Aluminum Welding Page

Information about Materials

We decided to get 1/8" 5052 aluminum for the orbs. 1/4" for a few pieces

Lee got 10lbs of 5356 aluminum filler rod. 5356 is the best for bonding 5052. We had used some 4043 filler and it worked ok.

Also see info about our Lincoln Precision TIG 225 One-Pak welder

Some info pages on which aluminum alloy we should get:

• http://www.matweb.com
• http://www.onlinemetals.com/aluminumguide.cfm
• http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/mepages/aluminfo.php

Procedures and Information on TIG Welding of Aluminum

A general discussion of Aluminum welding with some safety tips http://www.brazing.com/techguide/procedures/allumimum.asp

• Lincoln Electric's Tig Welding Aluminum Guide

• A non-TIG focused discussion of Aluminum Welding from Lincoln Electric

• Lincoln Electric's TIG welding series; these are sales pitches but do contain some useful information:
  • http://www.lincolnelectric.com/knowledge/articles/content/microstart.asp
  • http://www.lincolnelectric.com/knowledge/articles/content/tigseriespower.asp
  • http://www.lincolnelectric.com/knowledge/articles/content/tigseriesvalue.asp
  • http://www.lincolnelectric.com/knowledge/articles/content/tigseriesvalue.asp

• A short discussion on TIG welding from Miller Welding

• Miller's TIG Welding article site:
  • http://www.millerwelds.com/products/tig/index.php
  • http://www.millerwelds.com/education/tech_tips/TIG_tips/index.html

• http://www.twi.co.uk/j32k/protected/band_3/jk67.html - A general review of geometric shape imperfections. Lots of other stuff on their site too. Gotta register to see it

• http://tractors.ucdavis.edu/TOMBELLTIGTIPS1.pdf - A two page pdf with tips on TIG welding, including some Al specific points at the end.

Grinding Aluminum Precautions

As with grinding any metal, protective goggles, facemask and gloves are required. Aluminum dust when combined with either steel or iron dust can produce an explosive compound known as Thermite. Thermite burns at a very high temperature and can cause serious injury. To avoid this hazard, only use grinding wheels that have been used to grind aluminum. Keep grinding wheels that have been used to grind aluminum separate from the rest of the grinding wheels. If you are not sure where a grinding wheel came from and you want to grind some aluminum, find a new grinding wheel.

Buying a TIG Welder

There's interest in buying a TIG welder for the Box Shop. It looks like it'd cost around $2,000. Here are the folks interested in chipping in:

• Michael $100
• Charlie "half" or maybe he said $1000 (Lee isn't sure)
• John H $100
• Matt $100