Brown oxide

[windsor]

Hello : I am new to Tig welding and have a DV 200 Everlast with a number 9 torch and a 3/32 tungsten sticking out about 1/2", gas lense and a number 8 cup . My argon is set to 15 cfm , pre-flow about 2 --post flow 4 . I am practicing on 18 gauge at about 40 amps . My practice parts are clean , but recently I'm getting a brown oxide on my welds and the tungsten seems to me burning up faster than before. --Any ideas as to what I'm doing wrong?

[performance]

Looks like mixed gas, or your welder is too close to where you are welding, or it is contaminated gas.
And clean that mill scale that isn't quite clean yet.

[windsor]

Thanks Mark .It is pure argon and was working without the brown until recently (Still on my first tank of Argon ) . I hadn't thought about the closeness of the welder . I have been about 3 feet from the welder . Could it be the welder fan blowing air ?

I normally recommend 6 feet.

[christian]

Yeah,

What's your argon tank size, in CF?

When my tanks (200 CF) get down to about 200 psi, the shielding seems to get compromised.

You may be long-arcing a bit too.

I'd give yourself a little longer stick-out on the tungsten, so you can see the tip better to keep a tighter arc. Your cup size, your CFH setting, and the gas lens should all support that well enough.

Maybe get one of those cheap torch flow meters, to confirm that your gas lens isn't constricting the flow somehow.

[windsor]

So I moved the welder 6 feet from my work and got a new bottle of Argon and same problem with the brown oxide . I hooked up the monster 26 torch that came with the welder and problem solved . I really like the size of the number 9 flex torch and would like to figure out were the air is getting in ? --I've already changed all of the consumable parts on it . could it be the hose?

[performance]

If you've over flexed the torch, you could have a small crack in the neck.

[christian]

Yeah,

I used a #9 flex torch for a short time, years ago, but it did fail from a flexing crack pretty quickly, as I would often exceed its duty-cycle too.

A generic #9 torch head is cheap, so just try replacing it, if you want to use that lightweight torch.

I use a #17 flex torch almost exclusively now, but don't tend to flex it a whole bunch. So, it's a little heavier, with a better duty cycle, and holds up pretty well. Although I did smoke a #17 hose/cable, as I recall.

So, it could be the hose/cable, or the torch head. That's easy to rule out one way or the other.

And, if the hose/cable is still good, try getting a #9 and a #17 torch for it. The 17 will hold up better and still use the lighter hose than the #26 hose/cable.

I mean, Everlast now sells the Roto-type torch heads, which will undoubtedly hold up better than the flex ones, while also giving as good or better versatility. And I'll undoubtedly get around to getting a #17 Roto whenever I smoke another flex head.

[christian]

Well,

I was getting some stuff on Amazon, and noticed some generic rotating head TIG torches for a good price, so I just ordered one while I was there.

Everlast doesn?t seem to market their rotating TIG torches on Amazon, as I may have considered buying theirs on Amazon instead, since they price out about the same ($35), I think.

And, of course, CK Worldwide and Weldtec both have Rota-style TIG torches too, but tend to make you buy them with a whole cable assembly at around $150, just to start, or make you pay about $100 just for the torch in parts as the head and handle. Really, just try to buy a lone rotating head TIG torch from CK or Weldtec and see what you come up with, as I think they had the North American market cornered on that product, until Everlast broke out with their ROTA and NOVA stuff, plus this other generic stuff which may even come out of the same Asian factories that the CK and Weldtec stuff does.