im new to welding and was wondering how many amps are actually needed to get good penetration to make turbo manifolds?

 

its usually 1 amp for each .001 of an inch.. according to the guy @ the welding shop..

so .125 is 125amps

 

You don't really need that many if you do it in two passes. It depends on your speed too.


Are you talking Mig or Tig?

 

im talking about tig. usually how thick are 304 stainless tubings? im gonna try and fab myself a new dp.

 

16g would work great for a DP.

You would only need about 60 amps or less to butt weld it.

 

you should honestly get some scrap and get a feel for what works best for you. You dont wanna make your new downpipe the ginni pig if you havent welded 16g stainless before. good luck

 

thanks for the reply guys. i thought that a lot more amps would be needed cause some people were saying you needed higher quality welders to make manifolds

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BOOSTEd2 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks for the reply guys. i thought that a lot more amps would be needed cause some people were saying you needed higher quality welders to make manifolds</TD></TR></TABLE>

More amps isnt the real difference between a good welder and a crappy welder.

 

How good of a welder a person is has nothing to do with the equipment they use Ive seen it in person you can give a person a 5000 tig welder and they still suck at weldering and you can give a experience welder a smily tig and they the smily will produce better results is the person not the machine. A better machine helps but its the person

 

yeah, its an art. you'll slowely pick up new tricks to make your welding skills better. The welder itself should be whatever you can afford for the job you plan to use it on. High Dollar welders are used a lot when people who do this as a career depend on these welders to bring in income. That and any welding retailor will be able to help you out with a name like Miller Vs HF or smiley

 

The only reason I spent 4.5K on my Lincoln Precision Tig Was because I was using it everyday for a business and it was a great investment at the time I still use it now for my pet projects till I need it for business again

 

this is 45 amps.

16ga mild steel 308 rod 18cfm w/ gas lense no purge

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Howitt &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">How good of a welder a person is has nothing to do with the equipment they use Ive seen it in person you can give a person a 5000 tig welder and they still suck at weldering and you can give a experience welder a smily tig and they the smily will produce better results is the person not the machine. A better machine helps but its the person</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah that's right. Longevity, reliability and local service are the big upsides of more expensive machines. I'm sure I could lay an pretty good bead with a Smiley.

 

sorry for my ignorance. but what is purging and backpurging?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BOOSTEd2 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">sorry for my ignorance. but what is purging and backpurging?</TD></TR></TABLE>

They are the same thing. It's when you fill the inside of the tube with the shielding gas while you are welding. If you don't do it on stainless the inside will "suger" which means it will look like crusty burnt suger inside.

 

so just using argon gas is called purging? can you tig weld without the gas?

 

you cannot tig weld without shielding gas

 

Do you feel 45 amps is enough for 16g mild steel? The downpipes I make are 16g mild steel and I use about 55-60amps with .045 er70 s2 filler rod, a 1/16 red tungsten, about 18-20chf. I think my penetration is quite good but I am nowelding pro, I tried 45 amps but the weld doesnt really get 100% penetration than.

Isnt 308 rod for stainless? IS it better to weld mild steel with 308? I use 309l for mild steel to stainless and just regular mild rod for mild to mild. Always lookinf for more tips, thanks.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BOOSTEd2 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">so just using argon gas is called purging? can you tig weld without the gas?</TD></TR></TABLE>

No you need the argon coming out of the torch AND argon flowing through the inside of the tube.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dave@passenger &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Do you feel 45 amps is enough for 16g mild steel? The downpipes I make are 16g mild steel and I use about 55-60amps with .045 er70 s2 filler rod, a 1/16 red tungsten, about 18-20chf. I think my penetration is quite good but I am nowelding pro, I tried 45 amps but the weld doesnt really get 100% penetration than.

Isnt 308 rod for stainless? IS it better to weld mild steel with 308? I use 309l for mild steel to stainless and just regular mild rod for mild to mild. Always lookinf for more tips, thanks.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Unless you weld REALLY slow it's not enough imho. You can weld mild with 308 just fine. It will stabilize the puddle and make it a little easier to weld. It will still sugar on the inside if you don't purge it though. er70 s2 wont turn pretty colors like stainless filler but it works fine.

 

are all tig welders set up to run argon through the torch and through the tube? im getting a cheap HTP tig welder and it says it has a automatic gas valve.

 

It wont be setup to purge the tube. You will need either a spliter or a seperate tank of argon and another regulator.

 

ahhh i see...will the welds be bad if i dont purge it? also in the other thread with the harbor freight welder. some of the guys were saying that 85amps is not enough to weld a manifold?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dave@passenger &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Do you feel 45 amps is enough for 16g mild steel? The downpipes I make are 16g mild steel and I use about 55-60amps with .045 er70 s2 filler rod, a 1/16 red tungsten, about 18-20chf. I think my penetration is quite good but I am nowelding pro, I tried 45 amps but the weld doesnt really get 100% penetration than.

Isnt 308 rod for stainless? IS it better to weld mild steel with 308? I use 309l for mild steel to stainless and just regular mild rod for mild to mild. Always lookinf for more tips, thanks.</TD></TR></TABLE>
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for me on the 16ga 45 amps is what i found to work best for my speed. i am getting full penetration at 45 amps. 60 amps and i burn it to a crisp.