Quote:
Originally Posted by Dragsinger
update report,
Thanks for all the tips, I appreciate the ideas. In addition to better cleaning the biggest improvement was gas pressure. I had the pressure too high and then tried raising it even more.
Finally I realized the excessive gas flow was moving the flame kernel. It was worse in a corner were the gas had no place to escape. The Tungsten "flame" was moving around unpredictably.
As I lowered the gas flow, the weld control improved. I will continue to back off the gas pressure to find a sweet stop. Just finished a good looking weld at 20 pounds showing on the gauge.
With the MIG a clean tip and clean nozzle made a big improvement. The tip had melted to the point of causing the wire to feed slower than normal.
Simple fixes but sometimes a fellow can't see the weld for the slag [or something like that]
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For both MIG and TIG, use a flow meter, as Mr. Fox suggested. The flow meter works at a given pressure from the regulator, and flows based on a valve.
Keeping everything clean is very important.
I usually use nozzle guard on the MIG nozzle. You need to make sure it is the correct size and shape, and that it fits correctly. Also make sure you keep the gas ports in the gun clean.
I use uncoated ER80S6, or if that is hard to find, ER70S6 MIG wire. The copper coating on any welding wire or filler rod contaminates the weld. Even copper flash.
As Mr. Miller suggested, grind the tungsten to a sharp point, and grind it parallel to the length of the tungsten. Wear a mask when you grind tungsten, even if it is not thoriated.