Help required urgent

[john224]

I am doing Tig level 2 at colledge and having probs with one of the joints overlap=Vertical, Been on this joint for 3 weeks now and carnt get it right ,
Ive got to get my selection of 5 joints in in two weeks but only got one 2 1/2 hour lesson left .
So i am desperatly after some one on one help if there is anybody in the coventry/bedworth /hinkley area or within 15 miles that can spend a Few hours trying to help me ,, I WILL cover all costs involved and even pay for your time.
As ime unemplyed at the moment and trying to learn another skill to try and help get a job i need to pass this exam in the next 2 weeks and due to a £ock up at job center i had to find the £280 for the course my self so its killing me finantually as carnt afford to restart in the new course next term , last year i mannaged to do level 1 in mig / tig/ arc in one term and passed all of them and was hopeing to do mig and tig this year but its all gone wrong SO can any body help please,,john

 

[Burf86]

If you explain the problem your having a bit more, maybe some of the members can give you some tips?

 

[john224]

Right to start of with just seem to start ok then go totaly to pot the faults are as follows
( 1 ) Cold lap joint .( undercut on weld )think this is what its called,
( 2 ) uneven weld consistancy.
( 3 ) Blow holes.

Just need some one on one with somebody who has there own welding equipment as can only do the welding at colledge at minute and as said in earlier post will cover the any cost incurred,,

HELP PLEASE

 

[Tigman]

What size material are you welding , amps , tungsten size , angle of tip to work ? that sort of info would help with an answer !

 

[john224]

Mild steel 200mm long 40/45mm wide 3mm thick,
(90 Amps )
( 2.4 )mm tungston.
( filler rod/ 1.6mm and 2.4mm ) tryed both and got the same weld,
Angle to work piece, 30/45 degrees and about 20 degrees??
Hard to explain ,

 

[hotrodder]

As they say a picture is worth 1000 words, any chance of some pics of previous attempts? Have you tried bribing any of the instructers with alcohol/money for some extra tuition/practice time?

Cold lap or undercut? Cold lap is where the weld metal doesn't fuse to the base metal but flows over it before it's melted sufficiently. Undercut could be from underfeeding the weld pool or torch/filler relationship (see the miller TIG resources), any millscale left on the plates won't help. Both can be the result of inconsistant arc length, heat and/or travel speed.

Obviously in an ideal world someone near you will be able to help you out with some arc time + tuition but there's a bunch of people on here that'll be able to tell you where you're going wrong from a pic and then it won't matter as much if a beginner offers you some machine time...

 

[john224]

Ive tryed bribing with the tutors with cans and bottles but didnt work even £££ under there nose,
As seen there is a few welders within 20 miles of me hopeing somebody local will be able to help i am trying to get some tig gear togeather BUT when unemployed buying a bottle of argon and a welder is a long process,
When trying to get a mig welder i ended up buying 3 before i got one that worked for any length of time like for more than 2 x 3" welds? but thats another thing,,
Will see if i still have one of the pieces here in bag and try and get a pic on,

 

[john224]

Still no offers ,,,

 

[knoba]

hotrodder is asking if it's; undercut or too cold?

If you can't describe the situation how do you expect (yourself or others) to solve it. Most welders will find it hard to achieve a good weld, no matter how many times they try to weld a badly prepared joint. Understanding the theory is required.

Plenty of top class welders, on here, that will help you nail it quicker than burning through rods all week & still (maybe) getting nowhere fast. If you're serious about wanting help; throw up some pics!

 

[gavuk]

Will see if i still have one of the pieces here in bag and try and get a pic on,

Unfortunately John , you've left it a bit late for people outside your 20mile radius to offer any help,as stated a few pics a week or two ago ,and you may have got some good advice...I suspect you haven't got any weld pieces at home ,having left them at college?...With finances and time against you and yet to receive an offer of tuition from a member here ,i would try a local fab company,why are the lecturer's unwilling to help?,things have changed since i was at college .....

