have to take back my rant above. Oh well, I did have fun
with the smileys......

 

[coherent]

For a first attempt you did outstanding. Learning to TIG is definately an art and some practice. I couldn't imagine trying to learn without an instructor before the internet existed.

 

[Weldo]

I would dare to say that once you get used to welding aluminum and get your settings ironed out, you may find it easier than welding steel.

Once you know how the metal and the weld pool reacts you can make quick and clean welds in aluminum. And since it conducts heat away from the weld area so quickly it can be more forgiving to over heating than steel or stainless. You know when you let too much heat build up in steel the weld turns a nasty flat gray color. The effect is even worse in stainless.

This problem is somewhat present in aluminum, if you weld too hot, the weld will take on a grainy appearance but for the most part if you run an aluminum weld too hot for too long you'll probably experience problems where the base metal totally melts out and falls to the floor.

Also the high surface tension of molten aluminum makes out of position welding fairly easy. The puddle tends to stay put in a vertical or horizontal weld.