SlowChild3
15+ Year Contributor
- 545
- 9
- Aug 19, 2005
-
Dayton,
Ohio
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Simple unavoidable fact and or physics of welding stainless steel is that if you get it to a molten state (i.e. fully penetrate the wall thickness during a weld) then the back side which exosed to oxygen will "grow" and "sugar up" as we call it, it kinda grows into porous grey/black pile of non stainless and brittle crap, I just made a down pipe welding video to put up when i edit some of it (just showed using solar flux instead of back purging to be exact)
But i will grab a piece of trash stainless and cover one half the inside with flux and leave the other bare, weld it all the same and show you the difference later on today, once you see it you'll never feel right about not back purging, at least for a customer i wouldn't knowing i am delivering an inferior weld..
There's "tips and tricks" to welding better or easier, then there's some things that are just "fact" and or "must haves" to do a PROPER weld, and back purging or fluxing SS is one of them, you'd never pass any kind of certification on a SS weld of anything you can fully penetrate without some how keeping oxygen out of the back of the weld... hell or else you could turn the argon off and weld stainless ifg back gas wasn't needed
I know the psychics of welding stainless so a lecture is not needed. I simply stated that i don't see the need to back purge a o2 housing or an exhaust for that matter. I have done more exhaust systems then you have and have never had one come back cause of an ' Inferior" weld. Were not talking about medical grade gas chambers that need to be x-rayed were talking about a exhaust plain and simple.
I know the psychics of welding stainless so a lecture is not needed. I simply stated that i don't see the need to back purge a o2 housing or an exhaust for that matter. I have done more exhaust systems then you have and have never had one come back cause of an ' Inferior" weld. Were not talking about medical grade gas chambers that need to be x-rayed were talking about a exhaust plain and simple.
From a business standpoint you can not charge the same amount of money for a piece that has been back purged and one that hasn't. If you even wanted to back purge and not by another bottle and use your existing bottle your going to be spending close to 100 more for a dual outlet regulator. It's not about getting by it's about what your stating as fact. I never said back purging was bad simply that it is not needed in this case.
I doubt that's a cold weld, any coloration past "hey" or gold means you're actually too hot and there's early exposure to oxygen, You can weld 16 gauge SS pipe with only about 65 amps (less when it's heated up by the middle/end of the weld passes) That weld to me doesn't look cold and i'm down to bet there's full penetration, what makes that weld "look cold" to some is that there's filler used in regular dippings on that unlike most stainless which is done in an "autogenous" fashion where only enough filler is added to start the bond and or to prevent undercuttin the material. I've been certified on a few jobs for stainless work and i've also passed aircraft certification (one of the FEW taht lasts past a single job) but those were on aluminum (non cast) and chro-moly 4130 and 4140 using an ER70s-6 and Er80 fillers ( using 41xx chro-mo filler on aircraft or race car chassis is a ticket to catastrophe)
I'm not ripping into you I just want to know what makes youthink it's a cold weld
Ive been hearing alot about solarflux B but havent been able to find it here in town for some damn reason. i would never fuse 16gauge, alot do but i dont because of what i see done a the plant i work at and they always break, and not backpurging stainless pipe theyll get really pissy about. Everyone has there own way of doing thing and i gotta say im glad i just do it even though it is not neccessary, its a good habit in my opinion for having a high quality weld. We had someone fall through a catwalk not that long ago because whoever welded it only fused and never used filer. They were already blaming me for the prject but i know my welds ad how i do them, andthe worst part was they were trying to fire me over that when i never layed one hand or weld on that project. Just my word of advce dont fuse where weight is going t be put on top. Nice projects by the way everyone i never have time to get started on my dang tubulars and my pipes and flanges are just sitting there.
Code4, that's some beautiful work, is that 316 rod? I never was that good at walking the cup, i did a pipe cert test a few times on some union things i tried but as soon as I was good en ough they tried shipping me to vegas for work for 6=9 months and i had a woman, dogs and was trying to start a family. So I guess for the better choice or howevere you look at it i left the localo pipe fitters and wentback to paitning (i never got that good at stick welding either and that and walking the cup are things i regret not getting good enough at and know that if i went to vegas i would have been awesome at it by the time i got back.
Just in most of the stuff i do there's no groove or i'm not on a 90* long enough to have a good "walk"
Any tips you care to share on that/? Another problem i have anymore is the nervous system damage i'm suffering from the porphyria (genetic condition condition i have that's slowly crippling me) that stuff has me whrere sometimes now days i can't keep the tungsten out of thew puddle without my meds to keep my hands some what steady, plus I get in so much pain now days when i sitr at the welding table and work that if i didn't enjoy metal so much i wouldn't even do it for the money at my highest doller per hour rate.
Thats a hella uniform weld man, how long have you been welding tig code4?