A try at al. stitch welding:

admin

Here's my first try at stitch welding al. I've been a hobby welder for about 2 years and am finally getting to where my welds look ok. I did'nt know about stitch welding before I found this site so any help and or criticism (?sp) would be helpfull.  This is on 1/4" 6000 series plate and a lincoln precision tig 185. 100% argon 3/16 pure tungsten. Here's what i had to start with, plate was beveled and cleaned with acetone. Next with a fusion pass.... no filler. The weld cracked right down the middle...First filler passFirst attempt at stitch: Note the machine was hating me for trying to weld 1/4" material with 185 amps... And another angle:
Reply:Well its a start.. Your results would be much better with a "bigger" machine..but you've got the hang of it!...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Zap's right.  That machine just can't SMOOTHLY weld 1/4" material.  I used to have one, and it was really frustrating at times when I had 1/4" plate to weld.
Reply:Good info it just helped me out here!! weld it like you own it
Reply:BTW...that is not stitch welding.
Reply:You cannot "fusion" or autogenous weld 6000 aluminum.  The filler metal does more than just fill the gap. It alloys with your 6000 plate.  That is why you will have cracking problems.  Doing the first pass with no rod has determined the fate of your joint.
Reply:Ok, so if you have a crack started, then it is very difficult to recover form that and get a good weld right? I guess i should really try thinner material for the next time. The machine reached its limits welding that and it shut off where I ended the last pass. Is it possible I have too much heat? Thanks for all the input.btw if not stitch then what would it be called?
Reply:It's just a multi pass weld.  You may be having some gas coverage problems, resulting in the rough surface.I agree that fusing aluminum is generally not a good idea (most common grades of aluminum).
Reply:Ok, thanks Engloid, maybe I'll try on a little smalller plate and upload some pics. Its hard for me to get the "definition" of the filler out of my weld pool. If that makes sense. It all just seems to flow together from one pool to the next.
Reply:Originally Posted by Jrc347Ok, thanks Engloid, maybe I'll try on a little smalller plate and upload some pics. Its hard for me to get the "definition" of the filler out of my weld pool. If that makes sense. It all just seems to flow together from one pool to the next.