- Thread starter Gudgeon
- Start date
northwest
Searching for the Holy Grail.........
- Messages
- 5,831
- Location
- Manchester UK
Munkul
Jack of some trades, Master of none
- Messages
- 7,630
- Location
- Cumbria
Firstly, going back to the tungsten, you haven't told us if it's staying shiny or not. If it's not, then it's either because you dipped, or because the gas shielding is bad.
The material isn't helping with thickness... but you should be able to melt holes in it really easily.
Your tungsten should be pointy but not sharp.
1. Set your amps at 100, AC frequency at 60, turn the slopes to zero
2. set the AC balance max 70%
3. try to puddle or at least melt some holes
4. set AC balance to minimum 30%
5. try to puddle again
One way will melt holes a lot more easily than the other... the other, it should melt your tungsten back into a ball.
EDIT: The manual states you get max penetration at 30%, not 70% as expected. So in practical terms, you want it less than 50% nearly all the time, in fact 30-35% is really where you want to be on clean aluminium.
The material isn't helping with thickness... but you should be able to melt holes in it really easily.
Your tungsten should be pointy but not sharp.
1. Set your amps at 100, AC frequency at 60, turn the slopes to zero
2. set the AC balance max 70%
3. try to puddle or at least melt some holes
4. set AC balance to minimum 30%
5. try to puddle again
One way will melt holes a lot more easily than the other... the other, it should melt your tungsten back into a ball.
EDIT: The manual states you get max penetration at 30%, not 70% as expected. So in practical terms, you want it less than 50% nearly all the time, in fact 30-35% is really where you want to be on clean aluminium.
Munkul
Jack of some trades, Master of none
- Messages
- 7,630
- Location
- Cumbria
If it goes blue then the shielding is probably not terrible, but you'll need to up the post gas flow a couple of seconds. You want that tungsten shiny...
...for when you dip it in the puddle a few seconds later
but seriously, best advice from this forum for a beginner is to keep that tungsten clean at all times, especially on AC. It makes things easier, eliminates variables, and gives a more stable arc. Once you have a bit of experience you can work out what you can and can't get away with.What size are you using? 1.6 or 2.4?
The thing about the ac balance, @mankul may have alluded to, is that sometimes different manufacturers state it differently - ie backwards. So some makers 70% can be anothers 30..
Wang the amps up, melt the pool quickly is my advice, then dip the rod and move the tungsten pronto. I spent ages just oxidising ally, of all thicknesses until I realised this stuff needs a lot of heat.
Wang the amps up, melt the pool quickly is my advice, then dip the rod and move the tungsten pronto. I spent ages just oxidising ally, of all thicknesses until I realised this stuff needs a lot of heat.
