[tweake]

the good thing about cheap products is there is plenty to repair.

image001.jpg (26.22 KiB) Viewed 539 times

image002.jpg (27.34 KiB) Viewed 539 times

image003.jpg (75.88 KiB) Viewed 539 times

fixed for now. not happy with part of it so i may cut it off down to cleaner metal and redo.

[tweake]

sorry i forgot the story (its been one looong day).

rod is 1/2" and my tig is not that grunty. so pre heated with gas torch for a while. total guess work on the heat.
full pedal at 180 amps and it puddled ok.

the other part is 1/4' onto thin wall tube.
something rather new for me. so puddle on the thick and wash over. not pretty.
also had a lot of gunk smoking out of the old welds. that bit i might redo due to that. plus i need the practice.

[cj737]

Another good option is to whittle down the 1/2” rod to a bit more of a point. That reduces the thickness, provides some deeper penetration, and insures more weld without so much surface protrusion. Because it’s only a small diameter rod, it’s quick work to taper the end. 180amps should have been plenty to get you a strong enough weld

[tweake]

Another good option is to whittle down the 1/2” rod to a bit more of a point. That reduces the thickness, provides some deeper penetration, and insures more weld without so much surface protrusion. Because it’s only a small diameter rod, it’s quick work to taper the end. 180amps should have been plenty to get you a strong enough weld

thats a good idea. many thanks.
i now just have to try to remember that for next time.

last time i did something around that thickness it was borderline. it wasn't much fun and turned out fairly horrible (but still successful as it hasn't broken yet).
the pre heat helped a lot. it just meant it puddled nice and quick and could keep it flowing smooth.