I just picked up a Miller Syncrowave 180SD and want to learn how to TIG. I've done some stick and MIG in the past, but never really practiced much. I have the TIG setup with several torches right now, and tomorrow I will pick up a bottle and some tungsten.

any suggestions on what I should try first?

 

searching maybe?

this has been covered many times. It gets old giving the same advice over and over again. If you read the previous threads about this, and come back with some progress. People can give you pointers from there.

 

I've snooped around quite a bit in this subforum already. As soon as I get everything set up I will post some progress pics.

 

get lots of scrap and see what works for you

 

I suggest for a beginner to learn to pump the pedal. My girlfriend learned how to lay down decent welds in just 3 days by doing this method.

For welding sch 10 1.5 304 I say to run 80-100 amps and use a 1/16" or 3/32nd filler rod. Don't worry about "walking the cup" unless you are doing at least a 2.5" schedule 80 pipe weld as with the smaller 1.5" piping the v groove just isn't deep enough to effectively "walk the cup"

Have fun with your "new" machine bud! Pm me and I will tell you how to use the advanced functions for it since I forgot to give you the manual to it lol

 

Wait bmc you didn't just tell a beginner to pump the pedal. how the **** is he to learn good technique if he starts out welding like a retard. Pumping doesn't teach you how to watch for weld bead width, penetration, or if your under filling, etc.... and this list goes on.

don't be a retard and listen to bmc.

 

I can see why he told him to pump the pedal. That is exactly how i learned. All my buddies were like oh just set it to a certain temp and go. **** that i gotta just watch the puddle and fluxuate the peddle to what i feel comfy with.

 

Doing that teaches you no control over the puddle. That's why you set the amps and fluctuate amps based on what the puddle is doing. Not pumping the pedal so you get that stack of dimes.

That's like telling someone who is starting out mig welding to just tack weld everything. yeah it's welding but there is no technique learned and you still don't know how to weld.

 

instead of spending time talking **** on BMC or telling me to search through 97976976976 posts, you could actually..................give good advice in this thread!

Anyways, I'm gonna go get an Argon bottle today or tomorrow, whatever day I feel like driving the truck instead of my lude. The guys at coastal welding want 3 dollars and some change for each tungsten, while cyberweld.com has a pack of 10 for a little over 10 bucks. I think I'm going to buy a couple at coastal welding just to get started when I get some Argon and then try to order supplies online from now on.

 

You can become your own pulsers, develop a rhythm
I would sit there and count to myself like a metronome lol
1 one-thousand 2 one-thousand (burn it hot full pedal down)
then let up 1one one-thousand 2 one-thousand (ease off pedal just enough so the weld will solidify, move to edge of weld then repeat) Also try not to weld any more than your cup is large so that you keep shielding gas over the welded area at all times. If your cup is a 3/4" cup only weld 3/4" at a time, after that move on to another section to weld as that cools down. It would be nice if you got a 400F Heat Stick while you are at the welding supply, just wait long enough so that it doesn't melt the heat stick then you are ready to weld again.

When I was learning
http://hobartwelders.com/weldtalk/
has a great forum with tons of info!

Basic rule of thumb is 1 amp for ever .001 material thickness

Pulsing is a very efficient way to weld, had it not been miller, Lincoln, and every other machine company would not have invested there time and money into perfecting it with there "pulser" boards in the new machines.

Work smarter not harder... I bet you wouldn't want to take a hammer to oval the runners on a manifold.... It would get the job done the same as a press/vise, but you might miss out on learning how to do it the old fashion way...

 

My suggestion is to start with aluminum. If you can lay a good aluminum weld, welding steel and stainless would be very easy. You should also buy the TIG welding booklet from ESAB. It's a good source of useful information.

Best of luck!

 

Aluminum is what i learned first. I still think its easier than steel.

 

What did i say, go out and weld ****. that's how you learn. not by reading some internet dudes posts. So like i said lay down some welds and post up.

 

I spent a bunch of money setting myself up for welding for my race car, well...haven't used it but for a mock up engine limiter, and today for some brackets for some furniture lol

Make sure you devote enough time, and have enough time, for you to become proficient at it. I still am not, so I'm still paying people to do work for me...so 3k I could have paid them is just sitting in my basement haha

 

Post ur welds?

 

why?

 

i am not even going to try now.

 

start with T joint and lap joints, dont jump right into tubing and pipe.

plus its alot easier to prep a T joint opposed to prepping pipe.

 

set the machine to a/c rest your arm on the table strike an arc.

you just learned what NOT to do, and you'll remember forever now.

practice makes perfect, feed the leading center edge of the puddle, use pure on alum, use 2% thor for everything else, go get some filler and some junk and get to it!!!!!!

 

this, there are people on her that just read read read, then post whatever they hear. that's how misnomers get around.

while not knowing how to setup a machine or EVER STRIKING AN ARC!

you can't be a weldor just because you repeat what a couple say.


yeah this, but coming from stick it might be easier to work with SS or steel.

then again you can aluminum much better

 

check diamters, you can run out and go buy 3/32 everything, then coastal just lists "tungsten sticks!!!" whatever the fck that is, and they might send you some 1/16" **** that really costs more than the 3/32 stuff!

 

We give new welders a piece of 1-5/8" mild round, a piece of 1-3/4" mild round and a piece of plate. 0.035 or 0.049 if we are feeling mean, 0.065 or thicker if not. They cut 1" slivers in the tubes and weld them back together for butt joint practice. Slide the 1-5/8" into the 1-3/4" and do lap joints. Fillet weld both tube sizes to the plate and grind it off. Pretty cheap and seems to train out really quickly. Once they master those, switch to large tube diameters with thin wall. 3", 4". Then go to stainless steels and do it all over again.

 

LOL at pumping the foot pedal