Fabricating an Aluminum TIG rod rack
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- In this one, we have another shop mod project. we fabricate a TIG rod rack to hold all of the TIG rod in the shop. We Use 1/8" aluminum diamond plate to fabricate the rack, and we use TIG to stitch weld it together. This was all due to an issue I've been having with my Aluminum TIG. Hope you guys enjoy!
#weld #welder #welding #weldshop #fabrication #fabshop #tigwelder #tigwelding #aluminum #shoplife #tigrod #freedom #smallbusiness
I hate it when frustration hits its boiling point, thanks for sharing. I hope the ol' Miller is allrite. Nice work.
Lol. She’s ok, I just had to replace the cup and the back cap. Good as new. Thanks for watching!
I'm surprised you haven't noticed your tools and other steel sweating from the natural gas fumes.
Oh I’ve noticed it. It just hit me one day that it might be an issue with my tig rod, which actually was not the issue. I figured it out. Stay tuned. I’ll be talking about it in the next video. Thanks for watching!
I’m new to tig welding and learning to dc tig at the moment and ran into the same issue. Thank you for doing the video and I will be sure to change my tig rod storage.
Good to know about bakers gas... Ive been eye balling a plasma torch on their website for a hot min.... Cool shop furniture project.
Purchased some Blue Demon 4043 recently. It is the dirtiest rod I have used. I always clean rods with acetone prior to use and it is loaded with black oxidation. The Vulcan rod and Radnor are much clearer out of the tube with very little black oxidation.
I appreciate the info. I may have to try another brand and see if I get the same outcome. Thanks for watching!
Nice build. Looks clean and serves a purpose. Cheers.
Thanks! 👍🏻
Had the same problem..i got a small dehumidifier and that thing pulls moisture out of my workshop like crazy i have to empty it twice a day..i live in the sub tropics in Australia and we get over a meter of rain a year and that little beast solved my problem for $45..
I may have to get me one. Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
Shop projects and upgrades just keep paying dividends. Great vid!
Thanks brother!
Those containers work great I have my sitting outside in the cold in the back of my truck an I never have a issue with the rods
Good to know. I suspect being air tight, it will solve my issue. Thanks for watching!
Nice and simple i like it
Thanks man, Anything that makes the shop more organized, I’m all for it.
That's weird that even after cleaning everything it was still a problem. Could be a bad batch of rods? Regardless, the new storage solution not only stores the rods better, looks a heap better, too.
There have been more details arise on the issue. Stay tuned. I agree the rack looks much better, and much more organized. Thanks for watching!
Morning man! With editing and all I don't know your full process, but I don't think I've seen you clean your rod before. Just before welding, I usually pull my rod through a tightly pinched piece of scotch brite and finally through a blue towel with acetone on it. It makes a world of difference. Currently my rod sits in boxes on a shelf, I've been meaning to pickup tubes like you have, but it just hasn't become a priority yet. lol Good luck!
I actually did clean the rod before welding. You can see the can of acetone on the table in parts of the video. Didn’t change anything. I don’t blame you. Mine didn’t become a priority till it wouldn’t weld anymore. Appreciate the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
I would try putting the old Tig rod in an oven for a bit before I would scrap it.Even if you have to cut them in half.Aluminum loves to soak up moisture.Anyways great video as always.
Might be worth a try. Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
I am sure by now you have dumped the tig rod but if not, have you tried hitting it with a propane torch or some way to heat it up and remove moister? I know it works on stick rods but if the tig rod is holding only a little and it can be "cooked" out and then wiped clean at least that is $50-80 or more of rod you don't have to waste.
I haven’t thrown it away yet. I wanted to be sure that was the issue before I did. Funny thing is that wasn’t the issue. I figured out the real problem today. Stay tuned. I’ll be talking about it in the next video. Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
You should be able to tell if moisture is a problem if you have steel tig rod stored under that window also because it would be rusting. If you watched that video with Chris Razor he said only uses certified gas. He said its worth the extra money.
I guess I’m a little ignorant, but what is “certified gas” ?
It is a high-quality gas that the gas company gives you certification papers guaranteeing what is in the bottle is pure. And they charge more for it. Most aerospace and transportation manufacturers require papers for the gas they use in the manufacturing or repairs of structural parts. Next time you go to get gas, ask your supplier about it.
