Your opinions on TIG welders... - Diesel Forum

Kartek · 02-09-2009, 02:08 PM

Guys,

I'm looking at the amount of TIG welding I'm going to be doing in the next few months and the cost more than justifies buying my own. So here are the conditions:

1. I want something decent - Miller/Lincoln/Squarewave/Syncrowave.
2. Has to be able to do up to 1/2" aluminum.
3. I'm pretty much restricted to paying $2k or less.

I know #3 is pretty much a dealbreaker for a new unit so is there a model I can look for used that satisfies those requirements?

What are your experiences? How much power do I need? I saw a Syncrowave 200 for the right price on ebay but it seems a little low on power. How about the off-brands? Any good?

Thanks for your input!

Dualie · 02-11-2009, 03:40 AM

i would start looking high and low for a used Syncrowave or Lincoln ideal arc. if your seriously going to attempt 1/2" aluminum with the tig your going to need a water cooled torch i have a 350 amp Lincoln with a Bernard water-cooler and it does well in my fab shop setting for the work i do.

I would say a 200 amp isn't near enough for what your going to try and do.

Wave balance would be a plus but a regular AC machine would provide great results. With aluminum its all about cleanliness. get a bunch of stainless steel wire brushes and clean the living snot out of the area to be welded then give it a good rub down with a clean rag and some acetone.

Kartek · 02-11-2009, 11:14 AM

Thanks for the reply! Mainly what I'm going to do is fab up stainless and alu. tubing for intake and exhaust systems. The reason I said 1/2" is because of the need to join the tubing to the flanges. Is is possible to run lower amps since I'm not trying to join 1/2" to 1/2"? In reality, most of the flanges will run 1/4" to 3/8".

This will also be short duration jobs so I'm not sure at what point the need for water cooling comes in.

drcampbell · 02-12-2009, 01:21 AM

Welding aluminum requires a lot of current for two reasons: Aluminum conducts electricity much better than steel, causing reduced I-squared-R heating where the arc lands, and because aluminum conducts heat much better than steel, pulling more heat away from the weld puddle.

Intake & exhaust manifolds might not require quite as much current/heat due to the size of the parts. (smaller heat sink)

Dualie · 02-12-2009, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kartek

Thanks for the reply! Mainly what I'm going to do is fab up stainless and alu. tubing for intake and exhaust systems. The reason I said 1/2" is because of the need to join the tubing to the flanges. Is is possible to run lower amps since I'm not trying to join 1/2" to 1/2"? In reality, most of the flanges will run 1/4" to 3/8".

This will also be short duration jobs so I'm not sure at what point the need for water cooling comes in.

I personally wont recommend an air cooled tig. It gets really old waiting for the torch too cool down when your ready to roll. You could get away with it if you were JUST doing light stainless but with aluminum your inevitably going to smoke the torch and need to replace it.

For your application a 250 Amp tig would be plenty, Times are tough right now so keep your eye out on your local Craig's list and ebay. toys like TIG welders are the first things to go when cash is needed.

If your going to be working on new clean aluminum A regular AC/DC tig would be fine but you will still have to clean all the joints with a stainless wire brush and acetone.

I would stick with the big three MFG's of welders Miller, Lincoln, ESAB. Miller and Lincoln are what your most likely to find. Also be aware of the INPUT voltage requirements when buying a larger TIG most require 30A of 220.

bob4x4 · 02-12-2009, 10:03 PM

My old machine needs 100 amp input to weld heavy alum (single phase 220)

mabe002 · 02-13-2009, 12:36 AM

Not trying to be anything here but, have you ever welded any aluminum before? If you have not, then it has a totally different attitude than carbon steel. It will take a lot of scrap to learn on your own too. Regardless ALWAYS clean the parts and the filler rod before you start to weld. If its stainless or aluminum I use scotchbright with acetone or MEK on the filler rods. I would check E-Bay for a syncrowave 250 with the tigrunner package for what you are wanting to do. Good luck!!

Kartek · 02-13-2009, 09:36 AM

Thanks again for the input! Some background on my welding experience: I was lucky enough to have access to a TIG welder back in HS shop. I pretty much picked up aluminum welding from the git-go. I continued my welding education in college with a few quarters of welding engineering doing everything from regular stick to gas and submerged arc.

After college, I pretty much put it all aside for a few years until I bought a basic stick setup which I have been using ever since. Now, I want to do more advanced fabrications including aluminum and stainless and I know I'd spend well over a thousand dollars just paying someone to do it. I have the skills but they're rusty...

Looking over craigslist this morning, I came across a 1983 Syncrowave 300 with everything, cart, cooler, controls for $1k. I'm going to go check it out tomorrow.

NickKent · 02-13-2009, 06:21 PM

you'll definitely want a water cooled torch. I have a Lincoln Invertec 205 with an air cooled torch. Just doesn't cut it when welding anything over 3/16" steel or aluminum. And forget about the torch cooling down. It doesn't. I'll say what everyone else is saying too, clean the piss out of the aluminum. Stainless wire brush that you only use for aluminum and wipe with acetone.

94_turbo · 02-25-2009, 03:59 PM

1/2 alum?? me thinks 250 aint cutting it--300 maybe--alu takes mega amps--

Pele · 02-26-2009, 08:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mabe002

Not trying to be anything here but, have you ever welded any aluminum before? If you have not, then it has a totally different attitude than carbon steel. It will take a lot of scrap to learn on your own too. Regardless ALWAYS clean the parts and the filler rod before you start to weld. If its stainless or aluminum I use scotchbright with acetone or MEK on the filler rods. I would check E-Bay for a syncrowave 250 with the tigrunner package for what you are wanting to do. Good luck!!

I found it MUCH easier to do Aluminum than steel.

I'd always burn through steel and not with aluminum, plus I had MUCH better puddle control on the aluminum...

Weird huh?

Kartek · 10-07-2009, 12:47 PM

Just posting a follow up on this. I ended up getting a gently used Miller Syncrowave 350 with a new pedal and torch. It also has the coolermate or whatever the liquid torch cooling thing is called.

I thought it was a pretty good deal at $2600...