Tig Welding with 2% Lanthanated tungsten on Synchrowave 180

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Hello; I am new, but a lurker for quite some time.  Sorry for the basic question, but I could not find anything relating to my issue.  I am having an issue with my Miller Synchrowave 180 Tig machine.I have used red tungsten (thoriated) over the years but now am switching to blue tungsten (2% Lanthanated made by Miller) because of the phase out of the red.Im not happy with it to say the least, but then again, I could be doing something wrong with my machine.  I have been welding for 10 years with my Synchrowave and love it.  It’s a very basic machine, amp knob, Tig/Stick setting and DCneg/AC/DCpos switch.  Foot control.Im welding mild steel, my Pure argon gas flow is 15-20.  Welding on DCNeg.  I ground my tungsten the same on both blue and red.  I grind the tungsten with grind marks up/down the length of tungsten.Welding at about 50 – 100 amps on the dial; max.Here are some of the issues im having:1.Arc goes sideways or moves around.2.Weld looks like a mig weld with no gas shield.  Very rigid looking not smooth like using red tungsten.3.Pushes filler rod when I try to melt into weld pool4.Sounds like an arc weld5.Even with metal not perfectly clean, the red tungsten welds nicely and clean, smooth…2% Lanthanated is opposite effect.To be honest, I would see better results, spot welding with a gas shielded mig than using the blue 2% Lathanated tungsten.I did notice, im low on my bottle, its getting low, maybe the gas is contaminated, and im going to check my O-rings on my torch head tonight.Ill post pictures later today.Any advice is greatly appreciated.  Thank you.
Reply:I think the red getting phased out is just rumors.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% thoriated is not being phased out.That said, I use 2% lanthanated on a similar transformer machine (Lincoln SW 175). I have not seen any difference between the blue and red for the welding I do, which is similar to what you are doing. My question would be whether or not all of your problems go away if you switch back to red.
Reply:Vintage, I use 2% Lanth on a syncro 350 with no problems, please post pictures and try a different tungsten to rule out a tungsten issue, seems to me that this issue is from something else...Millermatic 211Miller Syncrowave 350lx with cooler and tigrunner Thermal Dynamics cutmaster 811955 National Cylinder Gas O/A setup with original patina
Reply:Okay, before I did my tests, I went to the welding store and picked up a #7 cup, new tungsten, rods and cleaning supplies.I noticed before that I was welding on metal pulled from my scrap, but no real cleaning or wipe down was done as I have always seen the red to be forgiving to the dirtiness.To my surprise, I saw a much better result and I have to contribute my problem to either the smaller cup and dirty metal.  The blue 2% Lanthanated welded beautifully and very clean.  Maybe it was my cup being too small...I don't know.  Here are some photos of my test.1/16 Red tungsten ground down and clean metalWeld with Red tungsten, 4 passes3/32 blue tungsten in torch, ground to point3/32 blue tungsten in torch, close up3/32 blue tungsten after weld and 4 passesI know the welds are a bit sloppy...I got a pinched nerve in my 'dipping' hand...its frustrating!  Im going to get it fixed!  You can see though the welds are clean...the 2% Lanthanated welded great, the process was quiet and very smooth.
Reply:More photos..Cup size I had and swapped out....I have been wanting to learn aluminum...so I read a bit on here and gave it a shot...this is actually my 2nd attempt after learning the importance of cleaning the material.Thank you WDF Forums! Attached Images
Reply:Nice! Glad it worked out!
Reply:I should have went back to the basics on this....but I was too much in a hurry.  Its been about 5-6 months since I picked up my torch handle and wanted to get back into the feel of it.Patience and stepping back for a moment sometimes is all it takes.There is soooo much information on this site.  Im thankful.
Reply:Vintage: Glad you worked it out, great start on the aluminum! I would contribute the problems you were having to dirty metalMillermatic 211Miller Syncrowave 350lx with cooler and tigrunner Thermal Dynamics cutmaster 811955 National Cylinder Gas O/A setup with original patina
Reply:Your aluminum first welds look good to me (shoulda' seen mine...barf!) but I think you could crank up the heat some. The weld look like they're sitting on top of the metal.MM210TA186TA95sLincoln AC/DC Tombstonegood old Smith torch setup 24v Readywelder mig w/spoolgunSB H 10 latheBridgeport mill6x12 K.O.Lee surface grinderK.O.Lee tool/cutter grinder
Reply:I've used both 2% thoriated and 2% lanthanated extensively. Both work very well on DC- on steel or stainless steel. I've found that with my machine (Syncrowave 200) on AC aluminum the thoriated tends to split the tip of the tungsten when using higher heat. Anything under 120 amps, it's OK. Lanthanated doesn't do that. Other than that, I really can't tell the difference.Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set
Reply:I have the same machine I was using 2% ceriated for steel and Aluminum, But recently started using the 2% lanthanated for Aluminum over about 130 amps or so. It seems to last a little longer, I tried it om DC- and it worked ok but got a little hard to start after a while.Syncrowave 180 SDMillermatic 250XSnap On MW 120 Econopac 50Victor O/A with some Smith Attachments 30 X 50 shop with a 400 Amps