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Common MIG welding issues. MIG: Popping and spatter.“Machine gunning” is the stuttering effect seen and felt usually at the beginning of a MIG weld while the arc is being struck. This is possibly a result of several factors that may be present. One of the primary causes is holding too long of a standoff as the arc is struck. Usually this happens as one tires, or from trying to lift the nozzle too high to see the puddle.

Common MIG welding issues. MIG: Popping and spatterWhether you are a professional or just a beginner welder, chances are that you’ve had encounters with popping and spatter while welding with a MIG welder. Even the experienced professional welder will occasionally get caught with a spatter issue that just doesn’t seem to want to go away no matter what is done to remedy it. One of the most common causes is improper wire speed or voltage setting.

Common TIG welding issues. TIG: Hard starting due to inproper grounding of your welderNo discussion of TIG arc starting issues would be complete without a discussion about proper “grounding”. Technically this isn’t grounding, since the work clamp is in the positive and it’s not going directly to earth. But commonly, welders will refer to the work clamp as the “ground”.Inverter TIG welders that initiate the arc via HF starting detect the flow of electricity before switching the inverter fully on to jump the arc.

Common welding issues. part 11. TIG: hard startingWhile taking a look at common TIG welders hard starting issues, it is important to point out that tungsten type and quality affect starting as well. Although a lesser factor, poor quality tungsten is out there in abundance. Individual tungstens in one package may weld fine, but another one may be a disaster to weld with due to poor quality control. If using any brand tungsten, even name brand ones, don’t assume that there isn’t a possibility of tungsten quality control issues.

MIG welder maintenance, what you need to know.

Common TIG Welding Issues. Part 10. TIG: Hard StartingIf you haven't been following our blog searies on Common TIG Welding Issues: TIG: Hard Starting, I suggestion start from the beggining at part 1.We previously mentioned arc starting issues caused by turbulence created by too much gas flow. Another difficult to pinpoint source of this turbulence is the presence of drafts. It’s hard to fathom how a small breeze, otherwise unnoticeable to you can affect something like electricity.

Common TIG welding issues. Part 9. TIG: Hard starting.When experiencing starting issues with TIG welders, among the many possible causes, the one that seems to always surprise me and the customer as to it’s transient nature is gas flow. Issues with arc starting and gas flow go hand in hand as too much gas flow or too little gas flow can create arc instability not only during starting but also during welding. For a proper arc to start, the weld zone must have proper shielding.

Common TIG welding issues part 8. TIG: Hard startingAC TIG welding on aluminum presents several challenges when starting an arc. As mentioned previously, oxidation, even shiny oxidation can serve as an impediment to arc initiation. AC TIG arc starting difficulty is more commonly reported than issues with DC arc starting in part due to the oxidation factor. But one of the causes that is often missed is the maladjustment of welding parameters.

Common TIG welding issues part 7. TIG: Hard starting.

Common TIG welding issues part 6. TIG: Hard startingSelecting too large of a tungsten for the amps used for welding will definitely influence arc starting behavior. Let me say this clearly: If you try to use an 1/8” tungsten to start and weld below 40-50 amps, you will probably experience much more difficulty while trying to start an arc, but also in maintaining a stable one. 3/32” is a much better choice for low and mid range amperages. It can be used fairly well down to 15-20 amps arc starts on AC or DC and with experience can be used for lower amperages.