Welding Tips and Tricks

As a test for myself(Haven't done this before) I'm joining 2 sections of 38mm stainless X 1.6mm tube, one joining into the other at 90deg. I'm using a 1.6 thoriated tungsten and 1.6 filler at 55amps DC-. So far the result has been a bit hit and miss. I've avoided any undercut but the joint is either on the lean side, concave.(which I prefer the appearance of)..Or too much weld. My question is, how should this joint look, slightly concave, flat or convex? Effectively it's a fillet joint. And yes, I know, the correct answer here is...More practise. I'm thinking...Would .9mm filler be better here? Also, I haven't played with the balance?

@ 55 amps, it sounds like a smaller electrode and a smaller filler might help.

keep a tight arc, dont fart around, get in , get out. building your amps really slowly will only let heat build up too much.
you need to light up, get a puddle, add some rod, and start moving all within about 3 seconds.

good luck,

jody

Thanks Jody. I started out at 80amps but that seemed too much and I was getting undercut so worked my way down to 55. 1mm electrode? At that amperage it's the size recommended by the machine but I would consider your advice first.