Evening Class Update

[HasBean]

Well I've had the pad sliced and etched with nitric and all is hunky dory Was even told my welding was very 'neat'

And then we do an outside corner on 6mm. Easy peasy says I, done it loads of times with mig. MMA must be straightforward............errr no!!!!

2.5 root, 3.2 cap, haven't got as far as the cap yet

As you can see........















As you can see it's dreadfull

I reckon i've been holding the rod too far away and travelling too fast, I've gone from not needing a chipping hammer to needing a Kango
Confidence has gone from 8 out of 10 to zilch
These were done after hours so I've taken the test pieces home to practice but not sure where to start, any ideas anyone?

Other thing is I stand at 90 deg to the work and can't see where I'm 'going' so to speak which makes things a little difficult and find myself pushing the rod forward which seems to work but is that OK?

I'm open to the floods of critism

Paul

 

[Paul.]

Hi Paul
As you say your arc gap is too wide, you need to be pulling the electrode towards you and keeping the arc tight, have a look at this thread for some hints on arc length and electrode control, use the angles in this sketch as a starting point, the slope can vary a bit according to your current & speed, you will be able to control the arc temp to a certain extent by varying the arc length, shorter is cooler and more focused, so if your blowing through don't pull away (which is a natural reaction) shorten up and push in, I used to teach welding and Ive seen all this, (and worse) before, It'll come to you with a bit of practice.

 

[HasBean]

Thanks Paul, hopefully I'll have time to play this weekend and if I'm brave enough I'll post some pics

 

[shenion]

Wow, Deja Vue

Been there, done that, have the spatter holed t-shirt. Look through my thread linked above, TIG Paul got me from 0/10 to 6/10.

Still need practice and to relearn the correct settings for my rods. Have been burning a few rods every night. DCEP, DCEN, AC and vary current. Want to get to just grab the rods, set the dials and go

 

[HasBean]

Right then,

Had another play and I'd like to say my weldings improved......






























I'd like to say that but it hasn't






That's the best bit
Tried dragging the rod which is suprisingly easy (top bit) but didn't work, then did my usual tecnique which wasn't too bad as long as I remembered to keep the rod as tight to the pool as possible (reasonable (?) bit in the middle). Started a new rod, back to bird poo Left spaces between welds so I could see the improvement on each one

Sussed the cap (those on the right were done with no root, found a pause in the middle of the weave fixed this)

So rods ok, slope angle ok, more juice then? 70-75Amps on a 2.5

Tried 85 amps but it was very messy and kept blowing through (maybe amps ok but now travel speed too slow?)

Why didn't I stick to Mig?

 

[snowcat]

I would use a 3.25mm rod to start, the gaps are down to two bigger weave for the travel speed, a larger rod will help, however If you were to root the initial pass wirth a stringer bead (tight bead) then put the weave on the cap, burn this hotter as it will take out any left over slag, (also know as hot pass)...... BTW much of the work I do is purely welded in a series of stringers, weaves are not considered as strong, and often form a cosmetic part of the weld rather than the structual.....

 

[HasBean]

Thanks Snowcat, I'll have another go tonight

 

[HasBean]

Well it isn't great but after more burnt rods....



holes are demarkation zones




and finally.....




Lots more practice I think but, who knows, in 16 years or so when I'm up for retirement I might just've got the hang of it

Paul

 

[Coo]

What an improvement !

Is that last pic one big weave ?

 

[HasBean]

Yup, it's just a 3.2 weaved over the top. That's what the instructor wanted. At this stage I think he's trying to get us used to controlling the rod.
(Roll on vertical up )

 

[zardoz]

i had a terrible time doing root, middle and cap on a 6mm plate. I was the last one in the class to get it right. Then one day it just happened! Practice is the only thing that will do it, but remember to actually try to look into the pool and differentiate between rod and flux, while keeping the arc length constant.

 

[HasBean]

Hi Zardoz, I find it's trying to see where to go is the problem so my weld ends up all over the place.
The only way I find I can keep the angle right is to weld towards myself (as TigPaul said) and force myself to push the rod in when things go pear shaped. Only thing is as the rod shortens I tend to reduce the slope angle for some reason

Since I did those welds I've done some pretty awfull ones like before too, just hope it's just a matter of practice now.

Must find though I'm less worried about being close to the weld, now keep my left elbow on the bench, two hands on the electrode holder (find mine easier to use BTW as it's a bit heavier than the ones at classes ), problem with short arms is I can only do about 3" before I need to start again