Choosing welding current for mild steel is mostly a matter of matching amperage to material thickness, welding process, joint design, and electrode or wire size. Too little current produces a…
Thin aluminum sheet heats quickly, spreads heat well, and can go from solid to a hole with very little warning. The correct TIG amperage is therefore a starting range, not…
Choosing shielding gas for aluminum MIG welding is less complicated than choosing settings for steel, but the gas still affects arc stability, penetration, cleaning action, weld appearance, and cost. Aluminum…
Shielding gas coverage is the difference between a clean TIG weld and one covered in pinholes, gray discoloration, sugaring, or brittle contamination. A flowmeter reading alone does not prove that…
Drag cutting is one of the easiest plasma-cutting techniques to learn, but the torch still matters. A drag torch lets the nozzle ride directly on the workpiece while you cut,…
A gas lens replaces the standard TIG torch collet body with a perforated diffuser. It straightens and spreads shielding gas as it leaves the torch, giving you a smoother gas…
Pulse frequency is one of the most useful TIG controls for thin stainless steel, but it is not a substitute for correct amperage, fit-up, shielding, or torch control. Used properly,…
Adding filler metal by hand is one of the small TIG skills that has a large effect on weld quality. The rod controls bead size, reinforcement, joint fit-up, and sometimes…
A crater is the small depression left when a weld pool freezes without enough filler metal to replace the metal that contracts as it cools. On a MIG weld, it…
When a stainless steel tube root turns black, rough, and full of pinholes, the problem is usually not the TIG torch. It is poor shielding on the inside of the…