Parweld XTT 202P TIG welder.

[Retired]

Hi,

Thanks for asking and my reply is blunt but to the point; don't even consider buying a TIG welder it will end in tears if you've never done any welding.

I've been arc (stick) welding for around 60 years and still have an industrial 180A Oxford oil cooled arc welder which covers my needs; arc welding is excellent on the thicker metal say from 1/8" upwards but thinner metal is difficult for a novice although with practice can soon be learnt and a 140A arc welder even brand new costs a fraction of a new TIG welder.

I've never used a MIG welder but these appear excellent and I don't think will be too hard to learn to use; it depends on what you want to weld though; if it's steel then Arc or Mig but for aluminium you'll need to spend a lot of money getting set up with TIG welding which is very expensive indeed; TIG NEEDS AC; the pure argon gas needed will bring tears to your wallet; after using three hobby sized cylinders of pure argon I soon opened a BOC account and even then I wouldn't call it cheap at all for gas. There are many kinds of tungstens; aluminium welding rods need to be bought and if you try to use a TIG welder with an ordinary arc welding automatic helmet you'll think you are blind not seeing a thing; I think my TIG welding helmet cost around £400. In all outlay I think was £1,600 but a lump of this returned when I sold the TIG welder but it was still a very expensive hobby to play around with.

I don't want to put you off if you are keen to learn to weld aluminium but it's a ballistic learning curve but the only real option for aluminium; welding steel is a great deal easier and can be done at very low cost; buying a second hand arc welder won't cost much and not be much of a risk if you ask to see it demonstrated but I wouldn't recommend buying a second hand TIG welder; if it dies on you it's going to be very costly to repair even if it can be repaired; it might end up as scrap.

I think MIG can be gas or gasless?

Please be very careful before spending your money; decide what your needs are first; during my liftime I've never needed to weld aluminium; I like new challenges so decided to learn but now I can TIG weld I've no use for such expensive kit.

Good luck and please update with your progress.

Kind regards, Colin.

 

[designinsidepk]

Hi,

Thanks for asking and my reply is blunt but to the point; don't even consider buying a TIG welder it will end in tears if you've never done any welding.

I've been arc (stick) welding for around 60 years and still have an industrial 180A Oxford oil cooled arc welder which covers my needs; arc welding is excellent on the thicker metal say from 1/8" upwards but thinner metal is difficult for a novice although with practice can soon be learnt and a 140A arc welder even brand new costs a fraction of a new TIG welder.

I've never used a MIG welder but these appear excellent and I don't think will be too hard to learn to use; it depends on what you want to weld though; if it's steel then Arc or Mig but for aluminium you'll need to spend a lot of money getting set up with TIG welding which is very expensive indeed; TIG NEEDS AC; the pure argon gas needed will bring tears to your wallet; after using three hobby sized cylinders of pure argon I soon opened a BOC account and even then I wouldn't call it cheap at all for gas. There are many kinds of tungstens; aluminium welding rods need to be bought and if you try to use a TIG welder with an ordinary arc welding automatic helmet you'll think you are blind not seeing a thing; I think my TIG welding helmet cost around £400. In all outlay I think was £1,600 but a lump of this returned when I sold the TIG welder but it was still a very expensive hobby to play around with.

I don't want to put you off if you are keen to learn to weld aluminium but it's a ballistic learning curve but the only real option for aluminium; welding steel is a great deal easier and can be done at very low cost; buying a second hand arc welder won't cost much and not be much of a risk if you ask to see it demonstrated but I wouldn't recommend buying a second hand TIG welder; if it dies on you it's going to be very costly to repair even if it can be repaired; it might end up as scrap.

I think MIG can be gas or gasless?

Please be very careful before spending your money; decide what your needs are first; during my liftime I've never needed to weld aluminium; I like new challenges so decided to learn but now I can TIG weld I've no use for such expensive kit.

Good luck and please update with your progress.

Kind regards, Colin.

Started from the bottom and now you're a pro i am also kind of starting tig welding what do you say what parameters should i take or what are the main things to have a focus on to not to make any big mistakes?

 

[Retired]

Hi,

Sorry for the late reply I've been busy felling and logging a big oak tree so I'm rather tired out.

If you're serious about learning to Tig weld then forget about the hobby sized pure argon cylinders you'll go through these at a very quick pace and they aren't cheap. Here in the UK we have BOC; you can find pure argon suppliers and open an account.

https://www.boconline.co.uk/shop/en/uk/pureshield-argon-cylinder-industrial-grade-compressed-gas

You'll need a suitable grinder to sharpen the tungsten's;

A normal arc welding helmet will be useless for Tig welding you'll not see the tip hence you'll forever be dipping and sharpening.

Wear safety kit at all times; I've seen guys on YouTube with bare arms etc; this is OK if you aren't bothered about skin cancer.

I think my welding helmet cost around £400 but what a revelation once I could see what I was doing.

You'll need tungsten's and filler rod.

To practice you'll need to be comfortable so a steel bench with seat would be a huge help.

If you want to weld aluminium then you'll need a lot and the aluminium can be bought in sheets from a metal supplier but shop around.

Don't try to weld thin aluminium go for something like 3mm thick; even at this thickness it's difficult.

Safety is paramount so don't weld near containers of flammable liquids etc.

Don't try to carry on welding if you've dipped the tungsten it's a waste of time expect to spend a lot of time sharpening tungsten's.

You'll need an AC Tig welder for aluminium and these aren't cheap in fact whatever you do won't be cheap.

Do not use an old wire brush for prepping the aluminium use a new brush and only use it for Tig welding; Cleanliness is important.

It's now 9:30pm and I'm tired out; good luck and never give up; lots of patience and wasted aluminium you'll win in the end.

Kind regards, Colin.