Welding Tips and Tricks

Hello all,
I just bought my first TIG machine a couple of weeks ago, that machine being the Primeweld 225. Since the very start, I have been getting welds that are just completely porous along with the nasty brown haze I have heard about before. It's been very frustrating as I have been changing every setting I can think of and nothing has made a difference. If anybody sees something in the photos that could point me in the right direction, it would be very much appreciated. My gut is telling me it's definitely a gas problem.

Material:
- various scrap pieces of mild steel
- cleaned and wiped down
- no filler was used in these welds, just trying to make it lay a nice bead

Machine Settings:
- always roughly 1 amp/.001", controlled with the pedal
- preflow: ~1 sec, postflow: ~6 sec
- no pulse

Torch:
- CK 17 with stubby #8 lens
- 2% lanthanated tungsten

Gas Settings:
- ~15 cfh of 100% Argon

Your settings sound ok.

1) Remove your cup, completely loosen up your back cap, and make sure the gas lens is threaded in securely before you insert your tungsten and tighten the back cap, that can lead to air being sucked in.

2) Make sure you're not sucking in air from any of the connections. You can use soapy water to see if bubbles form.

In short, air can cause burning and/or porosity.

I don't see anything wrong with your settings. The only other criteria is the actual metal you're welding and/or if it has any coating on it.

Sounds like you're down to clean metal and wiped it clean with acetone.

How far is your tungsten away from the work when you weld? What type of angle do you have the torch at and how fast are you feeding? Can you see your puddle form and do you see the puddle moving as you move your torch? You must as you have a bead.

Make sure the ground is securely clamped to your metal. Mystery metal could very well be the problem, that I don't know.

One other thing, is your machine set to DC?

Definitely contamination due to oxygen/air. Let's rule out your TIG torch first, as I/we have seen this to be the cause recently (myself included). Post a picture of the torch, and also disassembled so we can see what parts you used.

Any chance your cables are plugged in reverse? Aside from an absolute gas issue, that could be the source of your problem.

Try bumping your argon CFH up to 35 to see if the problem goes away. If it does, get a new flowmeter and run the argon at the normal flow rates.

A lot of the flowmeters coming out of China over the past few months have had major issues with their flow calibration being way off. The factory shipped them with an incorrect part, or something along those lines. Your issue may be related.

did you swap over the insulator for the stubby lens properly?
its a common trap.

is the torch together properly? Remember we had one fella had the torch together upside down??
what is the stick out of the tungsten ? How far away from the base metal are we working?

Thanks all for the words of advice! It ended up being I believe something related to the insulator on the gas lens kit. I happened across a post by Oscar regarding the gas lenses potentially having a few issues. I swapped back to the standard consumables and all the problems vanished immediately. I'll have to look into getting a more reputable gas lens kit. A CK most likely to match the torch. Now I just need to improve the technique! Thank you all again for the feedback. Any comments on what you're seeing here are more than welcome as well!

You're welcome. That's 3 people in recent time that have paid the price with cheap no-name gas lens collet bodies.

jackd wrote:I'll have to look into getting a more reputable gas lens kit. A CK most likely to match the torch.

What type of gas lens kit were you using?

I primarily only use CK consumables and don't have any issues with them. I have the same welder, same torch, so was curious what doesn't work that you were using???

TraditionalToolworks wrote: What type of gas lens kit were you using?

I primarily only use CK consumables and don't have any issues with them. I have the same welder, same torch, so was curious what doesn't work that you were using???

Amazon special. No stamping or anything I saw on the collet body. The screen itself was fairly clogged though too, and that definitely would have compounded the issue I was having. So, maybe if I were to either clean it or replace it (not sure on the standard procedure with that) things would improve.

jackd wrote:Amazon special. No stamping or anything I saw on the collet body. The screen itself was fairly clogged though too, and that definitely would have compounded the issue I was having. So, maybe if I were to either clean it or replace it (not sure on the standard procedure with that) things would improve.

Well, at least you figured it out, but you may have just had the wrong insulator on the torch, it needs to seat and seal to keep the gas in and not suck air. Who was the company you bought from on Amazon? Good to give people a heads up to avoid them if nothing else.

I recommend genuine CK consumables, you can get them from Weldmonger.

If you hurry, you can get an Oscar Sanchez gas lens kit for your standard consumables. see other thread.

I believe it was Riverweld or something of the sort. Definitely Chinesium at any rate. And yes, I think I'll be making a nice order from Weldmonger in the coming days. Thanks again!

HTP also sells CK parts at excellent prices.

jackd wrote:I believe it was Riverweld or something of the sort. Definitely Chinesium at any rate. And yes, I think I'll be making a nice order from Weldmonger in the coming days. Thanks again!

supporting jody is never a bad thing.

jackd wrote:I believe it was Riverweld or something of the sort. Definitely Chinesium at any rate. And yes, I think I'll be making a nice order from Weldmonger in the coming days. Thanks again!

I also support Jody and recommend others support him on this site as well. I learned a lot from watching his videos which take a lot of time to make. I also like Jeff Nolan, owner of HTP America a lot, and have purchased a few things from him as well. Had I been just a bit more flush with cash I'd have an HTP 221 in my shop, and had I been even more flush with cash I'd have a Dynasty. The Primeweld is not a bad machine though, not unhappy with it at all given it's a fraction of the price. It could be one of the better inexpensive welders on the market.

