gas welding rods for tig

[Lawnmowerboy]

Hi all, ran out of tig rods at work middle of a job and have only gas welding rods until monday morning, Can you use both and what are the implications of using the gas rods?

thanks

 

[shenion]

Gas rods will not work well as there is no deoxidizers. Usually causes porosity.

 

[barny]

We used gas rods for learning tig at my local college. Maybe that's why I found it harder tiging steel than aluminium.

 

[langy]

gas rods will not work well as there is no deoxidizers. Usually causes porosity.

x 2

 

[Paul.]

Use mig wire to get you out of trouble, if its too thin bulk it up by twisting 2 or 3 strands together with a cordless drill.

 

[Lawnmowerboy]

Ahh! that's clever! Will teh gas welding rods just give a grey oxidised look then?

 

[backpurge]

Ahh! that's clever! Will teh gas welding rods just give a grey oxidised look then?

It's usually more severe than that, you can end up with quite bad porosity

 

[Shox Dr]

I have a box of 1.6mm A1 gas rods I use for uninportant work, when I remember/feel like it,never had a problem with porosity.

 

[Rrunnach]

We used gas rods for learning tig at my local college. Maybe that's why I found it harder tiging steel than aluminium.

I find this hard to believe, how did you know rods were for O&A process?

 

[langy]

I find this hard to believe, how did you know rods were for O&A process?

I found this hard to believe also

 

[barny]

They started us on the gas welding to get us used to feeding rod and then moved us to the tig bays a couple of weeks later. The rods supplied for welding steel in tig and gas were the same ones.
Believe it or not, I assumed they were gas rods because that's what we started on.

Would this be a budget thing?

 

[Paul.]

Possibly they were all tig rods, rods for tig generally have a flat pressed near the ends with the grade stamped on it, rods for gas are plain all the way along, nothing wrong with using tig rods for OA, they weld very nicely,

 

[Rrunnach]

Would this be a budget thing?

Possibly, but learners can be prone to mixing rods by mistake, or not checking if filler is stamped, so the easy way to eliminate consumable error, supply one shoe fits all type.

 

[barny]

They were stamped so you guys are right then