Thread: The Tig Files - Voyage towards pressure level welding

If you get good at mig and can get into welding dragline booms there is good money in that, and not many people are qualified for it, 70 an hour even when you are working for someone else.

Good on ya Old_Fella

Keep us posted on your progress n any tips you pick up along the way!

By the way if theres any Aussie Welders that regularly visit this post please feel free to jump in and share your wisdom and thoughts or any other advise you might like to share.

Would be great if we could create a great resource for apprentices looking to go on to doing their pressure tickets......................

Regards Lou

Gidday

Just thought Id do a quick post on my present setup. Shes pretty simple n does the job. I find myself modding things as the need arises N 'My Kit' is quickly starting to suit the way i setup n weld. It consists of the following:

Miller Dynasty 200DX
Nomad economy Welding Table N small Vice
Belt Grinder
Pedistal Grinder

Laughing I keep the wind out by draping a few painters drop sheets round where i weld which generally keeps out the dog n the kids I dont stick weld here cause of the fire danger etc BUT for Tig practice its a sweet little setup

Regards Lou

Gidday

Heres some great footage of a Tig Welder Freehanding then walking the cup in classic 'outta position' style. Notice how hes setup his 'Hotfinger' so he can pivot from it in the 6 0'clock position.

This dude sure knows how to contort n wrap himself round stuff to get the job done!

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXUy8wl445A&feature=related]YouTube - TIG WELDER AT THE TGU POWER PLANT.mp4[/ame]

Awesome Welding!

Regards Lou

Originally Posted by NewLou

Miller Dynasty 200DX

You gonna secure that bottle at some point

That bottle of inert gas called argon ?

That i lug from me locked shed every time i setup?

NOPE!

Gday Newlou
The danger of the argon bottle is not the explosion but if the cylinder falls over and the valve gets hit it will take off like a rocket bouncing off the wall like a missile, dangerous in the extreme [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pe9gYRXQTTY&feature=related"]YouTube - Compressed Gas Cylinder Training Video - Missle Hazard[/ame]

Gidday
Am well aware of the safety issues around working with compressed Gas bottles I do this every day in heavy industrial conditions primarily in the form of Large bottles of Acetylene, Oxygen & ArgoShield.

The bottle is secured before and after welding which unfortunately is not shown in the picture above have removed any pictures that may be perceived as promoting unsafe welding practices

PS: Thx for the SAFETY PLUG!

Regards Lou

Originally Posted by NewLou

That i lug from me locked shed every time i setup?

Lou - Looks like that ya gotta get that welding cart made up! Nice welder by the way. So are those welds in the photo walkin the cup or freehand? bit hard to tell from this angle but look pretty good to me (a bit of undercut maybe?). Cheers - Mick

Gidday Mick

Yeah a welding carts 1st on the list. Am presently taking myself through the basics n laying down some fillet welds Running the following:

Number 6 Cup (+Gas Lens)
Gas setup 12
Filler rod 1.6
Amps 72

Not walking the cup but freehanding @ the moment am looking to get all the basics right n build upto pipe along the way.

Awesome you picked up the slight bit of Undercut Ive found that 72Amps seems to be the 'sweet spot' on the Dynasty welding 1.6mild steel but instincts telling be to try n build up my weld speed a bit to iron out the undercut.

I'll post a few more pics next time I weld Any tips on ironing the undercut out appreciated.

Regards Lou

Originally Posted by NewLou

Any tips on ironing the undercut out appreciated.

Yeah, Hi Lou, I'm pretty new to TIG so I reckon I should defer to those more experienced that me ! What I can say though is when I only had some 1.6 mm wire and was welding 5mm steel I was getting undercut all the time (I'm not really quick with the filler feed). After I got a pack of 2.4 filler it was plain sailing. Cheers - Mick

If you want to get rid of the under cut just add some more filler and if u add it towards the top of the joint that also helps

Thx fellas

Yeah is a bit of a tricky one as the undercut is minimal but still there. Dont want to add any more filla wire (Though thats a great suggestion given the info provided) as im trying to increase my speed and reduce my fillet size ..................

The big picture is not only am i working towards laying down good neat consistent welds but Im also trying to learn how to do this fast.

Regards Lou

Lou, Are you on 12 LPM argon? I was thinking of get a gas lens or 2 to reduce gas use - but it seems you're still using a fair bit of gas? Have you noticed any difference?- Mick