I'm excited. Aluminum stick.

[tapwelder]

Pretty sure it is the machine, not the rod. My Esab will buy thr Hobart brand from TSC fine. Otherwise i have tried multiple brands on multiple machines with little consistent success.

Looks good.

[Continuum]

I'm guessing AC transformer would be a "no go"?

Correct - DCEP only to my knowledge.

[Continuum]

Thank you for testing the transformer machine. This gives me hope I can light this rod with more inductance.

[John T]

The cables on your machine should go inside those wire loops.

It prevents damage if you accidentally pull the cable...

.

[whtbaron]

Correct - DCEP only to my knowledge.

But it seems DC is just too easy for him... he needs a challenge.

[Rondo]

Aluminum stick is an odd duck. If you pre-heat to 500 and run the rods vertical you can get an ok looking weld. We always said to smoke the area with your acetylene and then turn on the oxygen and heat. When the black soot goes away that's 500 degrees. Anyway run it vertical to stop the usual aluminum arc blow and it turns out ok. If a person can't get what they need from the electrodes just use the rods as aluminum brazing rods. They work well for that too once you melt a few times you kinda figure it out. Good luck.

[FlyFishn]

Thank you for testing the transformer machine. This gives me hope I can light this rod with more inductance.

As you noted in your previous post - they need to be run on DC. That is what I had the Idealarc (transformer machine) set to also - DCEP.

If anything, I would think an inverter would be the harder machine to run a rod on, not the other way around. If you have an instance where you find a transformer more difficult I would be curious to hear what that is - what rod and what specific transformer machine?

The one thing that does hit me on potentially the "difficulty" with running on a transformer machine is there are a lot of them out there that use switched taps for the current adjustments (the classic buzz boxes - either the really old ones with the different taps for the leads, or ones like the AC225's that use a dial switch and the same lead connections). You can not fine tune the heat with those. If you look at the test welds I did in post 16 - the last 2 beads were approximately 5 amps apart. How are you going to tune that fine with changing a tap? You don't. Those machines aren't for light/fine welding work. Really, nor is the Idealarc - but it does have the fine adjustment in the amperage and will go low enough in current to run some pretty light rods (I've run 1/16" and 5/64" 7014 on it with good results - mostly 5/64" as it is easier to work - larger = bit stiffer than 1/16").

[FlyFishn]

The cables on your machine should go inside those wire loops.

It prevents damage if you accidentally pull the cable...

.

I've had others mention that in the past. The reason for that is I store the leads off the machine. So I don't take the time to weave them through the retaining loops. I know what they're there for but I don't mess with them. I am never welding far enough from the machine to worry about yanking the cables. I'm usually within about 5 feet of the machine and the shortest lead I think is 35ft (ground).

[leightrepairs]

If you constantly take the leads off the machine you might want to consider terminal connectors. They go on the studs and and are either camloc or dinse connectors, makes adding or removing the cables much easier and saves the studs from coming loose. See link for an example.

https://www.harrisweldingsupplies.co...erminal-08030/

[Kelvin]

Go get you some Crown Alloys Royal 300 rods and give em' a whirl.

If I ever need em, I'll remember that, but for now I'll "stick" with my Sync 250 for aluminum.

[12V71]

If you constantly take the leads off the machine you might want to consider terminal connectors. They go on the studs and and are either camloc or dinse connectors, makes adding or removing the cables much easier and saves the studs from coming loose. See link for an example.

https://www.harrisweldingsupplies.co...erminal-08030/

Saves the stud insulators too.

[Brand X]

Interesting.....would you say it was better or easier with the Inverter or the transformer?

A inverter with a Aluminum stick setting makes life easier.

[Welder Dave]

I think it's hard to compare an inverter with a transformer as far as open circuit volts and arc watts etc. An inverter by itself is operating at a higher frequency. I know an awesome Tig welder who had a Miller Dynasty 300 (he wore it out) and said he could set the machine parameters to use high frequency start only on aluminum and continue to weld when the HF stopped. Not that he would not use continuous HF 99% of time.

[SweetMK]

If you really want a treat, try welding aluminum with those rods,,
but, instead of using an electric power source, use an oxy-acetylene torch,

Use the same technique that you would use to weld steel with an oxy torch,,

My BIL owned, and rented 20 jon boats,, the customers ran them up on the beach, and it would constantly cause leaks.
The thin jon boats would easily weld with these electric arc welding electrodes.

This was back in the late 1970's, and my BIL had not welded before,,
he just followed a recommendation that he got at a local welding supply,, and it worked.

[FlyFishn]

If you really want a treat, try welding aluminum with those rods,,
but, instead of using an electric power source, use an oxy-acetylene torch,

Use the same technique that you would use to weld steel with an oxy torch,,

My BIL owned, and rented 20 jon boats,, the customers ran them up on the beach, and it would constantly cause leaks.
The thin jon boats would easily weld with these electric arc welding electrodes.