I recommend this simple kit for you, since you can use 3/32" for most everything. You can get a 1/8" gas lens later if you like, but this basic kit will do you fine. You don't really want to run your CK 17 at 225 amps, so you really need a 26, or even a 20 water cooled torch, but without getting carried away just get setup for 3/32" and start laying down some beads, IMO.

https://weldmongerstore.com/products/ba ... 3-32-2-4mm

If money is not a super issue, get this kit, the tig fingers are very useful, IMO. I use the XL most. This package gets you both tig fingers for about $20.

https://weldmongerstore.com/products/ba ... are-bundle

With either kit I suggest a 10-pack of CK Worldwide 3/32" tungsten and a couple extra cups.

https://weldmongerstore.com/products/ck ... -set-of-10

https://weldmongerstore.com/products/2- ... rted-sizes

That's pretty much all you need. You can get other sizes later, but that's your basic kit that you'll use most of the time. It's true that you can't use the full potential of the 225 amps on the Primeweld with 3/32", but you really can't do that without getting more torch either, not for very long. Anyway, not trying to tell you what to get, just suggesting you don't overbuy and start getting too many consumables, tig is a can of worms.

TraditionalToolworks wrote: That's pretty much all you need. You can get other sizes later, but that's your basic kit that you'll use most of the time. It's true that you can't use the full potential of the 225 amps on the Primeweld with 3/32", but you really can't do that without getting more torch either, not for very long. Anyway, not trying to tell you what to get, just suggesting you don't overbuy and start getting too many consumables, tig is a can of worms.

I've been running 3/32 2% thoriated at 200-225 amps lately, even ran a few inches of bead at 250 amps and it'll hold up on DC, at least until you dip it so I completely agree about being held back by the torch. 3/32 is definitely the most versatile tungsten size and i'd say you'd really only be limited by it at the very top end of the AC side.

sbaker56 wrote:I've been running 3/32 2% thoriated at 200-225 amps lately, even ran a few inches of bead at 250 amps and it'll hold up on DC, at least until you dip it so I completely agree about being held back by the torch. 3/32 is definitely the most versatile tungsten size and i'd say you'd really only be limited by it at the very top end of the AC side.

I didn't want to go into an in depth explanation, but suffice to say that a CK 17 is spec'd out for 150 amps. People do take them to 200 or even 225, but you won't be doing 225 amps very long with a 17 before you burn it up...so that's the caveat, IMO.

AC will not take as many amps also...that may have some impact on the type of work needed.

My welder manual says 70-100 amps for a 3/32" on aluminum. Yes, you can get more. The amps are different for Steel or Stainless. There are a lot of factors, so I didn't want to open a can of worms.

There are people that use a CK 17 and weld at 200 or even 225. Is it recommended for most people? If it was CK would rate it for 225 amps most likely.

The bottom line is that there are many answers and there's a lot of gray area that overlap between components. Yes, you can run 225 amps on a CK 17 to weld aluminum, just don't do it for 20 minutes straight or you'll probably burn up your torch.

Most people don't need 225 amps for everything they do, so I think 3/32" is the best size to have and use for most work. I think it's good for up to 200 in a CK 17, so it covers a lot of work, most in fact.

For people with too much money, they can go get a $300 kit and have every size they need, and they can go out and get a water cooler and 20 torch and be happy, etc...I was only recommending to jack that he get what he needs and not get carried away.

TraditionalToolworks wrote:

sbaker56 wrote:snip

Oops, maybe I sounded like I was disagreeing, I meant to say that with a 17 torch you won't even reach the limit of a 3/32 electrode on DC and that you'll probably be pushing or exceeding the torch before the tungsten even on AC, though my experience there is pretty limited. When I ran 200-250 before was with a water cooled torch at school not a 17, though now I see how it could sound like I was saying It was.

sbaker56 wrote:Oops, maybe I sounded like I was disagreeing, I meant to say that with a 17 torch you won't even reach the limit of a 3/32 electrode on DC and that you'll probably be pushing or exceeding the torch before the tungsten even on AC, though my experience there is pretty limited. When I ran 200-250 before was with a water cooled torch at school not a 17, though now I see how it could sound like I was saying It was.

I didn't take it offensively, was just kind of blabbering about why I didn't put too much detail, it's a giant can of worms and more often than not it seems like some people come and ask a question and don't come back...we see that a lot...jackd was not one of those, just sayin'...

I like a 17 size torch for gas cooled, it doesn't handle everything but close to it...wasn't trying to butt heads with you in any way and appreciate your view.

Thanks, guys, got stuff ordered up and just waiting for it to get here now! I personally do like the detail involved with it all, being an engineer, but am just trying not to dive off of the deep end as I'm just getting started.

jackd wrote:Thanks, guys, got stuff ordered up and just waiting for it to get here now! I personally do like the detail involved with it all, being an engineer, but am just trying not to dive off of the deep end as I'm just getting started.

Make no mistake, you already dove off the deep end when you picked up a TIG machine. Welcome to the club.