Newbie welder here..... trying my hand at aluminum (for the first time).....
In these photos, on the backside, (2nd photo) there is virtually no visible penetration in the yellow area.
Is this a problem ?
And if so, why is the penetration lacking ?
Travel speed too fast, is about all I can think of. Maybe I should decrease the amps & decrease the travel speed. But I'm scratching my head wondering if this is the correction needed.
What is the objective ? A backside penetration showing about 1/8" wide (on 1/8" aluminum) ?
Setup:
1/8" aluminum butt joint
3/32" 2% lanthanated tungsten
3/32" 4043 filler rod
125 amps, on the pedal
AC Balance - 65% DCEN - 35% DCEP
AC Frequency - 120hz
pulser off
I assume, the RED area is the result of the heat build in the part & my failing to back off the pedal enough.
The GREEN area is my lame attempt at filling a crater left on the 1st pass.
Last edited by sportster on Mon Sep 30, 2019 9:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Best way to get answers to your questions...... put it in a vise and back bend it. I learned more from destroying a dozen welds, than from doing a hundred beads.
No sense dying with unused welding rod, so light 'em up!
Maybe, maybe not. It depends on what you are building and if the joint requires full penetration, and if you are able to weld the back side of the finished product or not. For practice I don't think it is an issue. But I would weld it with more amps personally and feather with the pedal.
Generally speaking, you need lots of EN, and you have relatively little because you are babying the amperage. You need a lot more amperage at first, which is the #1 crutch that defeats 1st time aluminum TIG weldors. Nothing inherently wrong with your EN%; if you were running at 175A+ it would be no problem.
as above, your running way to cold.
i run 180 amps on start then back it off as i go.
also going by your etch lines your running a wide cup, you could use a smaller cup and it will help give a bit more heat.
something like a 5 or 6 would be good.
Never figured I was that far off on the AMPs...... so many thx for the suggestions. Bumped the AMPs up, as suggested, & ran a few test pieces.
Took me awhile to recognize when to back the pedal off & by how much (to be expected at my skill level ). Settled on a max of 175 AMPs..... the results seem better & are shown below.
). Settled on a max of 175 AMPs..... the results seem better & are shown below. 
