Carbon arc gouging questions

[WorkshopChris]

or when you meets some funky steels some wear pates will not cut with gas nor will the welds, the higher speck wear plates are normaly welded on with 312ss wire and OA really dosent like trying to cut that

Yes as soon as someone has a go with stainless rods because someone told them they were good for dissimilar metals, then the OA just keeps you warm and won't do much else apart from making a mess.

 

[rory1]

Yes as soon as someone has a go with stainless rods because someone told them they were good for dissimilar metals, then the OA just keeps you warm and won't do much else apart from making a mess.

Stainless rods are the bane of a plant repairers life, when the owner/operator /fitter tells me that they have had to weld it up with a dissimilar "because it kept cracking" I feel a little part of me die because I know it means hours with the grinder when you could burn out a carbon steel weld in ten minutes!

That's when the airarc comes into its own, however much I dislike the process and the burns!

 

[dannyp]

i know that feeling all to well, last one i had was on a swivel pin they had welded the top in with stainless rods then it had snapped in the bush, ended up haveing to dissemble what felt like the whole machene by the end of it

 

[zeppelin builder]

Well yes they are very different tools for different jobs.
I don’t think the op would be asking about gouging if it was just nicking out a few welds. Point being saying, don't do it because it’s a nasty Process isn’t much help Kent because it might be the most practical process for the job. In which case crack on with it but protect yourself would be better advice.

I think its a great process
You can even prep plates when you get adept with it
Its better than a burner to dismantle heavy plant as you can remove the weld precisely and not scar it
The more amps the better
Very handy for weld repairs as you see the defects as you get to the depth then can chase / remove them
I use 13 mm to dig out the body 8mm for go easy then 6mm if im piercing / removing a root defect
The current gets dropped for smaller carbons as they will burn back too rapidly
Recenly using 600 amps 13 mm carbon on 50 mm plate
Ear protection and mask minimum its loud dirty and beats grinding any day and work on almost any metal

 

[Richard.]

I think its a great process
You can even prep plates when you get adept with it
Its better than a burner to dismantle heavy plant as you can remove the weld precisely and not scar it
The more amps the better
Very handy for weld repairs as you see the defects as you get to the depth then can chase / remove them
I use 13 mm to dig out the body 8mm for go easy then 6mm if im piercing / removing a root defect
The current gets dropped for smaller carbons as they will burn back too rapidly
Recenly using 600 amps 13 mm carbon on 50 mm plate
Ear protection and mask minimum its loud dirty and beats grinding any day and work on almost any metal

We used to run em on the miller dimension 1250’s. 13mm carbons for the bulk of it. I used to like the rectangular ones for lap joint removal taking fully seamed plates off and retaining a square edge.
600 amps sounds quite light to me for a 13mm carbon. From my experience that’s 6-8mm current. We would have those 1/2” carbons going in at 800-1000 amps.

 

[zeppelin builder]

We used to run em on the miller dimension 1250’s. 13mm carbons for the bulk of it. I used to like the rectangular ones for lap joint removal taking fully seamed plates off and retaining a square edge.
600 amps sounds quite light to me for a 13mm carbon. From my experience that’s 6-8mm current. We would have those 1/2” carbons going in at 800-1000 amps.

Aye 600 is just okay and requires keeping it tight in there

 

[dannyp]

ive been running 8mm carbons on the vantage, flat out it seems about right, just bought some 5mm ones to try as 8mm take a bit much out sometimes, most of the oudging i do tho is on the lighter side of things

 

[Richard.]

my go to gouging machine
View attachment 133944

Yeah that’s gonna do a bit, in it?

 

[zeppelin builder]

my go to gouging machine
View attachment 133944

Try running that off your household supply
How many amps does it draw on full pelt

Its hard on the generator welders too. the old lincolns used to throw rods out the block in protest

 

[dannyp]

i don't think any actually likes goudgeing just got to try and make sure the £££ is in the job

 

[Memmeddu]

View attachment 133959

This welder is the dream of all metalworker
800Amps at 45v are something like 32to40 kva (remember i allways have got 2 in math 2/10 is like an sad F), you don't need a power cord, you need something more similar to a mooring rope

 

[zeppelin builder]

Propper gouging and bent offset cutting tips for the OA cutting torch make for a much tidier job than trying to get by with a conventional cutting nozzle.
Air arc is definitely a good process if you have a heavy machine dedicated to the job and set up ready to go if you have regular work to justify it.
But an OA set with the correct accessories takes a lot of beating for the cost, time, space and portability stakes.

Eats oxygen bottle in no time