Hi all, I'm definately new to welding, so please excuse my ignorance. I recently took a couple classes for Oxy / Ac , Arc, Mig, and Tig welding at my local vocational school. I really enjoyed it, and ended up being pretty good. I especially enjoyed Tig welding, and Tig welding aluminum. Well, I don't have any more classes, and now I'm looking at setting up a system for use at my home. I can't run 220 or higher voltage at my house as it is a rental and I can't change anything (run new lines). So, I was thinking about what system I could get that would cut, and weld everything I wanted, while also being affordable. I've decided that I wanted to get a Oxy / Accetaline setup. My only question is, can I weld aluminum with Oxy / Accetaline? I'm guessing it is theoretically possible, but have not tried it. Any advise? Is it possible or practical?
THanks,
George
Here's a couple of our products that fit the bill of what you were asking about, The technical info is towards the bottom of the page.
http://webapp1.cronatronwelding.com/cronatron/showItem?itemNum=CW01640
http://webapp1.cronatronwelding.com/cronatron/showItem?itemNum=CW01734
Thanks- this is a much better format.
Bill
you can use just about any SMAW aluminum electrode to join aluminum with OAW process. You will need to work in a narrow range of temp, just as the base metal melts - slide the rod into the puddle with a scratching action. The resulting deposit will have the appearance of a brazed weld .
Wow, that raises another question, can you use SMAW to weld Aluminum? I was going to try GTAW aluminum filler rods to fill the puddle from OAW.
Thanks
George:
Go to this site: http://www.tinmantech.com/
scroll down to the bottom and click on "Articles".
Lots of good info on OAW with aluminum
Hi George. If you intend to stick weld aluminum at all, you would need D-C current reverse polarity. A couple of stick electrodes you can use are Welco#26, or cronatron 510. If i am not mistaken you can also oxy-acetylene weld with these rods also. Good luck. Paul
Hi,
Yes, you can do very good welds on certain grades of aluminium with oxy acetylene equipment. I had a small business in the U.K making, amongst other things, hand fabricated aluminium long distance touring fuel tanks for motorcycles. I also worked for Grand Prix Metalcraft in the UK where aluminium AC Cobra bodies were fabricated using oxy acetylene welding. I tended to use strips of the parent metal as welding rods for most of the welds, though aluminium brazing rods were used to attach some fittings. The process is quite fast, but the fluxes used must be removed after welding. The metal to be welded must be clean. More heat is needed for welding aluminium than steel because the ali conducts heat away from the heat source more quickly than steel does. Also, unlike welding steel, where it is easy to see a molten pool develop, with ali, the surface layer of aluminium oxide has a higher melting point than the underlying metal so the molten pool is under the "skin" of the oxide, so to speak. However with a little practise you can see ripples form on the surface of the ali as it melts. It's quite a good system. It can also be used to weld castings, and the fluxes used are useful for floating impurities in the metal you are welding to the surface. Give it a try! :-). J S
It sounds like you've got some good aluminum experience. Could you answer another question for me? I have a couple cast aluminum pieces that I have grinded down, and polished to a mirror-finish. Now, what can I do to the pieces to help them maintain that mirror finish?
THanks,
George
Hi George,
I'm afraid that I'm not a great expert in that area. The Japs used to polish some of their motorcycle castings (and possibly frames), and clear laquer them to preserve the appearance. You should be able to find an expert on the topic on the web, perhaps in a forum relating to polishing and finishing.
Regards. Jacob
Hi This is a great messageboard. My question is what about oxy/gas cutting of aluminum? does anybody know if it's possible? i'm in the same boat... a newbie looking for a cheap entry-level aluminum rig.
Thanks,
No- aluminum oxide has a higher melting point than aluminum and forms a scum that won't move out of the cut. It also keeps the oxygen from burning the aluminum. You can kind of melt your way along but a hand saw would probably be faster. It would surely yield a better result. If you don't care about a nice finish an arc-air is fast.
Bill
I have found in the past to cut AL. (if it is not too thick) use a jig saw, but the blades (metal) should not be to fine.
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