Allright, what's the secret to the row of dimes........

when aluminum welding?.....Have a Miller Dialarc HF, straight argon, Esab HW-20 torch with a 1/16th tungsten and i still can't do anything other than pile up birdshit on there.....Am i not getting the aluminum hot enough?....Have tried every amp setting on the machine and still can't make anything other than a mess no matter what thickness i'm trying to do

 

Are you putting a ball on the tungsten, green stripe non thoriated style first? welder on AC ? A row of dimes on alu tig can take years of practice regardless of setting.

 

Yep on the ball. not sure of the tungsten, machine set on AC with the HF on continuous

 

Just a couple of thoughts, don't let the work get heat-sinked (keep the temp stable). I'm assuming you're practicing with a couple of coupons or strips of metal.

The dimes comes from the dab, dab, dab, so working left to right, heat, dab, heat, dab, heat, dab, etc.

Maybe try a smaller rod.

 

Ha ha ha...frustrating, isn't it. I'm not trying to be a smartass when I say this, so please don't take it that way, but this is a fact. Aluminum welding is about the hardest welding you'll probably ever do. It will be years of practice before you can even come close to making something resemble a beautiful aluminum weld. Again, I don't say this to be an asshole to you, this is just how it is.

Stainless is simple, TIG welding isn't too hard, MIG welding is damn near brainless, stick welding....you could teach a chimpanzee to do that. But aluminum, that is by far the hardest. I've been a welder by trade for 10 years, and I still suck at it.

You're either not going to get it hot enough to lay that "row of dimes". Or, you'll get it too hot and it will blow right through.

Just keep grinding away and practice, practice, practice. I know that sucks, but its the ONLY way. You can get all the tips and tricks in the world on how to set your heat, the gas, everything....but it all boils down to form and speed and consitence. You'll eventually just "get it" one day, and you'll look back and laugh at how hard it was in the beginning to weld that awful shit.

Pick up a cheap $20 welding book from the bookstore, or local welding supply place. There are all kinds of different titles, none is better than others. They give great tips on form, speed control, torch angles, how to set up tungsten, how to set up gas, etc. Might help out a LOT.

 

I can help you out a little but 53'sleeve ain't too far off. Try this...set the heat as directed for what you're doing. YOU are driving this thing. Ease into the pedal and try to keep the tungsten steady. The arc will dance around and get shitty looking, but just ease into it until it stabilizes. Watch the parts at the joint. When they start to look "wet", almost like they're starting to sweat, add your filler and just a little more pedal. You need to move a little bit fast. It's rythm. It's also practice. There should also be a setting for max clean and max penetration and an area for balance marked You wanna be there in balanced but more to the clean side. Double check your wire.

It actually sounds to me like you're looking at the wrong thing when you weld. If I was there I'd have you right at it in no time. The rest would be up to you. Aluminum is fun and looks nice when you get it down. DON'T GIVE UP!!!

OK i just re-read your post. 1/16th might be just a little small depending on what you're welding. And the ball thing...take it or leave it. I've done it with and without. If you want to try it without you might just get a little more control over the arc itself...see more of what you're doing. Then you can try it with a balled tungsten. You might just have to trust me on that one.

 

There's always welding school. I have been to a few. They'll teach you half what you need to know. Is the al cast? Is the tungsten contaminated? One spec of al on it and you have to start over.

 

CLEAN - CLEAN - CLEAN and I'll say it again..... CLEAN! Ali. can't be clean enough. Use alcohol to clean it and not acetone or other fluids as they leave a film that will contaminate the weld. leave no bluing and do not grind with with an abrasive that was used on anything else. Grind your tung. with a wheel dedicated to tung. Is ali. finnicky? YES!

 

Funny, on the occasion where i do get lucky and can get a spot to "flow" {where you see the ball just melt into both sides} is usually the point where is say "oh shit, in another second the whole thing is gonna fall out the bottom and end up on the floor

 

One thing about welding aluminum is you don't see the red puddle you are used to when welding steel. What you need to look for is when both pieces get shiney or wet like Highlander said. When you see this it's time to dab and move, dab and move, dab and move. It will take practice but after a while it becomes natrual.

