Thanks AX!

 

Great information AX . . . thanks.

This process looks useful. Anybody know anything about it?

 

I bet it will be expensive if ever gets beyond the prototype. I do wish they would use it to teach basic MIG.

 

Thanks for the video Ax. Very informative. What does the spool gun do for aluminum? Just wondering why it is required.

The HDR video would be a great teaching tool. You can really see what happens during the weld process.

 

Aluminum is too soft to push all the way though the hose, so a hand-held spool gun is used. This way it only has to push a few inches.

Ernie

 

Ernie is correct, Pushing the soft pure aluminum filler wire all the way from the machine to the tip is like trying to push a rope up hill, it wants to snarl and ball up. If you are occasionally doing a small amount of non critical aluminum welding it can be done if care is taken to use a new dedicated contact tip, rigorously clean all parts of the drive mechanism to remove any steel and/or copper contaminants, keep the hose as straight as possible, and change the shielding gas to pure argon. The spool gun mounts the filler wire spool within a couple inches of and straight in line with the tip, and the spool gun should not be used with anything but aluminum wire to avoid contaminating the wire (and the weld).

 

Ax, are you ,or did you , do a a tech tread on tig welding ? And can you do one on welding aluminum ?

 

To paraphrase a couple well known quotes:
"I only know enough about TIG and welding aluminum to be dangerous...
If I told you all I know IT would kill you!"

Those subjects are outside my expertise, so I'll leave them alone, Sorry.

 

I see Master , it is the preheating knowledge I seek! I ll try to better my skills as you tech o wise one. Until then I thank you for your help.

 

I don't know of anyone preheating aluminum before TIG welding it. The hot metal would be prone to oxidizing faster which would contaminate the weld. When welding aluminum cleanliness is all that! The joint should be thoroughly scrubbed with a dedicated stainless steel wire brush just before welding. I know some mission critical aluminum welds are heat treated (normalized) after welding to relieve stress, but that's not needed in average aluminum welding. I have welded aliminum with an oxy/acet torch many times using a special aluminum flux.

 

Bump. Too much good info in this thread...

 

Ax the thread about "they died with there boots on" got my wife and I thinking about wielding fumes ? I have been deep at work welding away and stop and look around the shop-and the shop has a thick haze of black smoke" my question to you is this smoke/ haze full of carbon monoxide?

 

I am sure Ax will know for sure but I do know that you can cause problems with your lungs without any ventilation. A good friend of mine got Pleurisy and was a welder. Here is a link that may tell you more than you want to know: Illness caused by welding fume and gases

 

I am an engineer at a sizable welding shop. I can tell you that we have heat exchanger air turnover systems to keep fresh air in the building at all times. For the amount that I weld at home doing body work etc, I don't worry much about it. If you are getting black smoke, either you are really going to town or there may be contaminants on the surfaces you are welding. Never clean with brake clean. And if you are welding galvanized material, you REALLY need to make sure you are ventilating. Even if you can't ventilate properly, and a respirator is not possible, a particulate mask is never a bad idea, although not all that practical under most welding helmets. The grinding dust can be every bit as harmful as that welding smoke.

 

I agree with Wolfracing. MIG welding itself does not produce toxic fumes, maybe some ozone and increase in argon content in the air, but unless you are welding in a sealed closet, those should not be an issue. The real problems come from welding contaminated used materials, oily, painted, dirty, rusty, coated metals. If there are fumes and smoke being produced clean the metals before welding them. Welding galvanized metals should always be avoided if at all possible. The zinc coating has a low vaporization temperature, and inhaled zinc fumes are very dangerous, producing a heavy metal poisoning condition known as "zinc shakes" with flu like symptoms and tremors at fairly low exposure. The vaporized zinc produces a dense white smoke and often leaves a whitish or yellowish powdery residue along the edge of the heat affected zone. If you really must weld galvanized steel grind back all the zinc coating for a couple inches from the weld (be sure to wear a good particulate mask and skin covering when grinding, the zinc dust is almost as much a health risk as the fumes, but a little easier to avoid (particulate masks and even vapor masks are a lot less expensive than most imagine and are available at the big box DIY stores).
Some galvanized coatings are smooth and nearly shiny and so may be hard to recognize, electrical conduit and chain link fence posts are common examples of this type galvanizing. Modern car sheetmetal is another.
Always wash up thoroughly and/or shower after welding and/or grinding and change clothes before eating, drinking or coming into physical contact with others, especially children. Lightly ventilate the work area, but avoid creating a draft or breeze directly on the weld so you do not disturb the shielding gas "bubble".