What am I doing wrong?

[Former Member]

Have you ever read the WHMIS for water?

That will make your head spin.

 

[JimGnitecki]

We seem to have drifted seriously off topic . . .

Jim G

 

[trevj]

Have you ever read the WHMIS for water?

That will make your head spin.

DiHydrogen monoxide? If you breathe just a little of it, it can kill you!

 

[trevj]

We seem to have drifted seriously off topic . . .

Jim G

Anything that has not been covered up till now?

Seriously TIG welding isn't as much a Dark Art, as it is a Hand Skill. Too much thinking, and not enough doing, is a detriment to developing that skill!

 

[Tom O]

I have a Miller 351 transformer tig machine (runs on 220 single phase) and find most tig videos are for the digital crowd and not much content on transformer machines.

 

[6.5 Fan]

We seem to have drifted seriously off topic . . .

Oh this much off topic is nothing around here.

 

[trevj]

I have a Miller 351 transformer tig machine (runs on 220 single phase) and find most tig videos are for the digital crowd and not much content on transformer machines.

I think it boils down to that you have so many fewer choices to make on the old-school units. Even on the fancy ones, it's usually pre-flow, ramp up, peak current, ramp down, post flow. With the odd other setting.

The hand skills are the same, though you don't have the options to pick through, as far as varying the frequency and all that. So you learn to deal with a lower current setting, for fine work, etc. <shrug> I learned on transformer machines, and that's what I have. As much as I would LIKE to have a new Inverter in the fold, it probably isn't the highest priority for me. Gotta get my wants and needs sorted. I WANT the $10K Miller unit, I NEED, well...probably less capability than I actually already have! LOL!

I get a lot out of Jody's videos on welderstipsandtricks channel on youtube. Unless he is showing what a particular machine can do, generally, his advice and experience applies to pretty much every guy trying to improve their work.

 

[CWret]

I get a lot out of Jody's videos on welderstipsandtricks

Agreed (as an amateur, self-taught, pretend welder) I liked Jody enough that I purchased his full set of videos. There is so much BS on YouTube that I spend a lot less time there lately. Yea, Jody is selling stuff but there is very little BS and lots of good info. BTY: I now spend more time on the CHMW's forum than YouTube.

 

[JimGnitecki]

Good news! The new robust ground clamp solved the "occasional no arc" issue. And it is also more compact and easier to use than the clamp that came with the TIG welder. However, I have a question:

The new clamp, like the majority of quality ground clamps has a threaded screw that is tightened with a large diameter hex wrench. It also includes a slightly rounded "shim".

I tried using the shim between the screw and the approximately 1/4" diameter copper stranded grounding cable wire, but that did not hold the stranded wire at all securely - I could slide the wire cable back out of the clamp easily. So, I tried leaving out the shim and just letting the screw put sufficient pressure onto the wire to keep it from being able to slide out at all.

But, I suspect that there is a better, "proper" way to use that shim.

Can someone here tell me the PROPER way to make the connection between the stranded wire cable and the new grounding clamp?

Here's a photo:



Jim G

 

[phaxtris]

For a smaller gauge wire like this, with the curve up, larger gauge curve down, stripping twice as much as you need and folding it over works well with an oversized clamp (for your wire gauge)

Green is the wire, black is that curved shim

 

[JimGnitecki]

For a smaller gauge wire like this, with the curve up, larger gauge curve down, stripping twice as much as you need and folding it over works well with an oversized clamp (for your wire gauge)

Green is the wire, black is that curved shim

View attachment 30299

Ah, ok. I will try that! THANK-YOU!

Jim G

 

[phaxtris]

Now look what you've started, maintenance wasn't my plan tonight, members here, such bad influences

 

[trevj]

LOL! I could tell you where to find "Sympathy" in a dictionary, but sensitive souls might object!

 

[JimGnitecki]

Now look what you've started, maintenance wasn't my plan tonight, members here, such bad influences View attachment 30303

Yeah, you "fell in with a bad crowd" . . .

Wives hate it when we do stuff like this. They need ALL the attention, ALL the time!

Jim G