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The what I welded today (/whenever) thread (pics please)
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zank wrote:
...Steve, yeah, I'm still too close with the tungsten. I am so used to keeping such a tight arc with steel and titanium. And I still need a lot of practice on my stops...
I did a BIG job of 6061T-6, with the same 5183. It was all pipe, mostly 3" sch. 10. I developed a habit that helped me. It took time to perfect, but I developed a rythm where as I added rod I would draw the torch back slightly to allow for the swell of the addition to the puddle, and move back in as I advanced. (Oddly, this worked best to music... :roll: ) This allowed me to stay in tight constantly while keeping the tungsten out of the puddle. (Was 10% x-ray, and it didn't take much tunsten residue in the puddle for a "fail".)

As for the stops, I learned to take advantage of the residual heat, and "button off" my welds much like when MIG welding. I'd pause maybe half a second to let the puddle cool, then hit the pedal and feed rod in a brief motion.

I think you're doing great! It's just the fact that you're so accustomed to welding metals with much lower expansion/shrink volumes that is giving you issues.

Patience and practice...

Steve S
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jcw
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I always thought 7 series aluminum was not considered weldable.

But I have a bike at home (GIant I think) that is obviously welded and says 7000 series made in the USA on it too.
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awill4wd
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My daughter asks me if I can make some fairy wings for some upcoming charity events?
Well, what's a welding Dad to do?
He makes them out of Titanium wire of course! :mrgreen:

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Okay, that's awesome. Lol [THUMBS UP SIGN]

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TamJeff
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Agreed. That is awesome, along with the other posts I have forgotten to mention during this thread.
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TamJeff
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Nothing fancy. Sometimes I just feel like an old aluminum whore.
8 hrs from start to finish. One day warning. Welds are decent. It's straight and square, and I even bird mouthed the rafters. My boss doesn't know it's done and the truck is supposed to be there in the morning. He didn't think it could be completed in time. When he left today, I only had the ends tacked together. I braced it with a bit of a crown on the rear stringers before I welded it. It settled down to 1/8" above string straight across the top in 14' 6" length. Much better than having it sag in the middle.

200 amps, no pedal. Perfect for welding 1" long welds on 1"x1/8" square tube.

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So, that's an awning frame?

How'd you get roped into that?

As usual, nice work!

Steve S
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TamJeff
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I walked in yesterday and there was 7 pieces of square tube with a yellow note paper stuck to it with a pencil drawing and a deadline for this morning. It was still at the shop tonight when I left, which means it will still be there tomorrow.

It has pipe sleeves in the front corners that house 1.5" sched 40 legs that will hold the front of it up. I didn't bother to measure or pattern for the bird mouths in the rafters. I just checked to make sure both end walls were the same size and clamp up this makeshift stop and down leg to transfer my angles in place using the one end of the awning as a gauge for all. Just cut the appropriate mitre on the one end that goes against that stop so you only have to mark the one end.
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Just have to make sure the china marker is sharp and cut the line off.
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Almost ready for heat treat.

ImageSinglespeed Cyclocross by Zanconato Custom Cycles, on Flickr
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zank wrote:Almost ready for heat treat.
Looks like you've got the aluminum sorted out just fine!

Steve S
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TamJeff
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Nice bike frame.
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Rick_H
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Made a small platform the other day for my fathers boat, this way he doesn't have to kneel or prop on the motor. I don't get to weld alum as much anymore so I really enjoyed this! 6061or I would have bent it.
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I weld stainless, stainless and more stainless...Food Industry, sanitary process piping, vessels, whatever is needed, I like to make stuff.
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Nice job Rick. I'm impressed !

Trev
EWM Phonenix 355 Pulse MIG set mainly for Aluminum, CIGWeld 300Amp AC/DC TIG, TRANSMIG S3C 300 Amp MIG, etc, etc
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TamJeff
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Nicely/neatly done, Rick.
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Beautiful, Rick!

I've been having fun testing out my new machine upgrades and settings.

ImageGetting my new machine settings dialed in. by Zanconato Custom Cycles, on Flickr
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noddybrian
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I love the upgrades ! - glad to see you kept with a conventional panel - those new digital things seem very complicated to set up - maybe you could print some stickers for the Gurus favorite rule off 33 setting ! - actually it just shows how ( annoyingly ) good a weld can be made with plain old school equipment in the right hands ( and with decent eyesight ! ) - keep up the great work it's like looking at art - but you realize you & TamJeff make some of us here that don't do much Tig at a time feel a bit well inadequate !
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Zank,

That's some great work!

I was sure with your experience and skill that you'd pick up that thin-wall aluminum quickly, and you've proved it!

That looks fabulous.

Steve S
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Brian, Steve, thank you. It's been fun. I've been concentrating hard on getting that toe to feather in nicely into the tube. I always feel like I'm running that ragged edge though and close to blowing a hole. I have been studying John Marcella's welds and am always blown away by how his bead width is so consistent. I'm just always thinking about that.

My stops still look bad. I need to just grab a piece of sheet and do Jody's aluminum drill and just focus on stops. Run a few dips and fill the crater. Move over a bit, start a new bead, run a few dips, and fill the crater. Lather, rinse, repeat.
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Zank, that weld could've come out a whole lot better if you used a setting other that 70% on the AC Balance! (ha ha)

Nice job, like the others have said, standard equipment and great skill can be combined to produce an outstanding result.
EWM Phonenix 355 Pulse MIG set mainly for Aluminum, CIGWeld 300Amp AC/DC TIG, TRANSMIG S3C 300 Amp MIG, etc, etc
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I kept turning the dials, but all of the settings seemed the same :lol:

Thanks though. The nice thing about running a basic machine is that you can really understand how some of the advanced features can really help. I will appreciate them a lot when I get a machine that has them.
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awill4wd
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Again something a bit different for me.
This one is an Aluminium copy of a mid 70's Lamborghini Espada radiator.
I can't say work is ever boring :lol:
Regards Andrew from Oz.
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We are Tig welders, gravity doesn't worry us.
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OTC hybrid wave 300 amp inverter Tig at work (Now retired)
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Awesome! Beautiful job.
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Fun with aluminum.

ImageAluminum cyclocross by Zanconato Custom Cycles, on Flickr

ImageAluminum cyclocross by Zanconato Custom Cycles, on Flickr
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Bill Beauregard
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Very, very nice. What's your balance set at?
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Thanks, Bill. I was at 65% EN and 150 Hz. The 7005 material runs a little dirtier than 6061. The extra cleaning is a big help.
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