A reluctant pedal/steel question

[Craig-S]

Reluctant because i see soo many and ive spent far too much in the last 2 months.

We have noticed 2 things (my daughter and myself).

1) we both hold the torch more like a pen closer to the head, which is not an easy placement of the switch. so maybe pedal?

Is a foot pedal REALLY worth it for beginners? im struggling to justify laying out another £190 (in sale) for an SSC pedal (i hear they are superior to R-Tech). but will do so if it means better results.

2) repeated cutting welds, grinding, re-welding for practice buggers up the coupons structure?.

how many times would you normally use a coupon before replacing them? I have plenty to use as i bought a 2x1m sheet of 2.5mm mild steel, but id rather not just cut up one-time use coupons for practice. I now see after a few times of cutting the welds, and grinding that on the 2.5mm at 90amps you get a nice looking front that blows out the back. much better result on 4mm flat bar, but our intention is thin material 1-3mm just for hobby stuff with maybe heavier gauge for structure.

Any thoughts?

 

[BrokenBiker]

Yes a pedal is worth it.

I only used a switch with my first tig, now granted it only lasted about 6 days, but I only had a switch.

Don't get me wrong I got used to it and laid some respectable welds in aluminium, but jesus you have got to move when it gets hot

Fast forward to buying my hitbox and it came with a pedal. I was hesitant and used a switch at first but was getting frustrated having to stop when things got too hot in ally and stainless, so I plugged the pedal in and gave it a go. At first you just plant your foot, then when you see it's getting too hot you tend to back off too far, which is fine, but it really doesn't take long to get a feeling for it.

Last week I filled 2x 13mm holes in 1.2mm steel and without the pedal I wouldn't have got it done. I built the edge up with 1.6mm rod first then moved to 2.4mm to fill as it cooked the puddle off more and gave me more control but if I spent too long in 1 place it just sagged and would have melted away, the pedal gives you complete control and I got the holes filled in 1 pass each but manually pulsing on when I wanted to add filler, then off when I saw it had all come together so as not to melt through, then washed them down with the arc to prevent needing to grind them down.

I will only use a switch now if I'm in a really difficult position which for tig, is basically never as I'm a bench top welder with that process, anything out of position gets the mig or stick. I tried positional welding and it didn't go well with the tig

 

[zzr1200]

For bench or comfortable/easy access work a pedal is way better than a switch/trigger, they can be used even for out of position work, but squeezing the pedal between your knees need practice something I've never managed.

I prefer a torch with ampage control built in for out of position work, but even this takes practice...

 

[BrokenBiker]

For bench or comfortable/easy access work a pedal is way better than a switch/trigger, they can be used even for out of position work, but squeezing the pedal between your knees need practice something I've never managed.

I prefer a torch with ampage control built in, but even this takes practice...

I would love a controller on the torch, but it's a faff for my machine I think, although the amp adjustment is done at the pedal on my machine so maybe not as hard as I think...might have to look into that, some sort of slider like the 6061.com one

 

[Craig-S]

its all a bit like spinning plates to me, asking my hand to control amps as well as control a puddle seems a bit much, especially when we hold the torch closer to the head.

 

[doubleboost]

For welding at a bench especially on aluminium .
The pedal is a game changer .
The SCC pedal is the one to go for.
What machine are you using .

 

[Craig-S]

For welding at a bench especially on aluminium .
The pedal is a game changer .
The SCC pedal is the one to go for.
What machine are you using .

I have an R-Tech ac/dc 171.
no intention of ally at this stage as still learning, so just mild steel at a bench which is more than enough to be getting on with

 

[Shiny Steve]

Try to practice getting your hand away from the ceramic (they get hot fast) your gloves will live a lot longer and make sure you have a nice supple pair of tug gloves not Mig gloves it makes a huge difference.

Pedals are an absolute luxury for bench work as has been said, but a real pain for anything else, if you can get to grips with using a button it will make you a better welder. It all depends what you plan on using the tig for, anything frame wise where you wouldn’t be sitting down I would say keep to the torch button, if it’s just bench work then get a pedal.

 

[chrismac]

I am going to give you different advice, while I agree a foot pedal or slider remote on the torch is great, a button will do you perfect plus it will train you to hold the torch in the correct place, for this reason I would say stay with the button until you have both mastered the basics then upgrade to a pedal.

Shiny steve got in before me with a very similar reply..... I am too slow at typing

 

[Agroshield]

A halfway house, as you do not already have a pedal, but it sounds like you have a switched torch, is a simple foot switch. The ones used for a sewing machine (e.g. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Industrial-Switch-Construction-Nonslip-Momentary/dp/B0D99VSHLZ) will work fine. The largest expense in this is normally the plug to go into the machine, but R-tech's ones are OK on price and also available from Ali.

You might also be able to lop the plug off your existing torch and then use a simple two-pin connector to allow the machine plug to swap between torch and foot predal.

