Stop overthinking your root pass settings

Been fighting with porosity on 3/8 plate for months. Tried every gas flow and tungsten grind combo I could think of. Finally watched some old dude on youtube just crank his amperage way higher than I'd ever try and boom perfect welds. Turns out I was running too cold because I was scared of burning through. Has anyone else found that going hotter actually cleans things up better?

2 comments

2 Comments

mia7005d ago

exactly man, I think we all get trained to baby the puddle and it messes us up so bad. I was running 3/8 plate at like 130 amps for way too long because every chart said to start there. Then I talked to a guy who does pipe welding and he just laughed and said crank it to 180 and stop worrying. First pass after that change was completely flat and no porosity at all. Its weird how our brains tell us to be gentle when metal actually likes heat. The key is just keeping the travel speed up so you dont blow through.

tyler8546d ago

Man I had a buddy who fought the same exact thing on 1/4 inch for like a year. He was running 120 amps cause every chart and forum said that was the sweet spot. One day his machine got bumped up to like 170 by accident and he ran a bead without looking and it came out perfect. He told me he couldnt believe how much time and filler rod he wasted being scared of that pedal. Its funny how we think welding is all about being gentle when sometimes you just gotta let it eat and trust the puddle.