Tungsten for aluminum and tip suggestions.

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I always used green/pure in class.  Used DCEN and balled the tip.  I see now that people have a point and use what I've read is 1% Zirconiated tungsten.  What do you all use for your aluminum.  I have E3 purple, and not sure what the welder (AHP alpha 2014) will come with.  Also does anyone like the powder stuff for making a pointed tip.  I like grinding but it does require more time it would seam.  Merry Chirstmas(Not Happy Holidays) I was supprised to hear only merry chirstmas at walmart through out the last couple weeks.  No bending over for the man here.Last edited by jfive; 12-25-2014 at 11:23 PM.
Reply:E3 is good.Merry Christmas.Just a couple welders, big hammers, grinders, and torches.Work will free you.Men in dirty jeans built this country, while men in clean suits have destroyed it. Trump/Carson 2016-2024
Reply:Zerconiated for sure! Green sucks!! I just get them kinda sharp and let it ball
Reply:If u like to ball it i heard its best to ball it on tungsten
Reply:HTP quad t4 is the best I have used on aluminum.Green/pure is for transformer machines not inveter machines.Torchmate 2x2 CNC with Flashcut CNC controlsHypertherm Powermax45 Esab ET220i Razorweld 195 MigRazorweld 200ac/dc TigTormach 770, Tormach xstechRazorweld, Vipercut/Vipermig, SSC Foot Pedal Dealer
Reply:2% lanthanated is cheap and what I use.  Maybe E3 or Quad whatever holds a slightly better tip in prolonged use, but I've already dipped the tungsten before I could tell the difference.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:I like to use ceriated with my transformer machine. I max out at 185 amps, so I don't have the most powerful welder, but I also don't have problems with the tungsten when welding at max amps. Pure tungten with get a little wobbly on me, especially overhead. The ceriated seems to work fine in all positions for me. The E3 that I tried was great at growing fingers. Right now it sits in the bottom of my tungsten box for emergency use only.Lincoln Precision Tig 185Lincoln Power Mig 256Hypertherm PM 45Everlast 140STSmith O/A
Reply:Red tungsten for mild steel and SS,  Blue tungsten for Aluminum.  For inverter machines."Discovery is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought" - Albert Szent-Gyorgyi
Reply:Originally Posted by ManoKaiRed tungsten for mild steel and SS,  Blue tungsten for Aluminum.  For inverter machines.
Reply:Originally Posted by jfiveBlue or light blue?  I am thinking of getting some gray, or light blue.  I liked the E3 for my scratch start inverter tig.  Easy to hold a point at 80amps.  Key was not sticking and loosing a tiny piece of the tip.
Reply:IMO 2% lanthanated works great for anything I do..
Reply:i've used the chem sharp powder a few times. then I got a $10 diamond wheel at harborfreight and I like it because now my grinder doesn't have grove lines in it any more and there is less dust in the shop. the problem with chem sharp is it doens't work good if you dipped your tungsten in aluminum, the aluminum stuck on tungsten doesn't sharpen well and has to be ground off anyways.
Reply:I run the Purple/E3 at work, I like it, I run a 1/8 at 225amps on 1/4AL balls nicely, but every now and then it'll spit, which would probably be solved by a larger tungsten to handle the heat Attached ImagesMiller Spoolmate 200 w/t S-52 WirefeederMM 211'09 Miller Trailblazer 302
Reply:Originally Posted by jfiveBlue or light blue?  I am thinking of getting some gray, or light blue.  I liked the E3 for my scratch start inverter tig.  Easy to hold a point at 80amps.  Key was not sticking and loosing a tiny piece of the tip.
Reply:Originally Posted by Ian DuffinI run the Purple/E3 at work, I like it, I run a 1/8 at 225amps on 1/4AL balls nicely, but every now and then it'll spit, which would probably be solved by a larger tungsten to handle the heat
Reply:Originally Posted by OscarHave you tried 2%La?  E3 is mostly just 1.5%La.  2% will generally work just a smidge better.    I doubt you need a larger tungsten, have you tried less cleaning action to keep the heat out of the tungsten?
