Welding Tips and Tricks

first off i want to say thank you jody (or jodie) for your videos. they are very helpful. i too also have a HF addiction and a wife that hates it.

A little background. i bought an ac stick box. i then wanted more. i bought an arc pig (high freq stabilizer and non scratch start.) i took to welding mild steel almost as easy as mig.

so now comes the part while i try my hand at aluminum.

first off, can i do it with my "rig"... also without a foot pedal?

2nd, what settings am i looking at.
i cant seem to even make a puddle like your videos are showing. im trying to weld a 16ga pipe to a very thick flange on a turbo compressor housing.
i tried practicing on an 1in thick piece and had the same luck.

first i tried a 1/16 green and gold tung. with 65 & 90 amps. @ 90 the poor tung. seems to be un-happy.
then a green 1/8 tung. 90 amps. 15cfh 100% argon.
crayon taper w/ flat tip.
with the 1/16 i got what looked like a pretty little bead, but it was more like etch than anything.

where am i screwing up?

The ArcPig, brilliant as it is, does not make your machine "HFAC" capable. The designer would have you think otherwise, but, no.

Steve S

Doing the kind of aluminum welding you want really SUCKS without a foot control.

I started out on aluminum with a high freq box and my stick welder - worked ok.
But going around a turbo flange, with different thicknesses, without a foot control sucks.

After I bought my real tig I've never regretted it - everything got much easier

Otto Nobedder wrote:The ArcPig, brilliant as it is, does not make your machine "HFAC" capable. The designer would have you think otherwise, but, no.

Steve S

so what do i have really, other than touchless start?

also, i see you are near N.O... im on the northshore.

what amperage should i be running?

my dad has a mig spool gun, but i need to figure it out as i have other alum work to do too. i will be needing to weld the 16ga piping together also.

95GTSpeedDemon wrote: so what do i have really, other than touchless start?

also, i see you are near N.O... im on the northshore.

what amperage should i be running?

my dad has a mig spool gun, but i need to figure it out as i have other alum work to do too. i will be needing to weld the 16ga piping together also.

I'm learning more about the Arc Pig. I may have spoken too quick.

I, too, am on the Northshore... Near Goodbee (west of Covington).

Steve S

Otto Nobedder wrote:

95GTSpeedDemon wrote: so what do i have really, other than touchless start?

also, i see you are near N.O... im on the northshore.

what amperage should i be running?

my dad has a mig spool gun, but i need to figure it out as i have other alum work to do too. i will be needing to weld the 16ga piping together also.

I'm learning more about the Arc Pig. I may have spoken too quick.

I, too, am on the Northshore... Near Goodbee (west of Covington).

Steve S

im in hammond, and work in covington.

95GTSpeedDemon wrote: im in hammond, and work in covington.

Sounds like we have about the same drive in the A.M.

I live in Goodbee and work in Slidell. May I ask where you work?

Steve S

Otto Nobedder wrote:

95GTSpeedDemon wrote: im in hammond, and work in covington.

Sounds like we have about the same drive in the A.M.

I live in Goodbee and work in Slidell. May I ask where you work?

Steve S

st tammany sheriff's vehicle maintance
grew up in bush/covington

95GTSpeedDemon wrote:

Otto Nobedder wrote:

95GTSpeedDemon wrote: im in hammond, and work in covington.

Sounds like we have about the same drive in the A.M.

I live in Goodbee and work in Slidell. May I ask where you work?

Steve S

st tammany sheriff's vehicle maintance
grew up in bush/covington

Is that off Columbia St, near the jail?

I work at WesMor Cryogenic in Slidell.

Steve S

Its off 190 across the intersection from the post office and jail.

Jody, your videos are the reason i was able to make 2 successful aluminum welds today. Thank you!
Arc pig worked great. Hold the trigger down, or the arc wonders bad.
90 amps
3/32 green
15 on the flow meter
Easy off cleaned
Preheated with map torch

Made a practice test piece first and bent it until it broke
Then the real piece.