Harbor Frieght Tig welder

i've been there!.....BUY MILLER OR LINCOLN or another name brand - NOT HF

 

I assume you're talking about the gas cups when you say ceramics. You really need a couple different diameters at the minimum. Something around 3/8 is good for getting into a tight place but you need something larger to provide better shielding when running a bead that's not up in a corner. Think I use a 5/8 on mine for that sort of work. There are some more expensive cups, alumina maybe instead of ceramic, that are supposed to be more durable. I can't say as I've never tried them and generally try not to use my tig torch as a hammer anyway My torch is a Weldcraft and I bought a couple boxes of ceramic cups when I bought it maybe 20 yrs ago, and still have probably half the cups still in their boxes.

Something to avoid when learning to tig weld is having the tungsten sticking out too far. Too far out and the tungsten runs too hot and doesn't get shielded properly by the argon. There's rules of thumb for stickout based on cup diameter and tungsten diameter, but I can never remember stuff like that without looking it up since I don't tig every day.

Most of the equipment mfgrs should have some free or low cost pamphlets or books, or possibly online info, explaining the basics of tig. Some things aren't necessarily obvious, like grinding the point on tungsten lengthwise and not round 'n round. Doesn't look like it'd make any difference, but lengthwise makes a proper arc while round 'n round will make the arc walk all over the place instead of staying focused.

Above all else, tig welding likes clean metal. Its real satisfying to run a nice row of dimes, but it does take more prep work than any other welding process, by a long shot.

Back to the original topic.... I've tried one of the little HF tigs and liked it well enough that I'll probably buy one next time I see them on sale and happen to have one of the 20% coupons. Anyone who gripes about the fact that it doesn't do to well on 3/16 and up material needs to get a refresher course on basic tig welding currents. Rule of thumb for DC tig on steel or stainless is 1 amp per .001" of metal thickness. The max you could expect to weld with the HF rig in a single pass would be 11 gage, so it ain't real surprising that it doesn't want to single pass 3/16 stuff. If I set my 350 amp Airco at 100 amps, it won't do it either.

I want the HF rig for stuff 16ga and lighter. That's what I tried it on and I like the arc characteristics better than that of my Airco at low currents. I assume the fact that the HF is an inverter makes that difference. The lift arc start works pretty good too, and its not like the typical scratch start you'd have with a straight DC welder with added tig torch, so it doesn't contaminate the tungsten like scratch start does. Most of the light gage tig work I do really doesn't require any variation of current via the footpedal, but I end up using it anyway to control the hi freq start and gas/water valves. The lift start gets rid of the need for hi freq start, and takes care of starting the gas flow, so I can leave the footpedal dance off and concentrate on my half-assed welding

 

go to Everlast they have a good unite with tech people that will work with you
http://www.everlastgenerators.com/forums/

http://www.everlastgenerators.com/
mine was drooped during shipping they went out of there way to get it right

they have helped me get the drooped unite working temp. till the updated unite comes in and is sending more consumables for the unconvinced

 

Metalmuncher, that is a great post. Informative and thoughtful. Too bad a lot of guys can't get past their own prejudices long enough to read all of the original post.

Bill

 

My welding instructor claims that how you grind the tungsten doesn't make any difference, but the last week or so I've tried grinding it straight-on and it DOES make a difference, for me at least. Your mileage may vary.

I picked up the Richard Finch "Welder's Handbook" from HP Books. Had it for a while but it didn't do me much good until my skills caught up to where I could understand what all the jargon meant.

I'll take metlmnchr's advice on gas cups and tungsten stickout and see how that goes.

 

chuck it in a drill , turn on the bench grinder ..now sharpen that sucker to a point. This will give you the small weld that looks so good. If you are welding aluminum you and go to straight polarity and "ball" the end, when welding aluminum it'll ball it self. as far as "stick out" I like about half an inch...that way I can see the puddle better.

 

Dad, that is one of the billion reason I love you!

 

it's the plastic wire feed liner! when it gets hot they spit.swap it out for one from a miller and then they work.

 

Or get a Miller off Craigslist for the same price. Miller 130 on there today for $300.

 

I found this to convert it to a foot control.
http://auctions.findtarget.com/detail_product/370280641590/harbor_freight_welder/

 

your instructor like a good many instructors out there (but not all) should not be teaching.I have had first hand experience of repairing an 'instructors' restoration work.

my weekly metal work blog www.themetalsurgeon.com

 

Bought one (TD95 amp) for a fill in machine, worked fine for what it was...also had the fanciest one they make, forget the number, 220&110, it was a quality unit as well...Replaced both with Miller units because I feel better using American stuff. Wouldn't even consider actual Chinese stuff, especially to work on a traditional Hotrod.

 

No experience with the HF welders but I can tell you from experience if the tig from Eastwood is as good as the mig it will be a great value.