Tubing Welding tricks?

[Fred Bryant]

I got tired of practicing on 7" strips, and I had a piece of 1" OD, 1/16" wall tubing I kept tripping over, so....

I have only brazed tubing before. When brazing, one just has to run the heat around the joint somewhat half-hazardly, and apply the braze at one point. The braze will follow the heat around the joint.

Well, I found out that welding is a different matter. I used a 1" hole saw to cope the end of the tubing to make a T joint. I then tried to weld the joint. I found out that, in order to get a good weld, I had to reposition the joint every 1/2" of bead or so. If I tried to follow the joint, I kept sticking the tungson in the pool .

Are there tricks to this, or is it another one of those practice things?

Tubing was mild steel ( 1018 reciept saies ), current was about 50 amps, 1/16" 70S2 rod, and 1/16" red tungson.

Additionally, is there a way to extend the tungson further without cranking the gas up like it was free?

On a totally different topic, I think for my first arc welding project I will try and build the Dan Brake. Since my only arc welder is a Lincoln 175, I guess I am going to have to stick the thick part of the brake. Any electrode suggestions?

Thx's, FAB.

[FIXXXXAH]

GET COMFORTABLE, TRY TO POSITION YOURSELF SO THAT YOU CAN MOVE AROUND THE JOINT SMOOTHLY, AND PRACTISE HOW YOU ARE GOING TO GET AROUND THE JOINT BEFORE YOU ACCTUALLY START WELDING. THEN ITS JUST A MATTER OF TIME AND PRACTISE, WORK ON ROLLING YOUR WRISTS SMOOTHLY TO KEEP GOOD ANGLES ALL THE WAY AROUND.

JUST GET USED TO NOTCHING TUBE, IT'LL TAKE ALOT. BUT YOU'LL HAVE IT LIKE A CHAMP
MATT

[Guest]

Re: Tubing Welding tricks?

Originally posted by Fred Bryant
... I found out that, in order to get a good weld, I had to reposition the joint every 1/2" of bead or so. If I tried to follow the joint, I kept sticking the tungson in the pool .

Are there tricks to this, or is it another one of those practice things?

Tubing was mild steel ( 1018 reciept saies ), current was about 50 amps, 1/16" 70S2 rod, and 1/16" red tungson.

Additionally, is there a way to extend the tungson further without cranking the gas up like it was free?

On a totally different topic, I think for my first arc welding project I will try and build the Dan Brake. Since my only arc welder is a Lincoln 175, I guess I am going to have to stick the thick part of the brake. Any electrode suggestions?

Thx's, FAB.

"...cranking the gas up like it was free?" ROFL! Hilarious analogy.

Try to do your tube/pipe welds in quarters...like Matt said, try to position your hand so it can travel around at least one quarter of the joint.

Here's the torch I use...it has a large gas screen lens on it and purges very well, especally when you are off angle.

[Dan]

Fred

Matt has given you some excellent advice. If your Lincoln squarewave 175 came with the same torch as the 175 that I run at work then you should have a gas lense collet and cup assembly on it similar to what Rocky has on his torch. These lenses provide excellent gas coverage to the weld bead and allow you to extend the tungsten out further then a normal collet body and cup will allow you to.

When I weld round tubing I just try to weld around the joint as far as I comfortably can, and then reposition myself or the part. I too apply all the advice that Matt gave you. Im attaching a picture of a peice of 1/2" stainless round tube that I welded to a peice of 1/8"X 1 1/2" Stainless flat bar. The wall thickness on the tube was about .050 and the filler rod was 1/16" 308L. On the picture I have placed red dots on every restart. On your 1" tube I would have no were near this many restarts.

There is no reason why you couldn t use the TIG side of the machine to weld up the bending brake project that I posted on this site in the project section. If you want to to use stick on it try either 6013 or 7014 in 3/32" or 1/8" diameter rods. They are an easy rod for a beginner to run.

[Roger]

Great restarts that are hard to see even with your marking them.

This is a photo tip not trying to be critical of your great pictures.
To reduce reflections from shinny objects in pictures use dulling spray. Krylon was the brand I use from photo or art supply. When it is sprayed on it looks about like Pledge furniture polish. Just spray on take picture before wiping off and making shinny again. I would try Pledge, anti splatter spray or Pam non stick spray to see which gives desired results. Your pictures will then have highlights with less bright metalic reflections.
Another trick is use flat light. When camera's flash is causing the problem, would put white handkerchief over flash. For digital camera tape white tissue over flash.

[Dan]

Originally posted by Roger
Great restarts that are hard to see even with your marking them.