 

like a wet spot , or a mirror spot. It'a alot faster than ferrous materials.

 

The biggest mistake most poeple make on aluminum is failing to remove the oxide layer on the aluminum first. This oxide layer is what keeps aluminum from corroding, and in general, the more the aluminum has been expose to the atmostphere, the thicker the layer will be.
Make sure you use a clean stainless steel wire brush, mild steel will impregnate the aluminum and cause rust spots later..You really have to rub the shit out of the aluminum, you'll know your through the oxide layer when it turns from the original sheen, to a really dull lighter color, and you'll feel the difference with the wire brush between aluminum with an oxide layer and one without. Now aluminum will instantly start to oxidize again, so the sooner you weld the better.
The roll of dimes look is just a matter of getting enough heat and being steady with your filler......A little hint.....Most people tend to not use enough heat with alumium, thus getting incomplete penetration. Its not really difficult to make a "pretty" aluminum weld, but making one with full penetration without any undercut can be really difficult.....plus try making one vertical up....or overhead....lol.....trust me though...they can all be done....they just take a lot of practice...

 

Oh yea...forgot to tell ya......aluminum in its raw state melts at 1220 deg. Fahrenheit, while the oxide layer melts at like 3000 degrees, this is why when you think your puddle is almost molten, and you go to add filler, you just blow a hole in it, this is because the aluminum in between the oxide layers (top and bottom) is completely molten, while your oxide layer has just started to melt, so you litterally push your filler right though the molted aluminum base material.....

 

also brace your hands/elbows on a 2x4 or something,so that your steady,run the welding cable over your shoulder,that may help too.
Randy

 

This may sound silly, but a few tips I've picked up that have really helped are: 1) Get a song in your head with a good rhythm. This helps create the steady even puddle-dab-puddle-dab-that you need for a nice "row of dimes" weld. It helps you to concentrate.
2) Have a glass of wine first...it helps to steady the hands. It does take alot of practice, so comfort is necessary. Good gloves, comfortable grip on the torch, and a comfortable stool helps.

 

I haven't welded aluminum, but my workplace does alot. The material gets acid dipped before welding to clean it. If it sits overnight it gets dipped again. Most of the guys doing it here have been at it for years. Some pulse the foot pedal to get the stack, but the best guys say that is cheating. They keep a steady foot and use the filler rod to make the stack. People like the look of the stacked dimes, but a smooth weld is actually stronger. I attached a few examples I shot pics of. I look at this stuff every day and am still impressed by some of it. Notice the third part has the stack of dimes to look purty, but in the crotch where strength is most critical, it has a smooth weld.

 

Hi Guys,

Complete ignorance here...

But how do you get the really smooth welds with aluminium. I used to work part time in a bike shop and some of the welds looked like the two pieces were formed as one whole piece (think between head tube and down tube for example). I've heard they make one pass with the welder to weld the two pieces, then another with a torch to smooth it out?

Danny

 

Some stuff is done by machine.

 

The smooth weld I posted above is a double pass weld. First pass is filler-penetration, the second is the smoothing. Both passes done with a TIG. For that really smooth, one-piece-look weld? Dynafile. And Bondo.

 

I am a cheater! hahaha. I have found I have to weld REALLY fast to get a beautiful weld AND good penetration without using the rock and roll on the foot pedal.

As far as advice, I dunno, but when you get it figured out, it'll seem like the easiest thing in the world as long as your material is clean. I enjoy welding aluminum a lot more than mild steel. Just more fun for some reason.

 

The Tungsten should ball itself as you're welding, unless you are running really low amperage.

Check the settings on your welder. High Freq. needs to be set for "On", not "Start Only". If you have clean metal and are still piling up the filler, you aren't running it hot enough. The puddle should look like mercury before you start adding filler.

