First Aluminium Project

admin

Heres some of my first aluminium welds. It still needs to be polished and what not. Its a holder for some beer tap handles.I deffinately need to practice some more. Cleaning is deffinatly the most important thing, they came out much better when I cleaned the crap out of them. Its 1/16" Aluminium. These were done on a Miller Thunderbolt AC/DC 225A with a HI Freq. box. 3/32 red tungsten and around 75 amps or so. Using 1/8" filler. Do you think 1/16" filler would work better? LWS didnt have any.Rip me apart.  I want to know how to do this the right way and with the best outcome.
Reply:I'd personally toss the red tungsten in favor or a pure or 2% ceriated.  1/8" is a lot to work with for 1/16th material, I'd use 1/16th or 3/32 in a pinch.What I see when I teach new guys how to weld aluminum is almost panic of sorts.  They don't control the puddle, they will get a puddle going, and then "oh sh*t, it's melting! Ram some filler in there quick!"  Don't be afraid to really watch the shape of the puddle, move it around, watch the characteristics of how its flowing, and don't just dab the filler.  Sit and watch how much if it flows out, how much is being drawn in by surface tension, etc.  Once you get your spacing between dabs right, and really get a good understanding of how much filler needs to be added, you'll get gorgeous, consistant welds.  The nice thing about welding aluminum is that you can back off that pedal and freeze the puddle almost instantly in its tracks if you have too much heat in there.
Reply:Too blurry to really tell..But 1/8" Filler? 1/16" is best for that given what you worked with..The welds are more than likely "cold"...But for something thats not gonna see any abuse it'll hold.....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:Il have some better pics up in a little while. I need to find my good camera!
Reply:Tanky,I think they are too fuzzy to tell, but your 3rd picture looks decent. Aluminum is my nemesis. Good luck. I love the idea! Where can I get a Coors Light Tap handle?Lincoln Power Mig 210MP MIGLincoln Power Mig 350MP - MIG and Push-PullLincoln TIG 300-300Lincoln Hobby-Weld 110v  Thanks JLAMESCK TIG TORCH, gas diffuser, pyrex cupThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 101My brain
Reply:Here are some better pics. The black stuff is just buffing compound that I havnet cleaned off yet. Originally Posted by Joker11Tanky,I love the idea! Where can I get a Coors Light Tap handle?
Reply:A good rule of thumb is to match the thickness of your filler rod to the thickness of your material.  Of course once you leave the realm of light guage material this no longer applies anymore but you get the idea.
Reply:You have the idea, just burn up about 5 lbs of filler and you will have it.  DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:Originally Posted by David RYou have the idea, just burn up about 5 lbs of filler and you will have it.  David
Reply:Originally Posted by tanky321Is it a big deal that I dont have a pedal at all?
Reply:My rule of thumb is one amp per thousandths.  And if you don't achieve a puddle within a few secconds, you are running too cold.Common sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom.
Reply:I welded al for years with out a pedal.  Now I have one (two) and wouldn't be without one again.DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:i'm still new at this but i would have to say its a lil cold and just sitting on top of the base metal. i found it a lot easyer to lern what the puddle is doing if you are not in a flat position. welding on the side helped me see what was going on and realy get the hang of controling the puddle. smaller fill is a def. here as others said and a foot/finger controle would realy help. SSC has the foot controls for about $150 that seems like a lot but realy isent for a foot controle and will be well werth it to you if you are going to do a lot of aluminum.i would clamp some scraps in a vice and weld acrost the sides of them so you can realy see the puddle. the foot controle lets you stomp on it and get the puddle now!! and then back off as needed to keep it in the controlable stage. for a first shot and no foot controle i would say you did great. after that 5#'s is gone you should be off to a great start. takes time to lern to finess the puddle but you will get there. cool display idea. looks good. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.