 

[john224]

(1) As i am still learning ime not surewhat exactlywhat it is only that the tutor said cold lap ??
(2) As said i would try and get some pics on BUT have checked and have left the work at colledge
(3) The reason its late posting is that the colledge cut the course short by 6 weeks without telling the students only telling the tutors BUt as there is several students that have not finnished like me we are in arguments with the colledge governing body at the moment about a refund as paid for 22 weeks BUt only got/getting 16 ?
(4) The main reason the tutors wont help is because we are arguing with the colledge heads and dont want to get involved in the arguments with us BUT will say they had a go at the heads of the colledge over the shortning of the course,,
(5) Sorry to seem upset but as paid £250 + for the course and then it getting cut short ime not very happy,,,
Any way am only asking for some one on one help and WILLING TO PAY ANY COSTS INCURED for the help,,,,,john

 

[keith19]

Have you got the Students Union on the case? I was on a course where the lecturer was crap - wasn't entirely his fault, he had personal problems - and over halfway through we had learned nowt. We got the SU interested and they threatened the Principal with bad publicity for the college. The upshot was we all got put on the next full course free of any extra charge, and the lecturer was let go.

 

[john224]

Don't get me wrong the tutors are great and been doing all they can but from whats been said its the prats upstairs (THE Governers )who are causing the probs they just want to get 3 courses in the time 2 courses take to run, its just about the money to them .
2 different nights 2 courses 17 on each £280 per person = a lot of money
the main prob is if i cause to much trouble they might not let me do the rest of the courses at this colledge ,Then i would be in trouble trying to finnish of getting my qualifications in mig / tig /arc up to level 3,,

 

[keith19]

Yes, this kind of thing is much more of a problem now that cash instead of education is the first priority for most universities and colleges. Our local university is a BOS (Bums On Seats) place now, and pretty well anyone with the dough can get in, and even get through, while hard-up but probably more competent students get overlooked for placings.
When I say get through I mean they are actually helped through exams by the lecturers, who get told they must get so many passes or lose their own jobs. With a high percent of well-off students from other countries, lacking basic English and poor background qualifications, the lecturers have no alternative but to help them through. I have heard this from the lecturers themselves, a few of whom are colleagues of mine.

This is the background to much of modern-day education, but it isn't helping you personally. I think most people on here would say that you and other students on your college course have a very good case for formal complaint; on a course which depends very much on practical work, there is no way that it can be shortened by six weeks and the students expected to catch up. You and your fellow students should at least go to your Students Union representative for advice on the problem, if you haven't already done so.

 

[john224]

Dont know anythink about a students union ? ..
All i know is i paid the money and started the course i did the level 1 course in mig/tig/arc last year and intended doing level 2 tig and mig this term/year but had a few probs and only got 4 of the 5 test pieces done for TIG just got this one piece to do ( vertical lap joint ) this is why i was asking for some help,,

 

[bluebobtail]

Hi, ive just completed my level 2 pieces, but i found the vertical fillet the problem for me. Once i cracked that the rest just seem to come together.
I found my positioning was one of the biggest factors. The higher up the weld, the better my weld was.
Then it was just down to not trying to rush the weld. Having a long pause in the middle to reposition better,as you need a stop start anyhow.
Like everybody else says pictures would help.
Is this your last week?
Just our college has warned us there could be strike action on thursday so no course.

 

[john224]

Yes its my last week welding then next week cut/clean/stamp up parts ready for entering for examiner from (C n G ) to check and do Theory then just hope i pass,,,

 

[john224]

Just would like to say a BIG thankyou to malcolm who sent me a pm which was read and understood towhich i went to colledge to day and did 2 practice pieces and then my test piece which went very well ive brought it home with me to clean up a bit before submitting it next week so will try and get some photos of the welds up asap for your comments ???

 

[gavuk]

Go on then what did he tell you to change ?

 

[john224]

These are the pics of the welds hope you can see ok ALL COMMENTS wanted
the reason they are rusty is they were left by fire door in office in colledge so got to try and clean up now ,,,ANY IDEARS PLEASE IN CLEANING,,