Ok, Not done tig for years but now have a job welding some handrails

admin

Hi all you Tiggers out there! Ok so the boss says "Lets get the Stainless handrails done in the workshop!" so today i bought a scratch start tig torch for my 200amp inverter, Now theses stainless handrails are pretty thin i'd say about 1mm in thickness, Now from a newbie point of view what size tig needle would i need and if i can remember rightly they are also color coded??  from you more experienced guys what size filler wire is best for doing handrails and any other info you could pass my way.I did some tig welding about 15 years ago and have just forgotten most of what i need to do, so i guess some quality practice time is on the cardsI have a lot of respect to you tig welders as you produce the most beautiful welds a welder can weld, even if i can do a half hearted attempt at welding these handrails it will be a credit to what i have learnt here.Thanks in advance
Reply:Are you sure the tube is that thin? Would put  you around 30-35amps. A 1/16" tungsten ground so it has a sharp point is what I would use. There's a few tungsten that would work, red tip  (thoriated) is probably most common for welding steel. 0.030-0.045" filler wire.Airco Ac/Dc 300 HeliwelderMillerMatic 200 (stolen)Miller Maxstar 150STLMiller AEAD200LE (welding and generating power) Hobart MIG
Reply:.9 mmThat's about bicycle typeset thickness!Just the thing to 're-introduce' yourself with.Hobart Beta-Mig 2511972 Miller AEAD-200LEMiller 250 TwinNorthern Ind. Hybrid 200Longevity Stick 140Longevity Migweld 200SThermal Arc Pak 3XR
Reply:If the tubing is that thin and you can get your fitup perfect you should be able to fuse them without filler.
Reply:Wow! 1mm is pretty thin. I guess if I were in your shoes I would go 1mm filler up to 1.5mm filler. I would buy a couple of boxes of 1.5 to 2mm tungstens and grind both ends needle sharp on all. Then I would set machine to 100pps pulse and layrod the weld. ER347 flows like butter..Question is how good the fitups are. Gaps are going to be a pain.Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:I weld a lot of hand rail and I've never seen or heard of hand rail tube that's only 1mm thick. What size dia tube is this?JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:3/32 or 1/16 tungsten, 45 ampsif the fit is perfect you can back purge and weld, if its so so or you dont want to purge and put a nice cap on .035 wire. grind, polish, done
Reply:1mm must be some mis information.  I can't see 1mm thick tubing supporting the load of a 300 lb man leaning in it. If this is commercial or industrial hand rail I don't think it will pass code.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:16 ga. is about 1.5 mm, probably the tube is 1.5 to 2 mm.  1.5 mm red or grey tungsten with the same size filler should do the job.