Karl Townsend wrote:
Gee, that doesn't sound all that difficult, if you have a decent
TIG machine. I'm still struggling with aluminum, but I feel I have steel
and stainless down quite well. I haven't had much trouble at all burning
holes in SS.


I've went from fair, to poor, to truly horse&^% on my welding ability. For
the last several years, "The Kid" did all the welding. He spent a summer
welding 50 hours a week and I couldn't begin to match his skill.
Oh, that much practice will make a HUGE difference! I have
about 3-4 hours invested in aluminum fiddling, and maybe 10
hours total on TIG so far. So, I'm still a rank beginner.
Plus, my
eyes are getting old and I can no longer see a weld puddle - just a very
bright spot light is all. Unfortunately, "the kid" is seldom home now.
The secret is to use the torch to block the glare from the arc.
Well, that's my secret, anyway. The arc and glowing electrode
light up the work like a powerful floodlight, and if you can get
something between the arc and your eyes, then you have an
excellent situation to see the work. Yes, the melt puddle of
the aluminum is hard to see, it looks a little like a mirror,
and a little like a lake with some waves on it. Maybe it looks
a LOT like a puddle of dirty mercury. My eyes have always been
terrible, but maybe severe nearsightedness is good for some of
this type work.

Jon