@@RG-gn1ln I’ll ask about it. Thank you for the suggestion.
A lot of times, gas companies will change a bottle that had Argon/ Co2 in it straight Argon, leaving the contaminants in it.
@@RG-gn1ln well whatever was in that one was bad news!
No red, white and blue containers? lol Looks good.
I tried, they didn’t have any white ones. Dang it!
Time for some paint!
@@Bits-of-Bytes I guess I could make that happen. 😉
To bring your rod back into proper humidity level , can’t you build a heated cabinet to keep your tig rod dry?
I think you are going to really like having the sealed Tig Guards for your rod storage. I've been using them for all of my TIG rods for just shy of 20-years now after experiencing some odd issues at my last shop.
That's being said, I don't think I'd scrap or completely condemn the TIG rods from your boxes. I think you could drag them through some Scotchbrite pads and acetone to remove any contaminants and then insert into the sealed containers. I think they will work fine afterwards and I'd hate to see you scrap good consumables.
As for the black appearance of the second weld that you showed, I personally think that had more to do with being on the backside of the initial weld. I think it may have pulled some contaminants into the puddle that were drawn in from the backside of the initial weld. I fabricated a variety of purge boxes years ago that serve to fight off contamination of the backside of a weld if I am going to weld both sides of a bracket or something similar.
Hope that makes sense.
Very nice design and execution of the holder.
Mike
I think I will like them as well. It’s a lot cleaner setup. More organized. More accessible. As far as the contamination problem goes, I have narrowed it down to a couple of things I’m gonna try today. Stay tuned. Thanks for watching!
I don’t suspect moisture is really the specific issue. But the air in general. I’m guessing if you put the two filler rods next to eachother you’ll see the one is hazy/dull colored. Aka the aluminum oxide is thick. I store my stuff in a rod gaurd, but i have had more issues with steel wire
I’m hoping this solves the issue. There has been more details subside since the video. I’ll mention more on the matter on the next video. Thanks for watching!
I have the same containers for my tig rod
How do you like them?
Before you throw away all the 'old' rods, try wiping them clean with alcohol and see if they are still usable. Good luck, greetings from the Netherlands.
I’ve tried using acetone, and it didn’t work. I guess I could see if alcohol makes a difference. Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
Nice rack! I've had more issues (in my non-climate controlled shop) with steel (ER70S-2 & S-6) filler rods, than aluminum.
Hope this solves your issues; but I'm leaning towards something being wrong with the old filler (not storage related). What vintage/brand is it?
It’s blue demon brand. There had also been more details arise since the video. Stay tuned. Thanks for watching!
get rid of the gas lens for aluminum, use a standard #5 cup
It'd boil down to contaminated Argon, Tig Electrode or Tungsten.
And I think you’re correct. I have discovered more details on this matter, and the only thing left to try is swapping Argon bottles. I think that’s the true culprit. I’m gonna try it today. All the research I’ve done, points to bad Argon. Stay tuned. Thanks for watching!
You should look up crummy welding he does a lot of aluminum he says different scotch bites can be horrible on aluminum.
I will look into it. Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
I live close to you and wish I could get your “problem rods” from you. It’s not them. It’s an intermittent problem coming from a dew point issue with your gas. It will come back. Change your gas bottle and ask your supplier “Baker” to do a Dew Point test on their process of filling.
I actually figured it out last night, and you are correct. It was a bad bottle of Argon. It was the last thing to try, and bingo! I will talk more about it in the next video, but I used my old rod, and it ran just fine. Thanks for watching!
I think thats a problem with your Gas coverage and cupe-size. For Aluminium take a #6 oder #5 Cup and round about 12 CFH pure Argon. A stubby Gas lens works perfekt with aluminium!
I have been using a #7 cup with a gas lens, and it still isn’t right. I think it’s a bad bottle of Argon. Stay tuned for the final verdict.
Show me the old ones so I can practice it
Can you bake the moisture out of the old rods?
Possibly. I may try and put them in the oven on a baking sheet, and give them a try. Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks for watching!
@@Freedomfabrication777 let us know if it works! Thanks for the videos.
Hey don’t throw them out take burn barrel turn it side ways and heat them up that may kill the condensation