These are all very good points, and I'll add one more idea that I thought
that some of the more experienced TIGers would suggest: It sounded to me
like you were welding on sheet metal on a vehicle. It is quite possible to
get contamination of the weld pool from the BACK side of the metal. Any oil
or grease or undercoat, etc back there can mess things up big time.
Brandon Dixon
-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Ruof [mailto:1953xk@home.com]
Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2000 8:22 AM
To: Steven Shipley; shop-talk@autox.team.net
Subject: Re: Question about TIG
I have to add my two cents.
Spatter is little BB's of metal. If you are getting a buildup of small
discrete balls of metal one possibility is that you are overcooking your
weld pool. The arc and the weld pool should be very smooth. No sparks or
flying metal.
Take care not to contaminate the tungsten. Once you dip it in the weld pool
or jam the filler against it you've contaminated it and you will start to
get a buildup and degradation. Snapping off the contaminated part is OK but
you still want to grind to shape it. It is best to grind with a freshly
dressed wheel. Make sure you have a good point to start.
Folks were also dead on the money about being sure that you are using the
right filler. Gas fillers have LOTS of deoxidizers and result in an
overactive weld pool if used for TIG welding. Trim your filler after a stop
and make sure it stays under the gas shielding while you're welding. If you
pull it out from the shielding while you're welding it will oxidize. When
you run that oxidized metal in, you destabilize the pool and the arc.
The base metal probably isn't the problem if it is ground to bright metal.
You have to make sure to get out any pitting too.
If all else fails recheck your gas lines and fittings to make sure you
aren't drawing in any air along the way.
Welding is SO much fun.
Bill Ruof
> I've encountered a problem. I keep seeing a build-up of spatter
> that sticks to the electrode and the ceramic cup. As this spatter
> builds up the arc becomes harder to control. I'm spending a lot of
> time putting new points on the electrodes.
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