Project 3 from ShaneJackson. Category: Custom welded Shop tools and improvements

[ShaneJackson]

Well this is my second go at TIG welding. This time I practiced a little before starting.

Again I used my PA140ST in TIG mode. I was using a 1/16 2% thoriated with a #5 cap. Amperage was 45-50. Filler rod was a 1/16 ER70S2. The metal is a little less than 1/16.

My poor old table saw was on it's last leg and liked to break dance after some idiot decided to sit on it one day (I'll be nice and not say who... but if I ever see my brick mason on the side of the road with a flat... I'll blow the horn and wave....) The actual bottom of the table saw is made out of plastic and is now cracked. This allows the metal legs to "flop" around. Not too safe... So rather than throwing it away and buying another I decided to tack the legs in hops that that would stabilize it enough to last for a few more years.

This time I cleaned the legs using a cut off disk (I know not the correct tool.... but it worked). I just did small spots as I only planned on putting small spot welds. With the table sitting upside down I straitened all the legs and leveled everything then I put small tacks to hold it together. I then set the table on it's side so I could work on a horizontal surface. Everything seemed to go smoothly. I had the argon set at 10CFM at first and then bumped it to around 12-13CFM. The welds might not look the best but they are getting better (at least I think). If nothing else I should be a little safer when using my poor old table saw.

[Rambozo]

Looking better. 10 CFH should be more than enough with a #5 cup. Maybe even a little less like 8 CFH if you use a gas lens. How far away are you holding the tungsten? It looks a little like too long an arc. Set your tungsten stickout about 1/8" from the face of the cup and keep the tungsten about 1/16" from the surface of the puddle max. You will find it's a cooler arc, then so you might need a little more amperage. Pulling a long arc actually makes it hotter and is what causes burn throughs. This is because a long arc raises the voltage so with a constant current supply you get more power and more heat in the weld. The trick is to match your amperage and travel speed. it just takes practice. If things are melting too much try to close up the arc a little and go a little faster. I know, easier said than done, but it will become second nature given time.

Just tacking a lot of that bolt together stuff can real make a huge difference in stability. I do that a lot even on brand new stuff. Bolt holes are always sloppy and feel rickety. You can still take the stuff apart later with a little grinding, but for steel shelves or carts a few tacks make all the difference. Like gluing IKEA stuff when assembling it really transforms that stuff, too.

[ShaneJackson]

I have the tungsten about 1/4 out and holding it about 1/8 away from the puddle... I will try as you suggested. The one problem I am having is I keep either hitting the tungsten with the filler rod or get too close to the puddle and dip the tungsten. I am getting better but one thing I need is a good set of gloves. I have been welding bare handed on my torch hand and wearing some crappy HF (the free with coupon ones) glove on the filler hand. My torch hand (right) is getting fairly warm. Also my wonderful HF $40 helmet has flashed me a few times. It is suppose to be good for TIG above 10 amps, but below 25 amps and it happens. I was practicing with some .020" 316L sheet when it was happening.

[everlastsupport]

Picture 5 of 6 was better. 4 of 6 way too much filler and moving too slow. Run a #7 cup and 8CFH

[ShaneJackson]

Picture #4 was the first weld of the 8. Picture #5 was the 7th weld. The biggest cup I have right now is a #6. I will be ordering more consumables soon as the LWS here is a lot higher... I had to buy a collet body for the 1/16 tungsten @ 4.25 and a collet for the 3/32 @ 2.00, for some odd reason the kit that came with my PA140ST had a 3/32 collet body (but no 3/32 collet) and 2 1/16 collets but no body.

[Rambozo]

With no arc and no helmet, practice getting a good prop with your hand and moving the torch along keeping the tungsten point at the exact same height over the material. Sometimes finding just the right prop height can make a world of difference. I keep a bunch of small wood blocks on my welding table just to prop on. They insulate you from the heat and even on flat material 3/4" under my hand makes me so much more stable and smooth. and on things like an inch or so tall a chunk of flat 2x4 is a great prop. I know there is a Miller video on YouTube about hand position. You can search that. Thin flexible gloves help a lot. Don't skimp there, Tillman are some of the best and they make 11 different styles of just TIG gloves. Be sure your helmet is set to high sensitivity and crank the delay up to help cover moments where the arc cuts out for a split second (like when you dip the puddle ) and that should help.

[ShaneJackson]

The Tillman gloves look nice. I tried a pair of Hobart premium TIG gloves on at TSC and they fit fairly well. How do they compair to the Tillman gloves? Anyone know what size they would be? I was thinking of ordering some Tillman gloves off ebay but I dont know what size I ould need....

[ShaneJackson]

So far this is the best price on the 25a's I can find...
http://store.cyberweld.com/tiwegldetigg.html
Have to spend $25 but has free shipping... 4 pairs for $30.60

[everlastsupport]

So far this is the best price on the 25a's I can find...
http://store.cyberweld.com/tiwegldetigg.html
Have to spend $25 but has free shipping... 4 pairs for $30.60

For me I can buy for more than one person. 4 pairs will last you for a far amount of time if you don't do a lot of TIG. They are light weight, but companies have to make rent for processing the order.