Reply:Originally Posted by Ian DuffinIdk if I'm doing anything wrong, I prep with a 4.5" ss steel wheel, and a scotchbrite wheel
Reply:Originally Posted by OscarYou can begin by not doing that, lol.  wire wheels and abrasive pads will generally tend to smear in the oxides on the surface and embed it further into the aluminum.  Not always the case, but more often than not.  If you're going to scrub, best solution is generally going to be a thin-bristle SS brush without the use of excess pressure (to prevent embedding oxides further)
Reply:thing is, aluminum oxide is invisible unless it is more than a few nm thick, at which point it is more likely the "white-ish oxide" aluminum hydroxide which forms with when aluminum oxide is presented with humidity/moisture (from what I've read).  So I guess it all depends what you're really working with, and without seeing things through your eyes, only you will know.  If there is grit being embedded through the bandsaw that is cutting all sorts of steels, then perhaps yea it won't matter how you handle the "surface cleaning" and you will need more cleaning action from the welder. 1st on WeldingWeb to have a scrolling sig! HTP Invertig 400HTP Invertig 221HTP ProPulse 300HTP ProPulse 200 x2HTP ProPulse 220MTSHTP Inverarc 200TLP HTP Microcut 875SC
Reply:I always acetone it before brushing then acetone again
Reply:1/8 zerconiated on the left and 3/32 2% thoriated on the right. Both at around 120 amps on ac. If I remember right the 2% lanthanated is alot like the thoriated but the arc is a little darker on the blue. I though the red was a little better then the blue
Reply:Sorry that the pics are a little crappy. Taken with my iPhone 4
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313Sorry that the pics are a little crappy. Taken with my iPhone 4
Reply:Originally Posted by Oscarthing is, aluminum oxide is invisible unless it is more than a few nm thick, at which point it is more likely the "white-ish oxide" aluminum hydroxide which forms with when aluminum oxide is presented with humidity/moisture (from what I've read).  So I guess it all depends what you're really working with, and without seeing things through your eyes, only you will know.  If there is grit being embedded through the bandsaw that is cutting all sorts of steels, then perhaps yea it won't matter how you handle the "surface cleaning" and you will need more cleaning action from the welder.
Reply:Originally Posted by Ian DuffinYeesh, those look like they took a beating, that was 1/8 on 120?!Originally Posted by motolife313Ya both were on about 120 amps on ac. Why do you say they look beat up?
Reply:Because the one with the jacked up ball is thoriated. I think I had the same problem with blue. The zerconiated is perfectly balled. I think the white stuff is from the hi freq
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313Ya both were on about 120 amps on ac. Why do you say they look beat up?
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313Because the one with the jacked up ball is thoriated. I think I had the same problem with blue. The zerconiated is perfectly balled. I think the white stuff is from the hi freq
Reply:I've  ran almost every tungsten. The e3 is pretty good.i don't think it's that good at low amps on DC If I remember right.  I like the zerconiated the most for ac but the don't carry any heat. No the red didn't vibrate. Those can handle the heat. I used to take the 3/32 red to about 185 amps and it would dance around there
Reply:Originally Posted by Oscarlooks like you fished them out from the bottom of a lake where they been sittin for a few years, lol.  J/k man, but they do look a bit crusty overall, not just the sharpened point.  I can't have my tungstens look like that---I always sharpen and buff them out for at least an inch after the sharpened tip.
Reply:Not sure why you would try to polish an inch up. It's already smooth up there unless you ding it up in the grinder
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313Not sure why you would try to polish an inch up. It's already smooth up there unless you ding it up in the grinder
Reply:I think I am gonna buy some 2 lanth.  Also gonna use a grinder maybe with a diamond disc for sharpening.
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313Ya both were on about 120 amps on ac. Why do you say they look beat up?
