Thread: The Tig Files - Voyage towards pressure level welding

Gidday

Being hungery to learn I do a lot of research and am keen to soak up as much information as i can Eventually I'll have to get my hands on the relevant codes (Australian Standards) to use as my 'Bible' for pulling off good consistent welds to the appropriate spec. Theres also a lot of great resources right here on the internet................

However bear in mind SOme of its fantastic some of its good and some of its downright misinformation So its important to remember that the Australian standard is your 1st point of call and what should be considered 'the drum' on how to best 'pull off' welding at pressure ticket level right here in the land of OZ.

Heres a list of internet resources to date that ive found invaluable:

WTIA
Welding Tips and Tricks - TIG, MIG, Stick and a pantload of other info
Welding Certification - A Basic Guide from Structural to Pipe Welding Certifications.
YouTube - weldingtipsandtricks's Channel
YouTube - welderseries's Channel
Miller - Welding Equipment - MIG/TIG/Stick Welders & Plasma Cutting
Lincoln Electric
Hobart Welders

Regards Lou

Gidday

Plan to post as many inspiring videos as i can find along the way heres the 1st

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHi7zwejXuY&feature=related]YouTube - TIG Welding - WQT 6G - Heats School of Welding Technology, Inc - Tarlac City, Philippines[/ame]

Regards Lou

Sounds like you are enjoying it Lou, I'll keep watch on the thread.

Great job in winter keeps you warm if in doors.

I loved TIG a time when all concentration is required all senses heightened and blocking out other things until some bugger slams a hammer down

In your pressure ticket you dont have to weld in 6g you only have to do welds in 2g and 5g

Lou, I love my TIG so I'll keep a watch on this thead. Check out this guy YouTube - welderseries's Channel . Seems to churn through em pretty quick. Does show the welds real well though

Cheers - Mick

Gidday

As an aspiring Tig welder for me the hardest part of getting everything 'in sink' to produce great consistant welds is coming to terms with learning how to effectively and comfortably manipulate the tig torch and filler rod. Did I mention that you have to do all this @ the same time????

Ideally not only do you have to learn how to point that tungsten with precision you also have to be able to do the same with the filler rod be comfortable 'feeding the rod' @ variable speeds with good timing and develop the skill of being able to do this fast. If you can deliver rod to the weld pool as required your well on your way...............

Additionally I think one of the most neglected aspects of welding in general when its taught to students of the art is positioning. How you stand or position your body positioning the tungsten/filler rod and effective use of 'pivot points' all affect how steady you can keep your tungsten and consistantly and effectively add filler rod to the weld pool.

Needless to say if you can get in a position where you have a good view of the weld pool keep as steady as possible and be as comfortable as you can be your gonna lay welds more consistently and increase productivity before you start to fatigue.

Heres a few pointers:

YouTube - weldingtipsandtricks's Channel

YouTube - welderseries's Channel

YouTube - welderseries's Channel

So whats all this boil down to Practice practice practice oh yeah did I mention practice? also try to get into good habbits from the start. Good technique is the best foundation for good results.

So what have i found myself doing? well believe it or not im presently walking round the house doing things as normal with a piece of filler rod practicing feeding rod through my fingers 'both hands' @ this stage it still feels unusual and unnatural but in time it will become second nature!

Regards Lou

I find it easier when i am welding pipe to cut the filler rod in half and i rest the filler on the pipe and hold it near the end and i can get it down to about 40mm before my hand gets to hot and it is usually far enough before u want to reposition your self any way.

Somewhere in all the crap I have there is a little tool that I used to hold the welding filler wire.
Made as a spring loaded tube in a tube, it had small holes drilled through the axis of the 2 tubes.

Aligning the pair of holes by thumb pressure, the filler wire was slipped through and locked when thumb pressure was removed from the end.. The ergonomic position of the wire hand was more comfortable than the original way of manipulating the wire.

It was good to use as I could get down to about 25mm of filler wire before I had to discard it.

The unit was the size and shape of a pencil.does any body recall them. Old fella ,maybe you may have seen them?

I wish I could find mine.

Grahame

Ive never seen any one with one but have heard of them is this the type of thing you have. TIG PEN™

Im more 'oldschool' in regards to feeding filler rod But heres definitely something that I think would be worthwhile adding to my Kit:

YouTube - weldingtipsandtricks's Channel

I'll be ordering mine soon

Regards Lou

Gidday

Ive become interested in focusing attention on what to aim for in regards to feeding filler rod particularly in relation to Tig welding pipe in various positions. This 1st U-Tube video ive chosen is a great example of the importance of positioning. Of interest to me is how the featured 'Welder' approaches this 6g test.

He kicks off the weld @ what appears to be around the 6 to 5o'clock position. Of particular note to me was the hand transitions he makes throughout the weld and how he instinctively looks for propping points with his filler rod hand along the way.

Id love to hear from anyone who'd like to talk about how they go about kicking off the root run of a pipe weld. I know for me the traditional starting point of the 6 o'clock position is the hardest part of the weld. I try to light up @ around the 5 o'clock position so that when I restart from the other side kicking of the weld again is a lot less hectic.

Anywaz for what its worth I learnt a lot from watching this guy weld

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ab8cllmq5RM&feature=related"]YouTube - MY 2 inch,heavywall test pipe GTAW SMAW[/ame]

Regards Lou

Thanks for the links Lou

had a tig pen and thought it was the duksguts till some bas#@!D wanted it more than me when i went to smoko at a shut at lysaght hot strip mill at hastings in the mid 90s.Still a bit angry when i think about it,great tool.