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Thread: Tig Welder recommendations?

  1. #1

    Tig Welder recommendations?

    Our chapter is discussing the merits of adding a Tig welding outfit to our tool crib.
    What recommendations would you make for a Tig unit suitable for use in the aviation environment?
    What are the SportAir workshops using?
    I know there are a lot of variables, just trying to get a discussion seeded.
    Thanks

  2. #2

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    Beyond stating the obvious that Miller and Lincoln are HUGE presences at AirVenture? I got nuthin'. lol
    "Don't believe everything you see or read on the internet" - Abraham Lincoln

  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ronald Franck View Post
    Our chapter is discussing the merits of adding a Tig welding outfit to our tool crib.
    What recommendations would you make for a Tig unit suitable for use in the aviation environment?
    What are the SportAir workshops using?
    I know there are a lot of variables, just trying to get a discussion seeded.
    Thanks
    Do you already have a Mig.

    Jake Speed

  4. #4
    I bought a Lincoln Square Wave TIG for my birthday last year to weld aluminum. Its a bit of a gas hog but I'm very happy with its performance. I liked at the Miller equivalent and went Lincoln due to its detachable/servicable torch.

    https://www.lincolnelectric.com/en-u...ncolnElectric)

  5. #5

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    Quote Originally Posted by Desertdave View Post
    I bought a Lincoln Square Wave TIG for my birthday last year to weld aluminum. Its a bit of a gas hog but I'm very happy with its performance. I liked at the Miller equivalent and went Lincoln due to its detachable/servicable torch.

    https://www.lincolnelectric.com/en-u...ncolnElectric)

    A good MIG welder has advantages over the TIG.

    I would Google, the truth is out there.

    Jake Speed

  6. #6
    cwilliamrose's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jake Speed View Post
    A good MIG welder has advantages over the TIG.
    Don't hold back, tell us about these advantages.

  7. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by cwilliamrose View Post
    Don't hold back, tell us about these advantages.
    From my standpoint, and IMHO, MIG can weld much thicker metals to thin, TIG is limited to thin materials.

    Learning to MIG is easier. I like easy.

    I listed two advantages. There are disadvantages also. My MIG work was for car metal restoration and related tasks.

    Jake Speed

  8. #8
    cwilliamrose's Avatar
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    I will say there aren't many welds in the aircraft I've been involved with that have huge differences in thickness. I have welded thick materials to thin materials in other applications and found it very doable with TIG.

    Easier? Maybe for simple welds but using MIG to weld clusters like a typical steel tube fuselage has would not be 'easy' by any definition, at least IMHO. Not that I know much about MIG welding.....

  9. #9
    robert l's Avatar
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    Just throwing out what I have personally done and seen. I have welded 3.5" carbon steel with a Mig and I have seen, 1.5" #9 Chrome Tig welded many times, pre heated of course. And I have seen schedule 10 stainless steel, and that's pretty thin, Tig welded. I even saw a welder Tig weld a dime to a stainless fitting once. So, thick or thin, it can be done if you have the experience. What does all this have to do with welding aircraft tubing, not a d*()^ thing.
    Bob

  10. #10
    This thread got side tracked pretty quickly. Red or Blue you can't go wrong but I went red for the reasons I listed above.

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