Vertical welding Aluminium with TIG, is it possible? how?

[lw3eov]

Vertical welding Aluminium with TIG, is it possible? how?

Thanks
Regards

Marcelo

[jasonspoon]

Yes it is. Vertical up. Practice.

[griff01]

Vertical welding Aluminium with TIG, is it possible? how?

Thanks
Regards

Marcelo

Yes it is possible. As Jason said, practice.

Griff

[Sberry]

Practice is a slow way to learn, but it is more than possible, some of the worlds finest welding is done vert, overhead too.

[Showdog75]

I prefer to make corner welds on aluminum going up hill.Remeber heat rises and I think it helps me.

[captkipp]

Uphill TIG

You bet it can be done. Puddle up , add the rod and move As you move let the amps slide off a bit and let the puddle freeze. Then amp back up and add rod, Repeat the sequence. Practice. Time under the hood. Just you and the metal.
Practice in some 1/8" stuff and work up to heavier materials. Actually you can add filler rod from either the from or back side of the torch. Just takes a little time to get the hang of it. It will help you a lot if you can find an instructor ar even a good "ol' TIG Master that could show you a couple of times. Amazing what a qualified instructor can help you achieve!

[griff01]

Practice is a slow way to learn, but it is more than possible, some of the worlds finest welding is done vert, overhead too.

Just curious. What might be a "fast" way of learning?

Griff

[Sberry]

Fast way is to get an expert to learn from. I went to a seminar get together with the SFT gang a few yrs ago, the whole trip was good but it was worth it alone to see Chris from Miller sitting at the bench giving demo on a 200 Dyn. Learn more in 45 minutes watching his demo routine than I could have in a month or maybe even ever by simple trial and error. I am still not any good and could care less for the most part but could pick it up and be passable in short order, if I had a real hardon to be a tigger I would get to a class or find someone who really knew to give some coaching.

[lw3eov]

How do you avoid the melted AL from the rod dropping to the floor?

Thanks for the answers. How do you avoid the melted AL from the rod dropping to the floor?
The machine we have is Tauro, probably not know in Europe or the US. It's a 3000 dollars machine, however it doesn't come with a foot pedal to regulate the amps, just a knob
I am in Argentina now, where I am from, and there are no TIG AL courses available, only steel and there are full for months + they cost far too much. In this town, there are only 3 guys who use TIG and they can't do it vertically so there is no one to ask.
I live in the United Kingdom, where I will return in October, but again, the courses cost a lot of money and I am not interested in spending that amounts to become a pro welder, I just want to learn the techniques so I can add up some more skills which I think will help me in my electro-mechanical prototypes making tasks.

Thanks. Regards.

Marcelo

[gtsuper]

Al dropping

Marcello,

The filler rod is not supposed to drop on the floor. Start from the bottom on an inside corner. I mean 90 degress. Get a nice shiny puddle with just a minor point up of the tig rod.
When nice and shiny dip the rod in from the top. Keep your cup (i use a #6 or 7) on the metal and just keep coming straight up adding rod. I'm talking 1/8" material 2" x 2" tubing (6063) t6 I think, at 165 amps with a Dynasty 200 DX, Bal 70, freq 135.
3/32" diamater 1.5% lantanated tunsten to a point, flush to the cup, 25 cfh argon.
I make my best welds this way.

Good luck,
Gary

[wooofish]

Yes you can vertical up or down.I use both.Up for penitration and down for cover. Down works well on an outside corner on thin material.

[FusionKing]

If it was easy then everyone would already be doing it.
Basically if you have filler rod on the floor, then you need to get the rod back out of the heat a bit and add it more to the edge of the puddle. Sometimes I get too much heat on the rod and have to stop and either cut the end of the rod off or switch it end for end. You have to stay on the ball and if you get lazy and just try to force it to work you will have results that reflect that. Be methodical.
If you can run vertical up with stick, then tig is a breeze IMO

[HAWK]

If it was easy then everyone would already be doing it.
If you can run vertical up with stick, then tig is a breeze IMO

Yes. I agree. SMAW was the first process I learned. First with cellulose rods, then lo-hi. My favorite rod and weld position is 7018 vertical up. I love the dripped candle look the slag provides until removed. Three stringers and cap is the how I practiced until I got it right. GTAW vertical up seems very easy by comparison. TIG is the last of the three major welding processes I learned: (1) SMAW, (2) GMAW/FCAW, (3) GTAW.

HAWK

[HAWK]

lw3eov,

Does your machine have an adjustable frequency control? Turning up the frequency will provide a more tightly focused arc. This will help you on an inside corner joint-any position. Too much arc focus on an outside corner will make it hard to cover the joint. Have you tried pulse welding? Is that an option with your machine?

HAWK