well got my welder hooked up and everything today. its a miller DYNASTY 200dx. still learn how to get the setting and **** right. but these are my first ever tig welds

first tig weld ever!

second

third

me welding

and my last one


this was done on mild steel. let me have some feedback. dont be too hard on me haha


Modified by vaporboy12 at 4:47 PM 1/18/2006

 

whoa can these pics get any bigger

 

Could you downsize those first? my eyes hurt and everything is fuzzy. It looks like you need to slow down a bit, practice and develop some sort of rythem.

 

looks like your having fun. and Tig welding isnt suppose to have sparks if your doing it right! haha, over all looks fun.

feedback: do you have the argon on? i see alot of dark dirty spots. sorta looks like Mig welds then Tig. haha

 

updated pics yes argon is on gauge is set at about 20psi. also the black spots are from my mig... i am using the same test pipe that i used for my mig

 

it is straight argon right? not argon co2 mix?

 

looks like you may need a little more and more practice with adding, which everyone does when starting out. id say the biggest thing would be to find a stool or something to sit on...trying to work the pedal while standing isnt the easiest!
kyle

 

Where a sleeved shirt.

 

sleeved shirt haha i ttrying to get a winter tan.. i dont have a foot pedal its on the torce

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by vaporboy12 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">sleeved shirt haha i ttrying to get a winter tan.. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Hope you realize how bad it is for your skin.

 

Try welding on some flat stock first. Tubing really isnt the easiest thing to learn on. When you move to tubing/thin stock start out learning to fuse it with full penetration and then work on adding filler. This should give you a better idea of how to control the heat. It just takes some practice.

edit: Wear a damn shirt. You have no idea what that **** can do to you long term and the sunburn can get really really painfull.

 

thanks fot the susgestions ill take them too heart. everyone got to start somewhere

 

I dunno how you are holding your torch but it looks like you are holding it like you would a mig. If you are, I would suggest holding it more like a pencil. Use your fingers for the circular motion, not your whole arm. You will get more even circles and have better control.

 

thanks ill give that atry tomarrow

 

****, would help out if you knew someone that knows how to tig weld, and you get them to show you how. Good luck.

 

Something u might wanna try doin first is to just do spot welds that helped me out at first some. Also, miller has alot of free information on thier website you might wanna check out

 

read the manual that came with the welder...you'd be surprised but there is some good information in that. TIG welding requires two things before you even sit down to weld. A perfect joint(not weed) and a perfectly clean piece of metal. Once you have those two things its typically all on your ability.

WEAR A DAMN LONG SLEEVED SHIRT!

how do you grind your tungsten?
what tungsten are you using?
how far would you say your tungsten is from the workpiece?
have you tried sitting down?(i learned standing up...so its not bad, but easier on your legs/feet)
I brace my forearms on the table when I weld to keep my hands steady(im a shaker at 21! yikes)

PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICEPRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE... I didn't do anything but weld the first time I got to TIG...welded for about 60 hours in 6 days....then I could weld a pretty large gap in aluminum. but remember..Joints and cleanliness.

 

My first suggestion would be to find a comfortable way to hold your torch. I usually hold it sorta how you are if im welding some flat sock...but i use the pencil technique if im in tight spots or welding small tubing or bungs or something of that nature. Its all about out whats comfortable for you. Also...hold your torch at a little less of an angle. How your holding it now shoots the arc almost straight down. This makes the puddle smaller and harder to control. If you hold it at less of an angle it will elongate the puddle...this also help with not sticking the rod to the tungsten or the puddle.

You should try welding withough any filler at first. This will help you learn how to manipulate the metal better and help with getting the heat under control. When you are satisfied with your heat and consistancy move on to adding filler.

When you do move on to adding filler you should try doing a few of the following methods. When you first strike the arc DONT move and DONT add any filler. If you do then you wont get an penetration(which you can see at the beginning of all your welds). Move the torch in tiny circles until you see the base metal melt...then you start adding your filler. When you see the fish eye form(little dot in the puddle that sorta spins around) you can start moving. If youre holding the torch at the correct angle you will basically be pushing the puddle. Youll get the best consistancy if you keep the arc at the back of the puddle and add the filler at the very tip of it. Just make sure that you watch the puddle carefully and can see the puddle melt completely into the base metal before you move on.

Also...make sure that you have all the little things down first. This will help you ALOT when learning how to weld. Such as the grinding of your tungsten. First off...DO NOT use a wheel that hes been used on other metals to grind it...the other metals will deposit themselves into your tungsten. These pieces of metal will then be transfered into your weld causing a flaw. Another thing to note when grinding it is the direction of the grind marks. Dont grind it on the side of the wheel. This causes the grind marks to go around the tungsten which could cause an erratic arc. You should do it so that the grind marks are going up and down...directed out from the point of the tungsten. This will really help control the arc. Also try and put a tiny landing on the end...a really sharp point will most likely errode away rather quickly when starting out.

Now that youve grinded the tungsten its time to install it properly. It should stick out 2/3 of the overall diameter of the cup. I usually determine the sharpening length of tungsten based on the amount of stick out im gonna have. Im im using a larger cup(nozzle) ill bring the shoulder of the sharpened tungsten lower to allow for more stock out.

There is alot more too tell you but this should get you started. Go practice this for a while and come back and tell us how it went. And if you need anymore help ill be more than happy to do so. Good luck

BTW-Ive been welding for about 4 years now. I was lucky enough to be taught by one of the most talented and respected welders in NC. I have gone on to do advanced welding techniques such as Ti, iconel, extrememly thick aluminumm and any medical/restaurant grade welding that needs to be done. Its really hard when you first start off. When you get the basics down you can concentrate on making it pretty and more consistant. All i can tell you is to keep practicing. Tig welding comes natural to very few people...its something you have to put alot of time and work into to get right. Just dont give up!

 

Wear a long sleeve shirt. I got really bad burns on my arms when I didn't wear one!

What helped me when I first started learning TIG was puddle control. I started out on a piece of flat stock and created a puddle without using any filler rod and just focused on making a consistent even straight line. Once I got that down then I started adding filler rod. Puddle control is key to having good consistent looking welds.

Also make sure that your tungsten is always sharp... when you first start it may not seem important but it can make a huge difference. Make sure you grind the tungsten vertically otherwise you can get weid arcs.

It takes a lot of practice and patience.

 

thanks guys ill give your suggestion a try tomarrow one i go get tags for my car. i really want to thank you guy for the advice..

-Bret

 

Is that an exhaust bend? Make sure it's not glavanized

 

its mild steel

 

well i had a chnace today to practice a bit. with the advise you all gave me didnt use any filler rod. tell me waht you think






thanks for all the advice i think its helping.. keep it coming

 

Don't do fillet welds yet, do butt welds on flat pieces.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 90blackcrx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Don't do fillet welds yet, do butt welds on flat pieces.</TD></TR></TABLE>

x2. try using no filler on either thin flat stock or if you must just mess around with no filler passes on some mild steel exhaust pipe and some filler passes on thicker flat stock butt welds.