Aluminum TIG fin building. Anyone tried it??
So, before I got the crap scared out of me yesterday(see the thread on heart trouble). I decided to play around with different cup sizes, filler materials, Lanthanated vs. tungsten, etc. I have an old piece of cast aluminum that I have been using to bone up on this stuff. Decided to see what would happen if I just laid one bead on top of another. Here's what I got.
http://i985.photobucket.com/albums/a...5/IMAG0705.jpg
http://i985.photobucket.com/albums/a...5/IMAG0706.jpg
This will really come in handy on the old bike parts that I've mentioned before where there may be a piece of casting broken away. I'm thinking that next I'll sand the sides of the fin smooth and fill in the imperfections to make it into a perfect "repair"
I was using my old Linde with 3/32" tungsten alternating between 1.5% lanth and 2% Thoriated. I honestly think I prefer the Lanthanated. Even though I'm running an old transforner machine, I sharpen to a point and let the electrode do what it's going to do. After 2 or 3 passes the Lanth tip formed a ball about 1/32 inch. Arc was relatively controllable, and actually got better by switching from a #5 to #6 cup. 17cfh on my flowmeter, Weldcraft WP20 torch (water-cooled). I was at 180 amps and had my pedal about 3/4 of the way down most of the time. A little more if the oxide layer covered the puddle, a little less if the puddle looked like it was going to collapse. I recomend this as a good way to learn how to develop judgement on how much pedal to use.
