OT: Re: SQUARE WAVE TIG

Lee-
Couple of tricks. First some Al (like 6061-T6511) are a real
bitch to weld. I had a much easier time welding 356 Cast Aluminum than I
did the 6061-T6511. The amount of heat that you have to get into the weld
is much more than steel. Also don't be afraid to turn up the wire feed and
the power a bit... you need the extra heat to get a good weld, and I
assume you are using Aluminum wire.

Yes the Square Wave Tig makes it far easier. I have one and that
is what I use. Great machine, but no where near as fast as my little MIG
unit. Get a bunch of scrap and practice, practice, practice.

Mark

> When I bought the MillerMatic 175 Mig unit, I was sucked in by
> the claim that it would also do aluminum well.So I got the argon
> shielding bottle/gas too.
>
> There must be some trick to it that I havn't figured out, as all I've
> done to date, is ruin tips and make 'ok' looking joints with no
> penetration, so when you hit it with a hammer, the weld pulls off
> like a bad glue job. I played with polarity and every setting I could
> control, no luck.
>
> I've got schematics for the square wave tig (from the manual), but
> it doesnt go into the SCR controller details, just the main xformer
> etc. Also, the SCR's and parts are not cheap.
>
> -Lee