Welding in a corner

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I'm having a problemI'm trying to weld in this "corner" with little success. It seems like I'm getting contamination from atmosphere in the weld area I've tryed increasing and decreasing the flow of argon with little effect. almost as soon as I get the arc going I can see the effect, but as soon as I bring the filler in close it just balls up in a gray ball and most of the time rolls off onto the the tungsten making a bad situation worse. Very frustating.when welding in an open area I have no problem. I'm sure you guys are getting a kick out of my "abilities" but I'd sure appreciated it if someone could key me in on some solution to overcome this problem.Set up is a miller dialarc hf with foot control aircooled torch with 1/8" green electrode and 1/2" cup (although I've tried two smaller cups)3/32" 4043 filler gas flow set to 12cfh?Don't talk about it, Just do it!
Reply:I have the same problem when running dual-shield.  You are getting turbulance.  You need to purge the area.  Let it cool, and fill it with argon which is heavier than the surrounding air.  Give it several good purges before you go in to weld, then purge a few times right before you start welding.  Move all around to make sure it pushes the outside air out.  Try that.  When welding in corners like that I like to set the pre-flow on my wirefeeder to fill the area up with gas.
Reply:A gas lens or longer cup should cure your problem.DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:should I expect to use a lower than usual flow rate or higher.and is it OK to use smaller diameter cups?Don't talk about it, Just do it!
Reply:Standard flow rate, smaller cup or longer cup or what ever it takes to get to the weld with the tungsten and protect it with gas.DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:Did you sand blast that part to clean it up?
Reply:Bead blasted, then wire brushed as best I could then wiped it down with acetone. It's a used intake manifold and I have had some minor issues with contamination, but not bad. I did'nt have problems welding any where else on the manifold.Anyhow I got it. It's not pretty but is stuck were I needed it to and I have ground out from the inside to the weld and save a couple small pits it looks good. I am thinking I'll coat the outside with epoxy just for insurance. If the weld had to bear a load I'd be concerned, but it's just a pipe now. I'm sorry I did not take a picture before I ground it smooth.Don't talk about it, Just do it!
Reply:Sounds to me like you have a HF problem, if you are on AC and the material is aluminum, becauseThe DCRP side of the AC wave is what cleanes the oxides off the Aluminum and if the HF is not strong enough for current to flow you will have trouble all the time.  Weldgault
Reply:Any kind of sandblasting or bead blasting on Al is ****ty to weld through. I would recamend using a die grinder and try to take .030 of the surface down and around the crack and then try to weld it you'll have much better beads trust me i've welded alot of Al after it's been blasted. you must grind the area out a lil bit before hand. thx