This was back in the late 1970's, and my BIL had not welded before,,
he just followed a recommendation that he got at a local welding supply,, and it worked.

I intend to try that technique - both on aluminum and steel. I do have O/A here, a tiny set of tanks but I do have it.

On a similar topic - I'm somewhat familiar with the "Texas Tig" method of using one rod for the arc/heat and some filler then using another rod to add in even more filler.

I'd be curious if the "Texas Tig" method could be done with a DC Tig torch and flux-coated electrodes as the filler. Though, I am pretty sure the difference with O/A is the flame is self-shielding already whereas an electric arc requires shielding gas - either the gas itself or that created when the flux is burned. In the case of the flux coated electrode with DC Tig - the flux is there to burn and create slag to shield. Any thoughts?

[E T]

Aluminium stick is fun.
AlSi12 3.2mm(1/8") electrode on 100A DC+ outside corner welds on 4mm sheet.
No preheat.

[FlyFishn]

Aluminium stick is fun.
AlSi12 3.2mm(1/8") electrode on 100A DC+ outside corner welds on 4mm sheet.
No preheat.

Those look like decent welds for stick. However, I am scratching my head on that one - does that rod produce a lot of slag and smoke? Or is it low slag? Reason I ask is I can't see the arc or puddle with the Royal 300's - too much smoke and slag. I am not sure how welding on a corner like that would work without better visibility. I suppose if you have your technique down and you really trust yourself then the control to do that without visibility might be possible, just difficult to pull it off.

[whtbaron]

If you really want a treat, try welding aluminum with those rods,,
but, instead of using an electric power source, use an oxy-acetylene torch,

Use the same technique that you would use to weld steel with an oxy torch,,

My BIL owned, and rented 20 jon boats,, the customers ran them up on the beach, and it would constantly cause leaks.
The thin jon boats would easily weld with these electric arc welding electrodes.

This was back in the late 1970's, and my BIL had not welded before,,
he just followed a recommendation that he got at a local welding supply,, and it worked.

I looked into that once before, but never got around to trying it. Isn't there a special flux paste you need for that process? It seems to me that to do it successfully you need a rod with similar characteristics (melting points) as the aluminum alloy you are repairing.

[Lis2323]

If you constantly take the leads off the machine you might want to consider terminal connectors. They go on the studs and and are either camloc or dinse connectors, makes adding or removing the cables much easier and saves the studs from coming loose. See link for an example.

https://www.harrisweldingsupplies.co...erminal-08030/

Saves the stud insulators too.

Twecos on mine.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[FlyFishn]

Twecos on mine.

Ya know... if you're going to post a picture of that beauty show us the whole thing. Not just the business end In all seriousness, though, I'd like to check it out. I'm assuming you did the restoration work/paint job? Looks really good from what I can tell on the bottom half. Is that the original cart or the one for the other model that was retrofitted? I forget what the other model was but there was another unit Lincoln had that people were able to source the carts from and several Round Tops made their way on to them.

[FlyFishn]

I recall emailing Crown on these rods (royal 300's). Looks like it was back last Fall. For some reason all I recall of what info I got out of them was they were suitable for "any weldable aluminum". Which the data sheet does say - but there is more useful info on there. Weld characteristics, tensile strength, and amperage per rod size are given. In any event, attached is the data sheet I dug up.

Edit - in the first section, "Typical Application" (middle of the section) - they even state that even though it was developed for arc welding, it works very well as a brazing rod for O/A also. Cool stuff.

[Welder Dave]

Aluminium stick is fun.
AlSi12 3.2mm(1/8") electrode on 100A DC+ outside corner welds on 4mm sheet.
No preheat.

Awesome!

[12V71]

I looked into that once before, but never got around to trying it. Isn't there a special flux paste you need for that process? It seems to me that to do it successfully you need a rod with similar characteristics (melting points) as the aluminum alloy you are repairing.

The flux on the rod is plenty for O/A work, I used to use those rods with a welding torch in the field for thin wall aluminum irrigation pipe repairs. At times it worked better than running them on a DC welder.

[E T]

Those look like decent welds for stick. However, I am scratching my head on that one - does that rod produce a lot of slag and smoke? Or is it low slag? Reason I ask is I can't see the arc or puddle with the Royal 300's - too much smoke and slag. I am not sure how welding on a corner like that would work without better visibility. I suppose if you have your technique down and you really trust yourself then the control to do that without visibility might be possible, just difficult to pull it off.

These rods have the normal thick violent swirling white salty slag that all aluminium stick electrodes have.
On the outside corners there is a bit of a v-groove and I just drag the rod in that groove and feed in very fast.

[Continuum]

Aluminium stick is fun.
AlSi12 3.2mm(1/8") electrode on 100A DC+ outside corner welds on 4mm sheet.
No preheat.

That’s a darn nice looking weld especially on AL. I doubt mine would look that clean on steel running downward.