Welding Tips and Tricks

i am discovering that before i learn to weld (tig) i need to learn how to use the machine i own. i look for settings my machine is a lincoln idealearc 300/300 wet torch it wieghs in at around 900 lbs or so tonight i finaly got it all hooked in and wired up and attempted to make some stacked dimes. It wound up looking like a booger covered chunk of swiss cheese!
my machine is from the circa early eighties and a couple of members on here have gave me some great info i know i can do this, i just dont understand why it doesnt work like its supposed to ?? i sharpened my 2% thoriated 1/16 th tungsten using a tungsten specific tool, i set the length to about 1/8th in. i set the flow at around 12 kph my spark intensity was set to 5, my soft start switch was in the on position,afterflow was set at 1/8(but the gas never shuts off??) my dial for voltage is set to AC and when i try to strike up,it dont matter where my torch is pointed it shoots out the arc then burns holes instead of making a puddle i tried turning down the volts or amps?? and it doesnt burn thru so easy but wont puddle and wont make the rod do more than just vanish no build up and no puddle it just dissapears?? im at a point where im nearly ready to give up, there arent any classes where i am at the closest is tulsa and they insist you live close by, i live in billings oklahoma and EVERYTHING is far away, this forum is the only way im going to get this right... any help i can get is much apreciated...
by the way im attempting to weld some aluminum...

I haven't TIG welded in my whole life but for what i have read arround here, TIG welding aluminum difficulty is only surpassed by TIG welding titaniums.

You stated to be trying to weld aluminum... why don't you just start trying with a bit more forgiving material, say... carbon steel? That way whatever mistakes you make will be cheaper than with aluminum. If you happen to have some SS you could try that as well.

I am almost in the same boat than you but my machine is only suited for carbon and SS, no aluminum. And trust me, whatever I do, I will start practicing with carbon steel from the scrap pile.

Are you trying to weld really thin material? maybe you need to start with thicker stock... I bet you won't blow holes that easy.

Mikel

[quote="Mikel_24"]I haven't TIG welded in my whole life but for what i have read arround here, TIG welding aluminum difficulty is only surpassed by TIG welding titaniums.

You stated to be trying to weld aluminum... why don't you just start trying with a bit more forgiving material, say... carbon steel? That way whatever mistakes you make will be cheaper than with aluminum. If you happen to have some SS you could try that as well.

I am almost in the same boat than you but my machine is only suited for carbon and SS, no aluminum. And trust me, whatever I do, I will start practicing with carbon steel from the scrap pile.

Are you trying to weld really thin material? maybe you need to start with thicker stock... I bet you won't blow holes that easy.

i know how to weld but for some reason my machine isnt working right,either that or my switches arent set right, with no formal instruction i dont know how to set the switches so i dont blow thru everything i weld ? thanks for the info though i do apreciate it...

what are you welding?

6061? 3003? 1100?

what thickness?

get some 1/8" 6061 flat stock and try lighting up on that. it sounds to me like you're starting up with WAAAYY too much amperage or on tinfoil.

do you have a manual? there is a link somewhere on the forum here that goes to a page that has a TON of miller manuals if you don't have one for this machine. you need to find out what the amperage range is so you can figure out what that 'spark intensity @ 5' translates to.

does the machine have a high frequency unit? you'll need that to weld AC tig, if you don't you're stuck w/ carbon and stainless steel.


machine and weld pics help a lot, too.

mostly i am teaching myself to tig, i was welding on a piece of cold air intake pipe. but its understanding what the switches do?? i am going to try some different aluminum today after i change my torch around if it doesnt respond the way it did before ill know something is broke inside. ill post pics when i get out there today, thank you for the reply.all info helps me learn.

intake pipe ? like 3" hot dip galvanized 14 guage wall tubing?...you should sand that shiny before you do ant weld on it .
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.try a piece of 3/16" mild steel set up for a lap joint,set your machine DCEN, #6 or #7 cup, 3/32" size 2% Th or La tungsten-ground to a "bloodletting" point,about 3/16" stickout, with the amperage at about 25% and the arc force down low (2 out of 10), and the gas rolling out at a steady 13-15 cfh....try it like that one time and then adjust the amperage to your pace.which will probably be a little slow to start off with.

are you sure its aluminum your trying to weld? looks can be deceiving? even with the rod?

Well ive had some success recently with my machine, i found out all the settings in the world wouldnt have helped me out here.
I have never welded with a tig before the only training ive had is what ive watched jody do in his helpfull videos, for two days ive been welding with 1.5% lanthanated(cant get 2% here)tungsten and made alot of sweet dimes and even welded two cast aluminum intakes together that i made. the welds are strong and thourough i am even able to polish them to a mirror when theyre all finished ill post a picture when the two ive just weldd are finished,
I even was able to make the seams disapear so that the intakes look like they were made that way.
Oh crap the reason i couldnt weld very good with it is because the foot pedal was broke. after i repaired it it worked like a great machine should, it may be an old beast but it does throw a great arc..

Thanks again to this forum and jody for being a great inspiration but also for offering great advice and Tips and Tricks!!