my project over the weekend

built this turbo hot side out of 304ss for my 72 el camino. its a 6 liter lq4 engine from a 2500 suburban.

the exh manifolds must be cast steel because the schedule 10 stainless welded fine to it with a 309 rod. not the prettiest welds but i back purged it got no sugaring and penetration seems to be decent.

the rest of the piping is 16 gauge 304ss which i back purged also,and used 308 rod. except if the gaps were good i used no rod. welds not the best looking but i back purged these also. i think my biggest problem was i couldnt see well. i was welding at 40 amps and my hood was to dark. i will be looking for a better one.

i used the 210 ext at 40 amps and used foot pedal. 3/32 lanthiated on exh manifolds and 1/16 lanthiated on piping.

any tips to help my welds look more acceptable would be appreciated.

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Yeah,

As a novice with TIG myself, I do find the trickiest joints and seams to be the fillets with coped/notched/saddled round tubing joints or seams, mostly due to positioning or propping issues.

Yeah, an outstanding TIG welding lid is a big help over one that keeps you in the dark, so to speak.

Also, on my 210EXT, I use a CK SteadyGrip hand amptrol device, which is extremely handy in awkward spaces and fit-ups, and the pistol grip make for better propping.

I did a custom stainless exhaust system on a Mazda truck of mine some years ago. It was my first SS project. It turned out well looking, because I ground and sanded the weld seams to feather them into looking like a seamless, brushed metal finish throughout the system, except for one SS band clamp and one SS flange. At that time I has only heard of purging for SS, and was sure that it was unnecessary, which it was, for me. But when I think back on the project, which is uploaded to my YouTube Channel, I do see how naive I was about welding SS then. And to this day, that exhaust system is about the extent of my SS experience. It was a fun project that turned out well, but not with those single-pass, colorful SS beads that you see some pulling off. I mean, I was even stingy with my post-flow rate on that project, at about 15 CFH, if I recall.

So, I guess a first go-round on a significant SS project like yours, or mine, probably won't reveal weld-porn worthy results. I mean, if you really hated the seams, like I hated mine, you could grind and orbital sand them, like I did on my SS exhaust, and go for the seamless, brushed metal finish look throughout. But there's a good deal of finishing labor involved in that.

I've found that more heat and faster travel speed works better for stainless. Seems like it puts less heat into the material and keeps it from turning dull gray. Solar flux is another option rather than purge. It's not cheaper but it is way faster and easier for me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by zoama

I've found that more heat and faster travel speed works better for stainless. Seems like it puts less heat into the material and keeps it from turning dull gray. Solar flux is another option rather than purge. It's not cheaper but it is way faster and easier for me.

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i did notice what you mentioned about higher heat and faster speed,some of the beads came out awesome and i remember i had it set to 50 amps. but cant remember why i backed down,and itys funny all the good beads are the ones you cant see. i was gonna use solar flux but was worried if i couldnt clean it off due to access it would ruin the turbo.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by christian

Yeah,

As a novice with TIG myself, I do find the trickiest joints and seams to be the fillets with coped/notched/saddled round tubing joints or seams, mostly due to positioning or propping issues.

Yeah, an outstanding TIG welding lid is a big help over one that keeps you in the dark, so to speak.

Also, on my 210EXT, I use a CK SteadyGrip hand amptrol device, which is extremely handy in awkward spaces and fit-ups, and the pistol grip make for better propping.

I did a custom stainless exhaust system on a Mazda truck of mine some years ago. It was my first SS project. It turned out well looking, because I ground and sanded the weld seams to feather them into looking like a seamless, brushed metal finish throughout the system, except for one SS band clamp and one SS flange. At that time I has only heard of purging for SS, and was sure that it was unnecessary, which it was, for me. But when I think back on the project, which is uploaded to my YouTube Channel, I do see how naive I was about welding SS then. And to this day, that exhaust system is about the extent of my SS experience. It was a fun project that turned out well, but not with those single-pass, colorful SS beads that you see some pulling off. I mean, I was even stingy with my post-flow rate on that project, at about 15 CFH, if I recall.

So, I guess a first go-round on a significant SS project like yours, or mine, probably won't reveal weld-porn worthy results. I mean, if you really hated the seams, like I hated mine, you could grind and orbital sand them, like I did on my SS exhaust, and go for the seamless, brushed metal finish look throughout. But there's a good deal of finishing labor involved in that.

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yes the pieces that i had most problem with the wastegate pipe.plus not being able to see that good and not having a fixture to rotate the piece properly didnt help much either. but in do time i will gather up what i need. so hopefully the hot side will last. thank god for header wrap:D

Looks really cold. I would bump up amperage next time.
Try using 1/16th for a root pass, then use the 3/32 for your cover pass, remembering to cool down with an air blower. Stainless doesn't like a lot of heat.

Hope this helps
Frank

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Boilermaker6

Looks really cold. I would bump up amperage next time.
Try using 1/16th for a root pass, then use the 3/32 for your cover pass, remembering to cool down with an air blower. Stainless doesn't like a lot of heat.

Hope this helps
Frank

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"remembering to cool down with an air blower" between welds (!) Fixed that for you, lol.