Not trying to sound smart, but are you set wit DCSP???? That is.the electrode should be set to the negative terminal. 50 amps should not be too much , but maybe you are getting a surge or something to blow off the tungsten. Try 3/32" tungsten
Hello Ridesideways, when Medicinehawk asked, "have you checked to see if the output is DCSP" you could possibly take that one step further, if you have an electrical multimeter, attach the positive test lead to the positive output terminal on the welder and the negative test lead to the negative output terminal on the welder, do this with the machine on and set to the stick welding mode, not the tig welding mode or with the remote attached. ( you don't need to be welding to do this test) You should be able to get a reading of approx. 84 volts DC or in that general vicinity, you should also be able to tell if the polarity output of the machine is correct, if the multimeter is a digital model and the numerical display has a negative sign in front of the number showing on the display, then the output has been hooked up incorrectly from the factory. If it just reads the number then the output is correct. If you are using an analog type meter and you initially connect the leads and the needle tries to go the wrong way on the scale then the polarity is incorrect, if it sweeps the correct direction then the output is correct. If any of this testing yields an incorrect polarity reading then the machine obviously has a defect from the factory. As medicinehawk stated though, first check to see that the torch is connected to the negative output side of the welder and the ground is connected to the positive output side of the welder. One final note, on some of the newer power sources the open circuit voltage of the units has been modified to make them safer and to minimize the shock hazard, so if you don't have 80+ volts or so you shouldn't necessarily immediately think that there is something wrong with the machine. When you talk to the Lincoln rep. try to explain everything to him or her in detail and also be sure that you have gone over the instruction manual provided with the machine thoroughly so that you haven't missed anything obvious concerning correct set-up. Good luck in solving the problem, Regards, aevald (I JUST READ A DIFFERENT THREAD CONCERNING A SIMILAR QUESTION, IT SOUNDS AS THOUGH THERE IS A DEFINITE MACHINE PROBLEM, SO JUST IGNORE MY SUGGESTIONS)