I've wanted a TIG welder for a good, long while. No particular reason or specific project, I just like having the ability to repair my own stuff.

I got a nice bonus this year, so I picked up an entry level import machine (cheapest I could find with HF start), a 20 CF argon tank, and associated consumables. I've got almost everything in, but as of right now USPS is playing games with the tungsten electrodes.

I've never welded before, but I have done a little bit of oxy-fuel brazing (I have a knockoff of a Smith Little Torch that I've been using with MAPP gas to make Christmas presents). I've also got a pretty decent wood shop.

I've already got a plan for a simple project to get my feet wet - a steel bench hook that I can clamp in my vise to weld up off the plywood benchtop (I think some 1/4" hot rolled steel, with hot rolled tube on one end, and angle iron on the other will work quite nicely). I think it should give me something to try both stick and TIG welding depending on which side of the plate I'm working on.

I've been a huge fan of many "maker" youtube channels for a while (This Old Tony, et al). I've been watching a lot of "baby's first weld" videos (the best I have seen so far has been by The Fabrication Series, though TimWelds has been invaluable).

As someone who is fairly new to Tig welding my self, the first thing you'll want to upgrade is your argon tank. 20cf won't hardly let you get a good sneeze out before you're having it refilled. I had a couple of 80cf tanks, and tig drains them very fast. I'm going to swap out one of my 80s for a 380cf. Initial tanks swap is going to be $250, and it comes filled with gas. It only costs $20 more to fill over the 80 from here on out.

Start watching videos on www.weldingtipsandtricks.com and others on youtube.

Get that larger argon bottle but if you are doing aluminum get 75% argon and 25% helium mix instead of straight argon.

Keep an eye on eBay listings for supplies once you get a better idea of what you want.

If you get more serious, I'd find a Lincoln or Miller generation or two older welder in the 250-275 amp range.

Run a dedicated circuit to provide power with the correct breaker & wiring or you'll be popping the breaker regularly.

TIG welding is pretty challenging, and I suspect it will be difficult to get started on your own.

Maybe look into welding classes at your local community college?

I assume "always wear your welding helmet" goes without saying, but also always wear long sleeves and long pants and gloves. Electrical welding isn't just bright, it produces INTENSE ultraviolet light and will give you a hell of a sunburn in just a few minutes.

I taught myself how to TIG about 5 years ago on a spankin' new Miller Synchrowave 210 I bought because "I wanted one". I was a competent oxy/acetylene welder, so using both hands wasn't new - but adding the foot pedal was like rubbing your belly and patting your head.

I bought a nice 3M Speedglas helmet - it helps.

Start with low carbon steel, then SS, and once you're feeling good about them go ahead and start learning all over again with aluminum. Have fun!

As mentioned if doing aluminum get the 75/25 argon/helium mix. You can use it on other metal types. Also for aluminum you’ll want to reverse polarity the tungsten to prep it for alum welding. This prep burn a ball on the end of the tungsten. Aluminum use a ball end and other metals use a point. You might get buy without using the argon helium mix on thinner aluminum but for heavy stuff use the mix. I even used a pre-heat torch on the heavy stuff i used to do when the shop temps were cold.
As also mention get a good auto dark hood.

If you intend to work with aluminum check your machine to see if it has an AC setting. If its DC only you are limited to mild steel and stainless steel. Want to feel like an amateur look up Kanekid on Youtube. He has a unique method of feeding the filler. He uses his index and middle finger to advance the rod. I tried this with less than stellar results. I have a left thumb problem and I can't feed the filler rod worth a crap. I bought a tigpen and that really helped.

Take an aluminum can and learn to walk to cup. Best practice and won't waste consumables.

Tig welding I have done a little bit of that,



I have a water cooled miller 250 dx with a tig button it allows you to control everything right at the torch (no foot pedal) if you want to weld aluminum you will need an ac machine, welding stainless or mild steel a dc machine set at dc reverse is what you will want. You don't have to use argon helium mix unless you are trying to weld heavy aluminum like 1/2 inch straight argon will work just fine, I don't know what amperage your machine is capable of but it takes a 250 machine to weld 1/2 inch aluminum.

also don't need to round your tungsten it does nothing, sharpen it just like you would with stainless it will give you a more direct heat and will start to ball up on it's own.

