I've had some 4043 hanging around since 2007. They've been kept in those long, blue rod holders but there's no telling what they've been through in that time. Probably fairly extreme cold, extreme heat, damp weather, dry weather, etc., etc. I know those blue tubes offer some protection but I don't know how much.
Long story short, I was still using these rods up until recently. I was getting a lot of "noise" - little black particles in my welds and stuff like that. So I bought some new 5356 and 4943 to see what (if any) difference they made. I've only used the 5356 so far but there's no black stuff and the rod seems to flow really nicely.
As an experiment, I pulled out one of those old 4043 rods just to see what would happen. I literally put the 5356 down and picked the 4043 up and started welding with it. Those damn little black particles showed up again.
So that got me to thinking: Can TIG welding rods get "old" and become junk and unusable? I know that stick rods can and do and I've done a lot of stick welding with dry, oven-kept stick rods and some old rods that had been sitting around in a tool box and there's no comparison.
But can TIG welding rods go "old"?
Shall I chuck the 4043 from 2007 and just move on with new rods?
And if these rods are bad, does that mean that there's a good chance that my ER-706S rods and my stainless rods are also kaput??
Jon
TIG rods don't go off with age. They can get oxidation and corrosion on them which can be cleaned up with scotchbrite and acetone.
You are also comparing 4043 filler with 5356 the difference may be just that. You get black spot with 4043 whereas 5356 welds cleaner in my experience which is why I avoid using it unless it's cast that I'm repairing.
Clean up your 4043 and test it against new 4043 if you have doubts.
You are also comparing 4043 filler with 5356 the difference may be just that. You get black spot with 4043 whereas 5356 welds cleaner in my experience which is why I avoid using it unless it's cast that I'm repairing.
Clean up your 4043 and test it against new 4043 if you have doubts.
Flat out like a lizard drinkin'
Yup, it's called oxidation. It's usually invisible on aluminum unless the aluminum is very old, at which point aluminum oxide can appear as a white-ish layer. Otherwise it's transparent. That and you didn't clean the rod. Cleaning tig rods at bare minimum with acetone should be a religious ceremony anytime you are tig welding. There is always something in the air that can get on rods without you even knowing it.
Large temp fluxuations will draw moist air in past the seal on the tubes. It’s oxidation, as noted. It will help if you can keep your storage containers from seeing the average overnight temp swings. Dead of winter or middle of summer aren’t much of an issue. It’s the spring and fall when you see a 15- 20 deg change between day and night that causes the worst of it.
I have more questions than answers
Josh
Josh
Thanks everyone for the advice. So it's not the rods.
So what is this small black noise that I'm getting? I'll take some shots and post them but every now and then they show up, not always. I've noted that when I'm travelling maybe a little too slow they show up. I've noticed that when my tungsten is dead vertical as opposed to inclined in the direction of the weld they show up. Otherwise, I have no idea where they are coming from. It's like minute black particles, visible to the eye and probably not a structural issue but still, they're there.
Jon
So what is this small black noise that I'm getting? I'll take some shots and post them but every now and then they show up, not always. I've noted that when I'm travelling maybe a little too slow they show up. I've noticed that when my tungsten is dead vertical as opposed to inclined in the direction of the weld they show up. Otherwise, I have no idea where they are coming from. It's like minute black particles, visible to the eye and probably not a structural issue but still, they're there.
Jon