Reply:I have a transformer. And they would look like **** if they only had 3 sec post flow. There fine. The pic is blurry anyway. Kinda like when zap said I had a crack in my weld when it didn't
Reply:First post, you said you ball the tip on DCEN, I think you meant DCEP. I like to do that, but my current machine doesn't go there without swapping the leads. If you just use higher than welding current, AC, on a bit of copper, you'll get a good ball and get past any spitting/jiggling.Blue 2% or Gold 1.5% Lanth is my favorite, then E3 purple. I find Thoriated turns into a weird monkey's fist on AC, and Zirconated or Pure is useless on DC. Tungsten should be good for everything. Less is more for cleaning, acetone/thinners if greasy, and just a light HAND brushing.@ Motolife: The white ring on that tungsten is vaporized aluminum from gagging the tungsten, time to grind.Last edited by Brazin; 12-28-2014 at 07:41 PM.SqWave 200Millermatic 190Airco 200 ACHypertherm PM45Boice-Crane Band SawVictor O/A
Reply:Originally Posted by BrazinFirst post, you said you ball the tip on DCEN, I think you meant DCEP. I like to do that, but my current machine doesn't go there without swapping the leads. If you just use higher than welding current, AC, on a bit of copper, you'll get a good ball and get past any spitting/jiggling.Blue 2% or Gold 1.5% Lanth is my favorite, then E3 purple. I find Thoriated turns into a weird monkey's fist on AC, and Zirconated or Pure is useless on DC. Tungsten should be good for everything.
Reply:Originally Posted by GambleYou don't ball the tungsten on inverter machines.
Reply:@ Gamble: potayto, potahto. There's a roundness there that you won't see on DCEN. I'd like to see a pic of a 3/32 tung, that's been used for AC at 200A without what I would call a "ball". I've heard folks say the tip "wobbles" at high amps, if you pre-set the profile at a slightly higher setting (amps or EP%), the tip won't do that. But you could also just jump to 1/8", holds a nice point.SqWave 200Millermatic 190Airco 200 ACHypertherm PM45Boice-Crane Band SawVictor O/A
Reply:Originally Posted by Ian Duffinwhy not? just curious
Reply:1/8 zerconiated tungsten again. I was welding 1/16 aluminum at around 100 amps. Maybe the other pic looked no so good because I was welding with it for a while. Can someone post the tip on a 2% lanthanated tungsten? Or e3? I bet the ball on this zerconiated is smaller. I don't think lanthanated even balls
Reply:You will need to be welding at around 100 amps to make it a fair comparison
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313 1/8 zerconiated tungsten again. I was welding 1/16 aluminum at around 100 amps. Maybe the other pic looked no so good because I was welding with it for a while. Can someone post the tip on a 2% lanthanated tungsten? Or e3? I bet the ball on this zerconiated is smaller. I don't think lanthanated even balls
Reply:@ Moto: That's about the same ball you'd see on 3/32 Lanth at 150A, I like as small a tungsten as possible for starting characteristics and less grinding.   It also looks like you're grinding across the tip instead of along the tip. This can help with starting and focus.  I pull out the 1/8" around 225A, unless I've got the cleaning cranked.SqWave 200Millermatic 190Airco 200 ACHypertherm PM45Boice-Crane Band SawVictor O/A
Reply:Post a pic like this of the lanthanated. The scratches are so fine I dout it matters. But I should get better at it
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313Post a pic like this of the lanthanated. The scratches are so fine I dout it matters. But I should get better at it
Reply:I'm going to get e3 right now 1/8. Lets do a more accurate test and set the machine to 140 amps on ac and floor it the whole time for 15 sec or so. Ill do that with 1/8 zerconiated and e3. Thanks for playing Ian! I'm going to run a bead btw with filler
Reply:I'm gona test the 1/8 e3 on 230 amps on ac aswell. Zerconiated 5/32 didn't do very good. Danced pretty bad and made a big ball
Reply:Originally Posted by motolife313I'm going to get e3 right now 1/8. Lets do a more accurate test and set the machine to 140 amps on ac and floor it the whole time for 15 sec or so. Ill do that with 1/8 zerconiated and e3. Thanks for playing Ian! I'm going to run a bead btw with filler