There is a huge learning curve to tig welding the people making the videos make it look easy but it's not. cleaning aluminum or any metal is the key to getting decent welds, most people who start out use way too much heat and go to slow on metals such as stainless. it takes lots of practice and argon that little bottle won't last long, I have a 281 found on craigslist make sure it's a private tank if you find one. I use 3/32 tungsten red for aluminum welding and 1/16 for stainless with a number 8 cup.

Don't get discourage if your welds look like birdshit on a fence post. I also have a 350 pulse with push pull gun and an old millermatic 200 with a tweco gun those old machines built America, the short arc on those machines are like no other.

this guy is an amazing fabricator.
https://www.youtube.com/c/6061com

The machine is DC only. It claims to be a 200 amp 115/240 (I don't have a 240v outlet in the garage). This is the machine in question. Not much in the way of foot pedals (the thumb switch is on/off).

No aluminum for now. I'd like to do it eventually, but the machine I have currently isn't capable and I have to learn to walk first.

Airgas et al ain't selling tanks right now, and I'm pretty limited in what I can carry in the Mustang, and what I can store in the garage safely. If I can find cheap tanks to trade in I can theoretically trade up (2 20 CF tanks gets me a 40, etc.).

ETA: I laid my first bead and vaporized my first tungsten last night (no messing with filler just yet). It was amazing fun. I suck, but I have to start somewhere, right?

The best advice I can give YOU - or ANYONE - is LEARN TO IDENTIFY YOUR PUDDLE. This advice stands for TIG, MIG, ARC, OXYACETYLENE - anything. But it is especially critical in TIG welding. Also, at first there will be the tendency to want to travel too fast. Practice a bit & you will probably be surprised at how long you can "dwell" in one place without burning thru. Also -> STAY AWAY FROM ALUMINUM at first. It is almost impossible for the beginner to identify the puddle in aluminum. Practice on steel only at first. And lastly, don't be discouraged by the number of times that you will PROBABLY stick your filler rod to the torch and "chill" the whole affair. This happens. It is to be expected... and only with PRACTICE will you learn how to coordinate your torch, filler, and workpiece. And not only that - but you must practice constantly to maintain the skill of coordinating all three. The TIG torch is one of the most versatile of all the welding types; and one day you will discover - probably all on your own - that the TIG setup can be used to weld almost ANY metal. And then you will truly be "off to the races"...FredT

quote:

Originally posted by maladat:

Maybe look into welding classes at your local community college?

Also suggest this.

Went through a year of welding school when I was a youngster. Fair amount of welding with stick prior to the school. Tig was the hardest for me to learn, especially pipe welding. Once I got it, most enjoyable way to weld.

XLT's tig weld picture, very nice bead. Guessing he's been welding for awhile!

Tig welding is much about developing the dexterity in your hands and fingers. The basics are pretty straight forward. I went from brazing to TIG welding, and skipped stick welding. I found TIG very easy to do, probably because the dexterity needed is similar to brazing.

A good sharpening system is helpful, such as a diamond wheel. Thin gloves help. Usually I would sharpen 10 or more electrodes so I did not have to get up and resharpen from time to time. An auto darkening helmet makes life easier.

282 Cu. ft. tank lasts a long time, you can find them on Craigslist. Make sure it is a "clean neck", which is privately owned. I would recommend practicing on steel and stainless well before jumping to welding aluminum.

Soon it will become another expensive hobby with always something else you need.
Lots of good videos out there to watch and learn. I started welding pre-internet with Oxyacetylene to weld and braze.
That teaches you much of the technique and coordination of heat and filler rod.

If you can find some local that will let you look over their shoulder you will save a lot of time and wasted expense.

quote:

Originally posted by vulrath:
The machine is DC only. It claims to be a 200 amp 115/240 (I don't have a 240v outlet in the garage). This is the machine in question. Not much in the way of foot pedals (the thumb switch is on/off).

