Tungsten Electrodes Review
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- Опубликовано: 7 фев 2025
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So I tested some Tungsten Electrodes...2% thoriated, 2% ceriated, 1.5% lanthanated, 2% lanthanated, LayZr tri mix, and E3 electrodes.
All of them worked fine on DC but on AC there were some better than others.
I like 2% lanthanated electrodes because they work fine on both inverters and transformer style tig welders and because they handle more amps than the rest which means sometimes I can use one size smaller electrode
which tungsten would you recommend for all around.
+1 on the 2% La blue. I've since switched over completely for DC/AC after watching Jody's videos and trying a few.
I know what you mean about a few LWS having no idea 2% La even exists :/
It was nice to see that CK started offering their 3 packs in 1/8" also in 2% La. I don't go through the big tungstens that often so 3 vs 10 is an awesome option to have :)
weldingtipsandtricks what benefit would you find in using a smaller electrode, say a 1/16 instead of a 5/64?
I just took delivery of my new tig machine today, it came with 1 thoriated electrode 1.6 (1/16)... happy to find this video, such valuable info and helped me with my research into electrode types. ty. I'll be buying some 2% lanth' now instead of more thoriated, but I'm unsure of what size to get.I plan on welding 1" 1/8th DOM steel tube 1/8th wall, what size electrode would you recommend? I think a sub is in order.
What or who is CK?
I vote 2% Lanthanated as well. They seem to be the best on aluminum, especially thin aluminum
Thanks Jody, I am a hobby welder in the UK, I didn't realize that the sharp tip on the electrode would burn back to a ball from a point....after 2 minutes I thought I had touched down and burn the point off so I would resharpen and start again!
Great vid.
thanks for performing this test. this will go a long way towards me becoming a gunsmith now. i've mainly use 2% thoriated in working on tanker trailers back in the late 80's early 90's wile welding aluminum and stainless.
Just got my first TIG machine (Lincoln TIG175 ) now going back and watching TIG related videos . Thank you for all the info Jody
I vote 2% Lanthanated as well. They seem to be the best on aluminum, especially thin aluminum
Appreciate you sharing your experience. I rely on your knowledge and willingness to teach often. Thank you.
The diamond wheel is a good idea. I have a dedicated wheel on my bench grinder, but it takes a spot on the bench grinder that seems unnecessary if you use a diamond wheel. The one thing I don't like about it is the fact your hands are full, but I guess you could put it in a bench vice.
LOVE your TUNGSTEN tests they r the best...........I hope you do another one soon but add pure tungsten and zirconiated in the mix....plus your should do 200 amps with say 5 starts each on AC and DC plus.....run a bead or 2 after the starts and see the results.....I like E3 and 2 % Lanthanated
I use the 2 percent lanthanated they work really well as you have said in the past. Yes, they are hard to find I had to order mine. The old school 2% thoriated looks like it fared well too.
2% ceriated seems to be what the euro welding manufacturers are recomending, and one was supplied with my EWM tig, as shown in your video there is little difference between the ceriated and 2%lanth.
I have a couple of packets of different size 2% lanth as per your recomendation and I'm happy with them.
Those diamond wheels are still available at HF ! That PN is still valid as well. 11/2020
thanks Jody been looking for videos of the e3 on a.c. inverter all morning this one is by far the best video, guess I'll be buying 2% lanthenated, thanks man
You forgot about the good old pure tungsten with the green end. I was always told you could use pretty much anything for DC except pure tungsten, but for AC the opposite is true. I use ceriated for most DC work, with the exception of some 2% thoriated I still have laying around, and for AC I switch out to pure tungsten. It does ball up quite a bit (especially when my stuporvisor messes with the AC balance), but it's still workable.
+Cheezy Dee u cant use pure on a inverter duhh
@@dansalibi7466 yes you can, you just shouldnt
Another great video Jody!
Have you considered doing a video on comparing different mig wires? comparing Metal core, flux core, dual shield and plain copper coated mig wire showing advantages and disadvantages to each? I recently finished a job at a truck trailer manufacturer in australia using nothing but metal cored wire was really impressed with it.
great video we use 2%zirconiated tungston for aluminium what is your take on that one i find on lots of start ups they tend to want to get dags on the end of the tungston and if you weld a little to hot for the size of the electrode they seem to crack length ways but if you sharpen the tungston and ball it up a little and do some continious welds they stay fairly stable and i have learnt that the post flow when welding ally is important to help keep the tungston from degrading
Jody,
I've watched many of your videos and they are all awesome. Thank you for doing this!
