Another great tip from Weldcraft®

For excellent arc starts on low-amperage AC or DC applications, use 2% ceriated tungsten (color code: orange) especially on carbon and stainless steels.

For consistent performance on all metals, and for all machines, Arc-Zone.com recommends our new ArcTime™ Hybrid All Purpose Tungsten:

Professional yacht tower fabricators, manufacturers of aerospace parts, and mountain bike builders have all selected ArcTime™ because of its excellent ignition properties, low burn off rate and longevity. As an added bonus, this hybrid tungsten electrode works well with all power sources and all metals from mild steel to titanium.

“You’ll notice a difference just by striking the first arc– no finer electrode exists anywhere,” says Jim Watson, aka Joe Welder, president of Arc-Zone.com, Inc.

Another great tip from Weldcraft®

Maintaining good electrical contact between your tungsten and collet helps improve current transfer and weld quality. Keep your TIG torch components tightened and check regularly for worn parts.

At Arc-Zone.com we offer a free, downloadable PDF on the correct way to grind tungsten in our Welding Library, but here’s some quick tips from the Weldcraft® catalog to get you started:

• Grind your tungsten electrode Longitudinally, not radially
• Prepare a tip flat
• Use a dedicated wheel for grinding tungsten

We also recommend a dedicated tungsten grinder for TIG / GTAW welding and Plasma Arc Welding (PAW) applications.  Arc-Zone carries a full line from the handy, inexpensive Sharpie(TM) hand-held tungsten sharpening tool to the more rugged, precise DGP with a fully integrated vacuum system.

When cleaning contaminated tungsten, do NOT break off the end of the tungsten.

Breaking tungsten can cause splinter fractures, resulting in erratic arc. Use a cutoff wheel or the edge of a grinding wheel.

At Arc-Zone we would add the recommendation that you use a dedicated diamond wheel for grinding to avoid contaminating your tungsten.

Download your free guide to Selecting Tungsten Electrodes (.pdf) and Grinding Tungsten Electrodes (.pdf) — available in the Arc-Zone Welding Library.

Another great tip from Weldcraft®

Optimize shield gas coverage by using an appropriate size gas lens. Gas lenses help minimize rework and allow for greater tungsten extension for increased access to confined joints.

And check out the Large Gas Saver Nozzles available at Arc-Zone.com . Pretty slick.

We’re glad someone noticed. It’s about time!

As you know I’ve been on the lookout for women welders to interview (more coming later this week) but in the meantime, I found out about this new line of women’s welding wear. Isn’t it amazing how sometimes things just all fall in line?

Out here in California we’d say something like “Must be Mercury is no longer in retrograde…”

Introducing AngelFire™ by the experts at Revco®

Santa Fe Springs, CA – Women are different… Revco noticed. That’s why Revco Industries has launched AngelFire, an innovative series of premium welding protection designed exclusively for women. Finally, women can break free from male attire and work more safely in clothes tailored to fit a woman’s body. No more clumsy gloves. No more oversized jackets. No more sparks down the collar.

AngelFire, launching under the recently released BSX line, features a warm chocolate brown color and smaller sizes to appeal directly to women. Revco predicts this fashionable line of welding products will invigorate enthusiasm among woman welders who, up until now, have been limited to wearing bulky jackets made to fit men.

“Women had no other choice at all. Being a TIG welder, you don’t even bother wearing a jacket because you’d rather be comfortable at work and ruin your own clothing than deal with a bulky man’s welding jacket. It’s a nightmare,” says Pamela Lesemann, a 15 year welder and welding instructor. But now there is the new AngelFire jacket. Lesemann raves, “I love it; I think it’s great. It’s soft, comfortable and it fits. Finally, something different.”

(more…)

I admit, until I started working here at Arc-Zone.com, I had a lot of preconceived notions about welding. I had no idea how prevalent WELDING is. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I just never thought about it, but you find welding everywhere.