No aluminum for now. I'd like to do it eventually, but the machine I have currently isn't capable and I have to learn to walk first.

Airgas et al ain't selling tanks right now, and I'm pretty limited in what I can carry in the Mustang, and what I can store in the garage safely. If I can find cheap tanks to trade in I can theoretically trade up (2 20 CF tanks gets me a 40, etc.).

ETA: I laid my first bead and vaporized my first tungsten last night (no messing with filler just yet). It was amazing fun. I suck, but I have to start somewhere, right?

you going to really struggle with tig not having a way to control the amperage on the fly, not sure your set up is compatible with a foot or finger control. trying to dial in the exact amperage is not going to be much fun.

This is from someone who welds only because he has to (to fix things on the farm and time matters) and not because its a job. But based on my experience and getting help when I get in over my head I can't imagine teaching yourself to tig weld not having learned some other method first.

I honestly was looking at returning it and replacing it with one that had a foot pedal, but the Amazon offerings left me with the impression that I'd have to spend a lot (upwards of $500) more to get an appreciable difference in features/quality (I'm looking at it kind of like I do scopes - there's a lot of ledges/cliffs between price points) with the specific features I'm looking for (namely high frequency start and a foot pedal). I also looked at used but everything I looked at was either not working, cheap import, or WAY out of my price range.

The finger switch on the machine that I have is a simple 2 pole on/off switch for the HF start and the pre/during/post weld gas cycles). To be honest, I think the thing that's going to make it most difficult isn't the lack of a foot pedal, it's that I don't have a 240v outlet I can tie into in that garage (or nearby that I could put one in).

I played around with filler tonight. Stuck 2 1/4" cutoffs together in a lap joint at full amperage before tripping the circuit breaker. Used a grinder to cut it apart and clean the metal, backed it down to 2/3 of that, and did it again. Things got significantly easier when I realized that I was using a #9 cup, not a 6, and increased my gas flow rate. Oops.

You can buy a full tank on Amazon. I know you can get argon mix, I’ve never looked for a straight argon.

quote:

Originally posted by XLT:

quote:

Originally posted by vulrath:
The machine is DC only. It claims to be a 200 amp 115/240 (I don't have a 240v outlet in the garage). This is the machine in question. Not much in the way of foot pedals (the thumb switch is on/off).

No aluminum for now. I'd like to do it eventually, but the machine I have currently isn't capable and I have to learn to walk first.

Airgas et al ain't selling tanks right now, and I'm pretty limited in what I can carry in the Mustang, and what I can store in the garage safely. If I can find cheap tanks to trade in I can theoretically trade up (2 20 CF tanks gets me a 40, etc.).

ETA: I laid my first bead and vaporized my first tungsten last night (no messing with filler just yet). It was amazing fun. I suck, but I have to start somewhere, right?

you going to really struggle with tig not having a way to control the amperage on the fly, not sure your set up is compatible with a foot or finger control. trying to dial in the exact amperage is not going to be much fun.

Well, I did it. I'm replacing it with one that's supposed to be here next Saturday. This is what I ordered instead. I'm picking up a tig button when I can afford to.

Still, I think the one I have did its job of getting me hooked pretty darn well.

Next month's big purchase is probably going to be a much larger argon tank (125 should get me a lot more fun time), once I get a spot carved out for it in the garage and figure out how I'm going to get it filled. I looked at Amazon when I was looking for the one I got, and an issue I seemed to run up against was that a lot were ISO certified but not DOT. Admittedly I haven't called around here to ask about it, but some gas suppliers can be weird about taking ISO tanks. I mean, it shouldn't matter but it does apparently.

I replaced the welder again, this time with a PrimeWeld Tig 225. There was a lot that I like, but what finally sealed the deal was the CK torch kit that came with it.

I chose to use the welder to make Christmas gifts, because I really hate myself it seems.

Into the frying pan, into the fire...

Glamour shot of one of the almost-finished pieces. In this shot the stars still need to be added using some S6 steel filler and a template for the spacing.



I'm shit at welding still but I'm having a great time.