 

[Craig-S]

A halfway house, as you do not already have a pedal, but it sounds like you have a switched torch, is a simple foot switch. The ones used for a sewing machine (e.g. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Industrial-Switch-Construction-Nonslip-Momentary/dp/B0D99VSHLZ) will work fine. The largest expense in this is normally the plug to go into the machine, but R-tech's ones are OK on price and also available from Ali.

You might also be able to lop the plug off your existing torch and then use a simple two-pin connector to allow the machine plug to swap between torch and foot predal.

the switch is an addition, i chose not to have the WP26 torch that came with the welder in favour of their knockoff CK 17. i suppose i could remove the switch and just make something comical to depress it.

I am going to give you different advice, while I agree a foot pedal or slider remote on the torch is great, a button will do you perfect plus it will train you to hold the torch in the correct place, for this reason I would say stay with the button until you have both mastered the basics then upgrade to a pedal.

Shiny steve got in before me with a very similar reply..... I am too slow at typing

Im going to have a play around today and see how it goes....once i get the garage heated up that is.

Try to practice getting your hand away from the ceramic (they get hot fast) your gloves will live a lot longer and make sure you have a nice supple pair of tug gloves not Mig gloves it makes a huge difference.

Pedals are an absolute luxury for bench work as has been said, but a real pain for anything else, if you can get to grips with using a button it will make you a better welder. It all depends what you plan on using the tig for, anything frame wise where you wouldn’t be sitting down I would say keep to the torch button, if it’s just bench work then get a pedal.

I havent noticed anything getting very hot as yet, but i should clarify i generally hold it through the neck? between index and middle finger so not the ceramic. i have those tignasty gloves which are nice and soft. everything is bench for us currently. its a long slow work in practice, so no intention of changing anything just yet, same reason we stick to mild steel and not float with different materials, whether this is right or not i have no idea.

how do we all feel about repeated coupon use?

 

[bletchmonster]

A cheap on/off pedal switch of ebay wired connected instead of torch switch can make life easier. You can even keep pedal switch and torch switch both connected at same time and use either/or as is conveinent.

 

[zzr1200]

I would love a controller on the torch, but it's a faff for my machine I think, although the amp adjustment is done at the pedal on my machine so maybe not as hard as I think...might have to look into that, some sort of slider like the 6061.com one

I've settled on a Parker Tig Torch for the Miller, mainly because they seem fairly decently made and have a range of interchangeable switch assemblies that just clip in at a reasonable price.

Either you can wire the plug, get your supplier to do it or possibly order a torch ready wired.

I shopped around and found my 25ft W/cooled torch for my Miller 350 for about £180.00 a couple of years ago, I think the supplier had unsold stock on the shelf..

TIG Torches With On/Off Buttons - Weldready

TIG Torches for sale in Canada that include a built in momentary on/off switch or remote amperage control. These are perfect for people doing out of position work where you can't work a foot pedal.

weld-ready.ca

 

[tom2207]

a simpe on off pedal can be set up for 20 quid ,,, granted it wont do amps , but for tacking its mighty handy , I rig my switches on a simple xlr plug about six inches out from the welder , that way you can plug in the torch switch , or a simple pedal , or any other switch that suits you ,,, amp control is nice on a pedal but unless your doing a lot of alloy its a wee bit of a luxury . Your fingers will soon let you know about how well your torch grip is working / or not.
as for steel to play with / practice on ,,, find a local engineering company , go have a chat and buy the back of the guillotine for little over scrap value , you will get far more fun than just square bits , and make a new contact along the way ,,, pay them what they ask and throw in a bag of buns or an apple pie , you will be amazed how helpful the guys get after that ...

 

[Craig-S]

I dare say this is going to be an expensive hobby and everyone has their preferred way of working. i guess if i don't try i won't know and I can always move it on if it doesn't work out..or my daughter gets on with it so we have a 50/50

with a coupon code and the BF sale on santa is going to pull that trigger.

 

[Misterg]

Another one suggesting you stick with the button for now. Pedal for aluminium, definitely.

When you step up the amps, or perform longer welds, the business end of the torch starts to get very hot, so you'll both probably need to readjust your grip. That said, if I'm trying to weld something that needs a lot of angle change (like welding around small tubes) I'll really choke up on the torch and hold it around the top of the cup. Mine is a cheap torch that has the button tie-wrapped on, but it means that you can slide the button around to find a convenient position.

 

[Agroshield]

With the grip issue, what is known as a NR9 or NR17 torch (copy of the CK FlexLok one) can open up some possiblities.

 

[Craig-S]

With the grip issue, what is known as a NR9 or NR17 torch (copy of the CK FlexLok one) can open up some possiblities.

a flexlock is definitely on the cards, but maybe next year lol

 

[Erie Fred]

There is a pencil torch for TIG, I have one.
Have not hooked it up yet though.

 

[Richiew]

I bought a cheap pencil torch once to try. It wasn't very good. There's a lot of weight from the cables acting at the top of the pencil which very quickly makes it very tiring to hold. I suppose if you had a sky hook to support the cables it could be OK but I didn't find it worth faffing on to find out.