This is a photo tip not trying to be critical of your great pictures.
To reduce reflections from shinny objects in pictures use dulling spray. Krylon was the brand I use from photo or art supply. When it is sprayed on it looks about like Pledge furniture polish. Just spray on take picture before wiping off and making shinny again. I would try Pledge, anti splatter spray or Pam non stick spray to see which gives desired results. Your pictures will then have highlights with less bright metalic reflections.
Another trick is use flat light. When camera's flash is causing the problem, would put white handkerchief over flash. For digital camera tape white tissue over flash.

Roger

I have no problem with someone giving me suggestions that might fix a problem Im having.
Why haven t you told me this before? I ve been pulling my hair out trying to figure out how to to eliminate this problem with my stainless steel pictures. My talent level on taking pictures amounts to pointing the camera at the object, focusing in on it , and then pushing the button. Heck, my 6 year old son does just as good.

Tomorrow Im going to give the tissue a try since I already have it available to me.

[chip hayden]

when i weld tubing i try to select a cup that lets me walk on both legs of the tubing without touching the vertex of the angle/weld with the tungsten. i also keep the electrode retracted or almost flush with the end of the cup. or at least, as little stick-out as possible so i don't touch the weld pool.
for a quick cope of the tubing for 90 degree welds i will sometimes just saw an X thru the tube. this gives me a fairly decent throat that i can branch to on both sawn ends.

[Guest]

Originally posted by Dan


Roger

I have no problem with someone giving me suggestions that might fix a problem Im having.
Why haven t you told me this before? I ve been pulling my hair out trying to figure out how to to eliminate this problem with my stainless steel pictures. My talent level on taking pictures amounts to pointing the camera at the object, focusing in on it , and then pushing the button. Heck, my 6 year old son does just as good.

Tomorrow Im going to give the tissue a try since I already have it available to me.

Good advice from Roger...what I do sometimes is stand back and zoom in...that puts more distance for the flash to travel, dimming it down, some.

[Roger]

If your camera doesn't zoom, Shoot picture from further back then load picture in photoshop program then enlarge and frame picture to get zoom effect.

Lighting is major part of photography, flat lighting tends to hide surface texture, side lighting brings outsurface detail.

[Rod MI]

Hi Fred I'm just learning to Tig weld and wondering what size stock you are using for steel and dues any one have sum weld picture with a description showing the style used like the ones they did for Mig a couple of days ago thanks

[FIXXXXAH]

JUST THOUGHT OF SOMETHING ELSE I DIDNT PUT BEFORE. IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH FEEDING TH FILLER ROD AT THE START OF THE WELD, FORCEING YOU TO START FURTHER AROUND THE WELD THAN YOU COULD, YOU CAN BEND THE FILLER ROD TO WRAP AROUND THE TUBE. I DID THIS AT STATE WHEN WE HAD TO PUT 2 STAINLESS TUBES BETWEEN 2 PLATES. IF YOU LOOK AT THE ROD, I BENT HE END SO IT CURVED IN LIKE THE UPPER HALF OF A "C" AND THIS ALLOWED ME TO START FURTHER BACK ON THE JOINT AND STILL FEED THE ROD-
MATT

[Ken O]

I dont know what your building, but, the easiest way to make your T-joint, is, instead of copeing the tube, stick the end of it in a vise and smash it together, then weld it to the other tube. This is real usefull when making carts for your burning or mig rigs. I made ice fishing sleds this way also, used stainless tube (heat exchager tubing), fit the struts then tiged them out.

[Guest]

Originally posted by Ken O
I dont know what your building, but, the easiest way to make your T-joint, is, instead of copeing the tube, stick the end of it in a vise and smash it together, then weld it to the other tube. This is real usefull when making carts for your burning or mig rigs. I made ice fishing sleds this way also, used stainless tube (heat exchager tubing), fit the struts then tiged them out.

That is a good quick way to build with tubing, however I must add that in order to maintain the strength of the tube, don't smash it flat, instead compress the tube untill the sides become paralell with space in between....comressing your tube flat will weaken the joint.

This is a top rail tube swedged.

[arcdawg]

thats some fancy tiggin dan

wow that tubing is beautyful, care to give some pointers, tungston size, type of tungston, amps , ect............ thank you brian

[Timinmb]

Originally posted by chip hayden
... i also keep the electrode retracted or almost flush with the end of the cup. or at least, as little stick-out as possible so i don't touch the weld pool...

I'm just a beginner, so bear with me, I can't control the arc length unless I can see the tungsten. I assume this is mandatory and is not done otherwise by some Jedi technique? As a result, I am positioning my head so that my line of sight allows me to view fully the gap between the cup and the bead. I am also extending the tungsten as far as I can (half the inner diameter of the cup) in order to improve visibility.

Is this proper procedure?