On 02 Jul 2003 07:32 PM, Bruce A. Frank posted the following:

Del Rawlins wrote:
On 02 Jul 2003 02:59 PM, Bruce A. Frank posted the following:

Del,

Was the rod you used copper plated? Did you remove it, the copper,
before using the rod? (polish it with Scotch Brite) I ask because
almost everyone with whom I have spoken finds the -6 produces a
nicer bead and much quieter molten puddle (than -2) when TIG welding (
fewer sparks flying contaminating the tungsten).

I rubbed it with steel wool but not enough to remove the copper,
which would have taken a while. Guess I need to do more
experimenting with it.

Sand paper will work just as well as Scotch Brite and may be faster.

Then again, the ER70S-2 I am using is also copper plated and has gotten
the same steel wool treatment. Next time I weld (I am cutting and
forming parts for the control stick assembly right now) I will make more
of an effort to clean the copper off the rod and see what difference (if
any) that makes. As for cleaning the base metal, I normally sand the
weld areas with emery cloth or lightly hit it with a power sander. I
have sometimes wiped the area down with acetone, but never noticed much
difference if the metal was fairly clean to begin with. If it is at all
oily I always wipe it down prior to welding.

----------------------------------------------------
Del Rawlins-
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