It's all about heat control and penetration.
Too much heat and you will warp the material and create a very large heat affected zone(the area around the weld nugget). Too little heat and your joint strength will be weak from insufficient penetration.
Place a little more emphasis on your penetration in the beginning. After you get a real good feel for proper penetration focus on heat control to minimize the heat affected zone.
Always practice on aluminum.
So, this is what works for me. Techniques vary so find what works for you and stick with it.
First and foremost, make sure the metal is extremely clean. Get wire brushs and do not use them for anything other than prepping the aluminum or steel parts prior to welding. Do not use them to clead off crud. Clean the parts, then wire brush. Only use the aluminum brush on aluminum and the steel brush on steel.
Find a very comfortable position. If your uncomfortable it will make learning much harder. Position the part so that you are comfortable moving the torch across it, but don't expect to make long welds without having to reposition to get comfortable again.
Now, make a small puddle. Increase your heat a little so that the diameter of the puddle expands slightly. Dip your filler rod directly into the puddle. The puddle temperature will drop causing the puddle diameter to decrease slightly. Allow the puddle size to increase back to the size it was before you added filler rod. Move forward a little, repeat.
Breath , relax and focus. Good welding is alot like shooting a rifle or pistol. Steady hands, proper breathing, comfortable body and part positioning and patience will make all the difference in the world.
Find a comfortable pace and stick with it.
Take care not to boil the metal. At this time use a little more filler rod than what is actually required. Don't dip more often, feed a little more rod into the puddle on each dip. It will help keep the puddle slightly cooler. This will reduce your penetration slightly so account for it by holding you position slightly longer after the dip.
Again, make sure you dip into the puddle. Do not let the arc melt the filler rod.
I've never used a crescent movement with a tig. Only a mig. Try it, if it works for you, use it.
At this time don't expect to have complete penetration on parts that are butted together. If you want complete penetration notch the parts so they form a V shaped crevice along the joint line.
Do you like the welder? My buddy has a 180. It's nice. I primarily used a 250, saving up for a new one right now. A water cooled torch is a very good investment if you plan on doing alot of welding.
Post some more pics after you get more pratice.
Chris S
Even the basics will be greatly appreciated. Torch angle and distance, where do you prefer to put the tip of the filler rod in relation to the puddle, machine settings, electrode protrusion from the torch, gas flow rate, ect, ect, ect. Here's a few pics of my first attempts. Thanks.
