Ken's Questions on VERY Thin Aluminum TIG

[H80N]

This is restart on KENWORTH's thread on beverage can thickness aluminum that somehow got deleted...

Well I posted a question about welding very very thin aluminum for strength, and this morning I brought my printer into work (not an easy thing for me to do) so I could print out the answer someone left me, and they recommended a particular Miller welder that had a very, very low setting. Now I'm on here and I can't find my post, I refreshed the page before printing (in case there was any more input) and it's gone. Could someone replace my post, and the detailed response someone was so helpful to take the time to leave? I would really appreciate it, I became a member of this forum to use it, and I'm a real, interested user of the forum. Any spam-like posts below my question were NOT me, I assure you. Thanks.

Ken

not to worry....

ideal setup would be a Dynasty 210DX Tigrunner and a Weldcraft WP-125, Micro TIG Torch

will fill in the particulars

This being the "Ideal" combination in my estimation... it is by no means the cheapest... be prepared for a little sticker shock

https://www.millerwelds.com/files/ow...70536B_MIL.pdf

https://www.millerwelds.com/en/acces...5-micro-series

This is based on a guesstimate from the limited info I got from your question...

the material varies in thickness depending where on the can body you harvest it... here is an article that will give you more info

http://www.chymist.com/Aluminum%20can.pdf

If you can give us a better idea of what you are trying to do... we can give better answers

What you intend to accomplish can likely be done for less money with a used Dynasty 200DX and a 24 series air cooled torch.... but let's look into what your real needs and budget are

[WillieB]

If I remember correctly, the Dynasty 280 has a slightly lower bottom end than 200. I doubt it matters. Metal that thin is tricky. I had occasion to weld a couple widgets for a Cessna 1957 single engine plane. At the time my welder was a Dialarc 250 HF. It was a bit stressful, but I succeeded. The owner ground it smooth with a Dremmel tool. Once painted, it looked good. Aluminum this thin won't be simple. Devise a backer/ clamps system of copper to swallow excess heat. Coatings will be tricky to remove.

[H80N]

If I remember correctly, the Dynasty 280 has a slightly lower bottom end than 200. I doubt it matters. Metal that thin is tricky. I had occasion to weld a couple widgets for a Cessna 1957 single engine plane. At the time my welder was a Dialarc 250 HF. It was a bit stressful, but I succeeded. The owner ground it smooth with a Dremmel tool. Once painted, it looked good. Aluminum this thin won't be simple. Devise a backer/ clamps system of copper to swallow excess heat. Coatings will be tricky to remove.

Willie

the Dynasty 280 has a Bottom setting of 1Amp just like the Dynasty 200 & 210.... should be able to weld pretty thin without backer plate....

you really had to be careful with the Dialarc 250 HF on the thin stuff... it only goes down to 10 Amps.....and does not have the wave shaping...balance and pulse of the Dynasty machines.... pretty easy to burn through...thin aluminum..with the Dialarc...

[WillieB]

Willie

the Dynasty 280 has a Bottom setting of 1Amp just like the Dynasty 200 & 210.... should be able to weld pretty thin without backer plate....

you really had to be careful with the Dialarc 250 HF on the thin stuff... it only goes down to 10 Amps.....and does not have the wave shaping...balance and pulse of the Dynasty machines.... pretty easy to burn through...thin aluminum..with the Dialarc...

I didn't take time to look it up, I'd have sworn 200 didn't go that low.

Yeah, the HF would kick in at much less pedal than the 60 HZ. I practiced on soda cans first before I had the guts to try the Cessna part. Don't worry, it was a couple pieces of interior trim, nothing going to make it fall to earth.

[H80N]

I didn't take time to look it up, I'd have sworn 200 didn't go that low.

Yeah, the HF would kick in at much less pedal than the 60 HZ. I practiced on soda cans first before I had the guts to try the Cessna part. Don't worry, it was a couple pieces of interior trim, nothing going to make it fall to earth.

The Dynasty 350 & 700 only go down to 5 amps.....