I thought welding was a dirty job (like the photo on the left) and didn’t take much know how. I thought welding involved lots of sparks flying (as in MIG welding). I knew nothing about TIG Welding, or Plasma Arc Welding or orbital welding.

I soon found out welders are smart. They have to know something about metallurgy, electricity, and geometry, for example. In addition, finer processes like TIG welding require the kind of dexterity that comes with dedicated practice. And good welders make good money. (more…)

Don’t get me wrong, I think Miller– and all the ITW affiliates– do a great job getting out information about their products. They are always helpful and forthcoming with photos for publication, and some really great collateral. But this one gave me such a laugh I had to share it.

From the Miller Marketing team:

Dear Carmen,

I believe your readers will want to to know that Miller welder generators that use the patented Vault technology boast reliability ratings of greater than 98% according to information just released by the company. “Vault” technology hermetically seals the circuit board and is impenetrable to dust, dirt and moisture.

I’ve attached a high resolution photo of the Vault for your review. Please note that in the photo the Vault is functioning while submerged in a fish tank.

So, if you ever want to TIG weld in a fish tank. You’re good to go with a Miller!

READ THE OFFICIAL RELEASE–>

At Arc-Zone.com we frequently get inquiries from customers looking for other TIG torches, or want to know the difference between one brand versus another. They’ve seen a Weldtec torch, or heard about CK or their local welding supplier sells Best Welds. At Arc-Zone.com we sell Weldcraft TIG Torches.

Not all TIG / GTAW welding torches are created equally. One difference is in the quality raw materials used and the quality of the manufacturing process. I can’t think of a specific example with a tig torch, but I have seen, for example, a cheap gas lens that basically was not brazed and the screens were just stuffed in so the gas flow– well– didn’t. And then the thing fell apart.

Both Weldtec and CK are fine brands. I haven’t heard much about the Best Welds brand. It should be noted, however, that many of these TIG Torch brands call themselves “Weldcraft style.” Bottom line is that Weldcraft is an industry leader and innovator, known for quality products.

Weldcraft® is not the cheapest brand in the marketplace, but using the best engineered torches will get you the best performance from your TIG welder.

When it comes to cables and hoses, it’s not just rubber / braided versus vinyl. The tubing all looks the same, but if the insides are not constructed to spec, and are not taut on the inside (which is difficult to see from looking at the cable) you’ll not get good power flow and if the fittings are not constructed well the cable could in fact pull out.

We recommend the rubber mostly because vinyl is really just a fancy word for plastic, and heat and plastic is not a good combination.

There are a lot of options from Air-Cooled (great for TIG Welding in the field) or Water-Cooled (smaller, lighter and stays cool longer in your hand), from Micro-TIG (for small work) to Flexible Head TIG torches (for– well, flexibilty!) . If you need some help deciding, you can always call Arc-Zone. We have a toll free number 800.944.2243 (US) or call 760.931.1500. Ask for Jim Watson, he’s our TIG Torch expert.

You know, some times you just need to follow your instinct…  On a fairly regular basis we get an order for a remote amperage control for a Miller TIG welding machine.  And the customer has requested a 5 pin plug.  You see, Miller used to offer a 5 pin plug, but has now moved to a 14 pin plug.  The problem is that the 14 pin plug only has 5 “live” pins but sometimes has 14 pins installed and sometimes only 5 pins are installed.  Confused yet?  Makes my head spin!

 

 The 14 pin plug, regardless of how many pins are installed, is approximately 1 1/2″ in diameter. (see photo above)

It’s only the older machines that have the actual 5 pin plug.  That plug is shown above.

And of course whenever we get an order for a Remote Amperage Control with a 5 pin plug, we usually call and double check.  And when we don’t–  well we get a call from a customer who’s got the wrong one for their machine.

So, if you order one from Arc-Zone.com don’t be surprised if you get a call from Jim.   We like to make sure our customers get exactly what they need.