AL and tig cart projects

[wendell]

Last week I finished my first AL project using my sync300. The materials and settings are in the link bellow.

http://www.millermotorsports.com/mboard/showthread.php?t=1945

I've only been using the TIG for a few months and welding aluminum for even less. Hopefully the close up pic will let everybody here see enough detail to give me some constructive critisism.(its OK I can take it)

The second two pics are of the cart I finished up a few days ago. It was the first bit of pipe welds I've done with the TIG. I'm real glad that my big blue lump has a home!

[Mike W]

That looks good to me.

[arcdawg]

awesome old machine........! and i like the pabst in the back !!!!

d-

[aphexafx]

Nice, man. Oh my god, that Syncro 300 is HUGE! Have you taken her up to full throttle?

[dyn88]

looks like crap!!! LOL just kidding, looks real nice.

[wendell]

Aphex,
I've only got a 20 series torch (250A) and I don't TIG real big stuff. That said, I floored it once just to see what would happen. It was a little hairy.

As I stated in my post this is the first AL job I did. Does the weld look sound? I really don't know what I'm doing and could use as much advise as I can get.

[karish]

Wendell,

I've got a big blue lump in my garage too. Other than the space it takes up, I really like it. But, hey, I got it, two torches, a cooler, a cart, and some 2/0 welding cable and stinger for a steal, so I'm not too worried about it.

Are those pulse controls on the lower right-hand side of the face, just above the "Synchrwave 300"? Mine doesn't have the optional pulser.

[aphexafx]

It's just a little hard to tell because of the paint, I think. They look even and are obvously solid enough to hold up that monster of a machine you've got sittin' up there. I can't tell if I see undercut on a few joints or not.

Could you get some close-up pictures of some of the joints? Just a tip for shooting glossy/specular surfaces, get a lamp and light it from an angle different that your camera angle and turn off the camera's flash (and shoot steady!)

None the less, I'm pretty sure it won't fall apart, and as far as I can tell, it's welded pretty d*** well.

[wendell]

Good advise AFX, I'm pretty confident in my mild steel welding. There is a little under cut but all in all it's strong enough to keep my torch (with snazzy orange cable cover) off the ground. I'm more currious to hear some opinions on the AL fillet welds.

Karish,
That is a pulser you see. The lump is speckled with leavers, buttons switches and knobs. The pulser works great but the max frequency is only a few p/s. Not like the Dynasty. I too am real happy with the deal I got on my rig.

[fun4now]

lots of powwer

man i just wish i could power 1 of thouse lumps in my shop
you guys must have a 200amp service to the shop to play with the big toys

[karish]

Wendall,

I have pulser envy! But, hey for $200 a guy can't be too picky, can he?

fun4now:

I will be rewiring my gargage this spring to increase the available power there. Don't want to do it in the winter as it get a wee bit dark and cold here with the power off. But, I've been running my big blue lump from a 70 A 240VAC breaker. Why? Because that's all I could spare. Haven't had it pop yet, even when burning big stick electrodes as fast as I can. I guess that tells me I really don't need such a powerful machine for my little hobby projects. Did I mention for $200 a guy can't be too picky?

[Scott V]

The 300 I looked the other day did not seem all that bad on current draw. It had the built in pfc in it though. Start looking at what most 300 amp inverters draw at 300 amps output and you might be in for a suprise. Lets put it this way it narrows way down between the two. I love inverters much better for other reasons.

[wendell]

Karish,
That was a **** of a deal. I sort of think that the old sync stuff is the best option for hobbists. Pretty sure we can weld anything our skill levels will allow and at a tenth of the price of a Dynasty. Don't get me wrong, the Dynastys are amazing but quite a few airplanes, space ships and race cars were stuck together just fine with Syncs before inverters.

As far as input amperage goes, I've got 200A sevice but am running the lump off a 60A breaker. The AL fillets were at 200-225A and it never tripped. All i really need is to be able to run 250A out put for the projects I see myself getting into.