2% lanthanated is my all around favorite electrode. Great video Jody. Thanks! Fred
Haha I totally agree with Jody, whenever you go to the welding supply store and ask for the 2% lanthanated they're always clueless, yet try to sell you green or 1.5% lanthanated tungstens
What’s the double bloom from that I see? I have a welder that does this and at first I thought I cooked my touch so I put a new one on it, still have the same problem. I’ve tried a new tank too. It looks like contamination but I know it’s not. I can’t even dip the filler rod as it balls up before I get to the puddle. My other tig doesn’t have this problem. It appeared one day after doing some welding. Thoughts?
i am also a fan of 2% lanthanated. I have a pack in every size. Great video, thanks!
Why no zirconied ?
I love them for AC . they handle way more current
With out the ball dancing around
I think 2% thoriated make a good all around electrode
Can you zirconied next time please......
I like really your videos 👍
Thank you
Do a test with low amperage and light filler rod like .020 420 , have you ever used a gass lens and are they worth it
Have you tried diamond grounds 4% thoriated or the cryo t pink tungsten pretty sure the trimix is just like the layzr and e3 all have the same 3 mixed tungsten elements
Jody
Have you found a tungsten that rejects filler material
I seem to have a affinity to transfer filler material to the tungsten and I seem to be REAL good at it
thx
art
Try jamming your filler in the torch instead of tungsten. Cut out the middleman!
hypnolobster
Would love to see the chicken shit puddle that will be produced. LOL
georgenabulele That use to be a prank everyone would play on each at a place I used to work at. People would take a length of 308 or 309 filler and sharpen it and put it in someone else's torch when they weren't paying attention.
I've been retired for 4 years now and cant remember which one is a radioactive risk I remember we had a wet stone to sharpen
I am going to assume that you are talking about just with the GTAW process. This doesn't apply with all welding processes that use tungstens.
It's been 10 years, make a video on this, how many types of tungsten do I think there are, 13, 14, tell which is best for aluminium Please
Jody that was very informative, thank you for that test. Was interesting.
I've got a suggestion. Since AC current will give more energy to the tungsten point than DC current does... are you sharping tips in DC (30-45º) with the same shape than you would with AC? If you shape on AC with 90º degrees your experience could be different.... When welding with AC, the ceriated tungsten melts in a very simetric way, which means that with a 90º degree tip your arc will be more stable. According to my personal experience, ceriated tungsten with 90º shaped tip is the best option on AC. Greetings fron Spain!!!
Newer welder here... Can you explain the A/C vs. D/C on a welder, when to use either and the differences?
A/C aluminum
D/C is everything else.
For TIG
I tried 2% lanthanated tungsten on the Lincoln Tig 200.. 3/32" and the results weren't that good.. E3 seemed to work better on the high end.. not sure why?
where do you buy or how to make a welding lathe?
I rarely weld over 100 amps. Most of my welding is 16 guage or thinner aluminum. Does lanthanated have a more stable arc at low amps than ceriated?
I would say they are very similar except at max amperage. So if you rarely use more than 100 amps ceriated is just fine
Thanks
why on a/c you aren't doing pure?
Have you tried the "Pink" electrode ?
how can you avoid getting that bubbly aluminum? (4:50)
He is long-arcing on purpose here. best way to keep the aluminum clean is have the settings right and keep a tight arc
I prefer Lanth on DC, Zirc on AC. I also use Thor on DC with great success.
haha... "thats uuh.. thats too much work!" awesome.. thx for taking the time to make this
Jody (love your vids)... Often I screen shot the "ah-ha" moment. You often capture this moment verbally but don't put the tech specs in written text on the screen (so I can screenshot and use later!). Write out the goods man! (And keep up the great work)
Ok...since I've posted...question for you...I recently started using a 1/8 tungsten on 0.188 aluminum. Super stable arc at 200amps. I typically use smaller diameter tungsten on CS and SS at lower amperage. So...my question...what is the downside of using TOO LARGE a tungsten at lower currents? (Apologies if you've already addressed this... I searched "too large tungsten" and found nothing special)
Thanks, Jody.
I bought 2% lanthanated 2mm diameter from aliexpress, I think those might be fakes or something, because as I tried welding aluminum they totally grown those stupid nodules at 120A roughly 65% cleaning, have anyone ever bought anything there? what do you think?
Your experimnet is invalid because the surface material you are testing the rods on has a different surface shape and chemical differences every time you do one part of the experimnet. To make this valid, you need to move the test plate for a similar surface at the start of each test.
What about pure tungsten ?
Not recommended on the new inverter machines.
Nice testing but euhm you forgot WR (turkoise)
it help a lot
Thanks for this video.
Like the blu shirt!
Nice one keep it up
Sorry 0.8% zirconiated electrode run a 2.4mm @ 130 amps ac @ 125hz on an air cooled torch all day long (50% balance)
nice 1, thanks Jody
4:31 Well, now we know that the 1.5% Lanthanated is male....you can see it's steel balls!
I rarely weld over 100 amps. Most of my welding is 16 guage or thinner aluminum. Does lanthanated have a more stable arc at low amps than ceriated?