If you are working with thin aluminum, you may be better off learning the basics on 1/8" mterial. This is thin enough not to require a lot of pre-heating, but still thick enough to easily establish a puddle without the bottom falling out on you. Once you get the feel, and the timing down, then switch to lighter material.

I add filler with the aforementioned "stab" method to acheive the look you are after. Other guys I work with, simply keep the filler at the edge of the puddle as they travel,which adds filler continously and gives you a smoother looking bead.

 

I haven't TIG welded anything since 1984 when I left the restoration shop, aluminum was the ONLY thing I got to TIG. I could run a stack of dimes on an old Bugatti body or a repop that was a month old, DAMN I miss it! I even stopped in and picked up a Miller welder catalog on Monday and priced out a new unit. 2007 will end with me TIG welding again. I hope it's like riding a bicycle, once you learn you can get on years later and still ride. Never had a chance to TIG steel and hope I can adapt, got to find a school this winter. Nobody mentioned goggle color, I think aluminum used a different filter if memory is correct. I always had a 4x4 block of aluminum to burn a ball on the tungstin tip, specal stone to grind a piont, stainless brush for aluminum ONLY.

 

What thickness material are you trying to weld? In my job, we generally work with material from .040 to 3/8" and use 3/32" Tungsten for all of it.

1/16" will do fine for most lighter stuff, but once you get into the heat range required for 1/4" and heavier, it can't take the amperage.

 

Here's what I do, it might not be right but it'll help get you started. When you start your arc and start getting heat into the aluminum put your filler into the heat if you haven't got your metal hot enough yet the filler will just drop off in a ball onto the metal. Just hold steady with the heat still on and when it gets hot enough that ball will melt into the parent metal, at that time start moving ahead with your weld, adding filler as you go . Of course need to be welding something thicker than sheetmetal, say an eighth or so. And like everyone else said brush it good with a stainless brush. If you touch your tungsten to your work, stop and regriind right then. good luck and have fun,Stafford

 

If you do much TIG welding with goggles on, I hope your wearing some serious sunblock

As for what filter to use, I use a gold #11 for most everything. Once you get up to serious amperage, like whats required for 3/8", it starts getting kind of hard on your eyes, so I will usually wear a pair of #2 shade safety glasses under my welding hood, rather than changing out the filter plate.

 

The Procedure Handbook Of Arc Welding is a great book!

 

When I taught my kid to drive, I took him to a hill and make him practice to find the point where the clutch engaged. When you know where that point is, it becomes easy.
Kinda like welding.
When to temperature is right, the puddle will be right, the filler 1/16th out of the puddle, and you stab it in just a 1/16th, you can make beautiful welds.
To me, very thin dimes usually are a good weld.
I never used the pedal. Set the machine and learn the process like any other type of welding.The only time you use the pedal anyhow is at the beginning and the end of the weld. When you learn how to start and stop, you don't need a pedal.
Someone else will tell you different, but when you get "the feel", you will know it.
Also, remember it has been 30 years since I welded Aluminum.

 

Here's my two cents. Buy one style of tungsten called Tri-mix made by Diamond Ground Products. It has a off-white color code on the end. This tungsten can be used on steel and aluminum both. This will be much more important after you have lots of little pieces of tungsten floating around in your welding box . This way you don't have mark each piece that doesn't have the color still on it or have to know the difference by how it welds (this can take years to spot the difference in arc color or weld characteristic) Now you just have to pick the diameter and start welding. This is really handy when lots of different people are using the same welder. Really cuts down on the confusion and mistakes. Ulitmately it is more cost effective since you only buy one type of tungsten for all metals. Three rules to being a good welder. Get it clean (read the posts above) . Get comfortable (padded stool, use a benchrest that will also act as a heat barrier to rest your arm/wrist on will help you with steady consistent bead) . Get practice ...all you can, as often as you can. Good luck. Garran

 

Thanks for mentioning that! Helmet for TIG, Goggles for gas welding, it's all coming back to me now.

 

man.... that's ART!