OK, here is the awful truth...I am ashamed that I have a new Tig welder that has been setting in my garage for three years, unused. It still has plastic covering it. I have never Tig welded so I know nothing about how to set it up or what I need to use it. I do know how to arc, gas, and mig weld. Can anyone give me some pointers and tell me what supplies I need to buy so I can use it. Where/how do I start? Thanks!
Tig welding how to here is a thread with some god info, there are several more. It just takes practice, practice and more practice. There are alot of great videos that can be bought, but having a seasoned tig welder actually watch as you are welding to critique you and give advice/pointers will greatly speed up the learning process.
If you have a Tig Torch all you need is a bottle of Argon from you local welding supply house and some Tig welding rod. If you can gas weld, Tig should be easy as you need to watch the puddle and dip your rod in the melted part as you proceed to weld. I learned the DIY method but we have a great night school that teaches you all you need to know for around $150. As any welder will tell you, practice, practice and practice. YouTube has lots of tips and schools on welding and they are free. Good Luck.
I just bought my first TIG machine last fall. Kinda a birthday present to myself. I was in the same boat as you are. When I first got it I was horrible at it. I kept dipping my torch into the puddle, or touching the filler rod to the torch. I kept burning holes and warping stuff also. I got frustrated and walked away for a while. a few months go by and I tried it again, still not much better at it, but better. I started pondering the idea of selling it on craigslist. Later one day came where I had to do a small aluminum welding job, four small truck tool boxes. It really wasn't worth setting up the spool gun on my MIG so I went over to the TIG. By the time I got to the third box I was welding like I knew what I was doing. So the point I'm trying to make is get out there and frig some shit up, its a learning process. Also, like has been said allready, if you can gas weld this should be an easy transition.
Some quick questions to get started... Do I need different gas for steel vs aluminum? Is it a sharp tip for steel and dull for aluminum? Do I need a dedicated grinding wheel(s) to sharpen the tip? Is the tip material different for steel vs aluminum? I know how to prep aluminum for welding, anything special for steel? Do I start practicing on steel or aluminum?
FYI - the goal is to build a new aluminum bed for my COE...by the end of that project I will either be a pro or insane.
-straight Argon for both -sharpen your tip at about 15*, sharp for steel. For aluminum sharpen it the same way as you would for steel, then just quickly touch the point to the stone. -Yes -no -Get a stainless bristle wire brush for aluminum and do not use it on anything else -I'm actually better at welding aluminum, but thats me. Try both and see what your better at
How many amps is this welder and how is the torch cooled (water or air)? Here is some good info for you: http://www.weldcraft.com/2006/11/basics-for-tig-welding-aluminum/
Looking forward to your COE update with jealousy. I haven't done any welding in like a decade. But I got one not long ago and just set it up, so your thread is great to me. Yes, you'll want to have a dedicated grinding wheel; I have a funny picture of an old buddie's grinder complete w/ warning label. Practice on what you'll be doing.
100% argon for both I use a sharp tip for both. They do recommend pure (green) tungsten for aluminum. But 2% red works great for both yes to the grinding wheel can us 2% red tungsten for both Stainless steel brush is used try steel for practice first but clean all oil and mill scale off
I will add the dedicated wheel for sharpening tungsten only works if you cut the contaminated end of your tungsten off before you grind other wise you are contaminating the wheel with what is on your tungsten. You will go through a lot of tungsten this way when learning. If you are just practicing I wouldn't worry too much about it until you start welding stuff for real. I have used a non dedicated wheel for tungsten when learning and never noticed any difference in my ability to learn TIG. My welds may not have ben xray quality but I was just practicing so I wasn't too concerned.
Cool info. My welder is a miller, it's blue, umm its got wheels, it was not cheap, and it was a present from my wife who said to me..."Happy birthday, now get the heck out of my kitchen!" (Joking) Actually she called all my car buddies and they told her to buy a good welder for me. It is a Miller Syncwave 200.
red tungsten at the welding supply is called "2% thoriated" for carbon steel you will set your welder handle pointing to the left for DC neg... for aluminum you will point it up which is AC for practice with steel set the amps per metal thickness. if you have 1/8th inch it would be about 125 amps... 1 divided by 8 is .125 1/4 inch is 250 amps 1 divided by 4 is .250 1/16 would be 60 amps 1/16 is .0625 I would pre set the amps.. later on you can set it higher and have better controll with the foot pedal... john
I think steel is easier to learn to Tig weld on. Don't forget to only use NON CHLORINATED Brake Clean. Ago
millerwelds.com Awesome info. If you're using a Miller machine they have setup/adjustment calculators for just about every model they've ever made, easy to follow tutorial videos and tons more.
brake clean? is that for aluminum? When I had my fuel tanks welded, I cleaned it with a stainless brush and simple green.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT use brake kleen of any sort. It can kill you. If area to be welded is greasy or oily, use acetone on a rag and wipe clean. Then use a wire brush on steel, stainless wire brush on aluminum. There are many sites that can help with the details, including the Miller web site. They have a lot of brand specific tid bits that will help you get good quick with that specific welder. But it does take a lot of time to work through the bad to get to the good. I just learned TIG a year ago and hardly touch the other ones now. Have fun learning.
There is a chemical found in carb & brake cleaners that when heated will give off seriously toxic fumes. It is reccommended not to use these cleansors.
Use helium on aluminum if you can afford an extra bottle. You will be amazed at how much easier it will be to weld the aluminum, especially on thicker plate. You will get better penetration, and a cleaner looking weld. The down side is it costs twice as much as argon and you gotta use about 3x the flow to purge the area being welded.
There was a really good night school near me where I took welding I and II, but just watching the videos on YouTube that the others mentioned was a huge help in understanding what to do when I got there.
I went and bought a cheep HF 4in grinder to use as my sharpener. I drilled diff degree holes on safety shield and use it. Works just as good as those high dollar hand tungsten grinders.
Free download of the Tig Welding for Dummies PDF http://www.dl4all.com/igw/tag/TIG+Welding+for+Dummies.html
Pre-heating aluminum is not a bad idea on thicker material .Once you've started the weld you will be putting heat into it ,but for the start it helps. Castings like intake manifolds etc. really like having some pre-heat. I have the same machine and pre-heat makes it act like a bigger machine.
KS not even kidding, I am in the same boat as you....I pulled out my new tig welder that has been sitting for years....tonight and started to play around with it...
make sure to grind the tip properly- front to back, not in little swirly circles or you'll get an arc dancing all over the place..most common mistake by first timers, they learn all the rest- then grind the tip all wrong.......and NEVER use brake cleaner, less you wanna wander around with dementia by the time your 60
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