HAVE YOU SEEN TIP TIG? THIS IS A PROCESS THAT PROVIDES LESS WELD HEAT AND BETTER
WELD QUALITY
THAN REGULAR TIG
AND
PROVIDES THOSE WELDS AT MIG WIRE FEED RATES.
Click on the Evolution of TIG icon if you want a
TIP TIG brochure.
Pulsed MIG Welding.
MIG Weld Equipment and Pulsed MIG weld
reality.
WANT TO SEE HOW PULSED MIG CAUSED AXLE CRACKS
FOR FORD MOTOR COMPANY, CONTINUE IN
SECTION 2 OF PULSED MIG AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE.
2008: DO YOU MIG WELD MOSTLY CARBON STEELS, LOW ALLOY
STEELS AND STAINLESS? BEFORE YOUR COMPANY PURCHASED THAT COSTLY PULSED MIG
POWER SOURCE, DID SOMEONE IN YOUR ORGANIZATION SEEK THE
ADVICE
OF A SALESMAN?
After two decades of painful, costly pulsed MIG equipment
and process development, we now have in North America, a
few pulsed MIG power sources that actually work in a
consistent manner and may possibly get through their
short, 36 month warranty period without electronic
issues. The point managers need to address, is what real
world weld benefits, do you get from the extra dollars
spent on the pulsed equipment?
As a result of two decades of
poor performing, erratic pulsed MIG equipment, the global
MIG welding industry has flushed down the sink, hundreds of millions in unnecessary weld costs. The costs were
generated from;
[] unnecessary robot weld rejects,
[] unnecessary robot / manual weld rework,
[] unnecessary robot down time,
[] operating at lower weld deposition rates (higher labor
costs) than that which could
have been attained from spray transfer,
[] unnecessary costs for the the robot / manual pulsed
MIG weld equipment,
[] unnecessary high costs for the MIG equipment repairs.
IN THE 25 YEARS OF PULSED MIG PROCESS DEVELOPMENT, I DO
NOT KNOW OF ONE PULSED POWER SOURCE THAT WAS RECALLED DUE
TO PULSED EQUIPMENT OR WELD ISSUES. THIS PATHETIC
SITUATION IS A REFLECTION OF THE GENERAL MIG PROCESS APATHY
THAT EXISTS WITH GLOBAL WELD SHOPS? OF COURSE A WELD EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER LIKE ESAB, LINCOLN,
MILLER AND PANASONIC SHOULD ACT IN A RESPONSIBLE MANNER AND
RECALL THEIR PULSED WELD EQUIPMENT PRODUCTS THEY KNOW ARE
NOT WORKING CORRECTLY?
WELDING COMMON STEEL /
STAINLESS APPLICATIONS. A QUALIFIED WELD DECISION MAKER,
WITH AN UNDERSTANDING OF MIG WELD PROCESS CONTROLS WILL NOT
SEEK THE ADVICE OF A SALES REP AND PURCHASE EQUIPMENT
THAT BRINGS NO QUALITY OR PRODUCTIVITY IMPROVEMENTS TO A
WELD SHOP.
A WELD REALITY FOR CARBON STEEL WELDS: THE MAJORITY OF THE PULSED
EQUIPMENT PURCHASED BETWEEN 1985 AND 2010 HAS BEEN SELECTED BY
INDIVIDUALS WHO LACKED THE MIG WELD PROCESS CONTROL
EXPERTISE NECESSARY TO OPTIMIZE THE MUCH LOWER COST,
TRADITIONAL, CV MIG EQUIPMENT.
2008: Salesmen, managers,
technicians and supervisors
who for decades have a difficult time
controlling
a simple two control
MIG power source, are now talking about controlling "wave
forms"
2008: The
electronic pulsed MIG equipment that has been developed for
more than the last two decades for carbon steel and
stainless welds is finally delivering a few real world weld
benefits, however before you waste thousands of dollars on
a pulsed MIG power source check out the following pulsed MIG criteria
determined by Ed....
IN CONTRAST TO LOW COST TRADITIONAL MIG EQUIPMENT THAT
PROVIDES SHORT CIRCUIT
AND SPRAY TRANSFER;
Pulsed provides benefits welding < 4 mm aluminum parts, when used on alum > 4 mm in contrast to spray, pulsed may produce inferior weld fusion and more porosity.
PULSED CAN PROVIDE LIMITED WELD BENEFITS FOR GAGE PARTS, HOWEVER
PULSED IS NOT NECESSARY FOR MAJORITY OF MANUAL
GAGE APPLICATIONS.
[] Manual welding 2 to 4 mm carbon / low alloy steels..
PULSED PROVIDES LIMITED REAL WORLD WELD BENEFITS. HOWEVER
FOR GAGE ROBOT PULSED WELDS, THE PULSED PROCESS WITH 0.045
WIRE CAN PROVIDE WELD BENEFITS AS HIGHER WIRE FEED
DEPOSITIONS IN THIS THICKNESS RANGE CAN RESULT IN SLIGHTLY FASTER WELD SPEEDS .
[] Manual welding 2 - 3 mm stainless welds.
PULSED PROVIDES WELD BENEFITS. WELDING THIN PARTS IN WHICH
SHORT CIRCUIT IS TOO SLUGGISH. OR APPLICATIONS LIKE THE
FOOD PROCESSING EQUIPMENT IN WHICH THERE ARE WELD SURFACE
COSMETIC CONCERNS. IN THIS CASE, PULSED CAN BE SUPERIOR TO
SHORT CIRC.
Note The best process for most stainless welds is the TIP TIG process.
[] Manual welding > 3 mm stainless.
ON STAINLESS APPLICATIONS. PULSED PROCESS BENEFITS ARE
DERIVED FROM LOWER WELD CURRENT POTENTIAL LEADING TO
DISTORTION REDUCTION. IMPORTANT NOTE: BE CONCERNED WHEN
USING PULSED ON PARTS > 5 mm WITH THE WELD FUSION
ATTAINED. FOR OPTIMUM WELD FUSION AND BEST ARC STABILITY ON
HIGH SPEED WELDS USE SPRAY OR FOR BEST WELD QUALITY WITH THE LOWEST WELD DISTORTION CONSIDER TIP TIG.
[] Welding duplex and all high alloy steels and heat
sensitive medium to high alloy applications.
The best process is the TIP TIG process.
[] Welding overlay and any applications that require low
weld dilution.
PULSED MIG A,GOOD PROCESS. CONSIDER TIP TIG IF NDT EXAMINATION OF INTERNAL WELD QUALITY REQUIRED OR LESS WELD HEAT IS DESIREABLE.
Keep listening to that salesman: When manually welding most common carbon and
low alloy steel applications, the purchase of costly
pulsed MIG equipment, metal cored wires or three part gas mixes will not improve your weld quality,
reduce your weld spatter, cut your weld costs, or help cut
through the general MIG weld process confusion that
prevails in most global weld shops. However the purchase
will increase your weld equipment costs, add to your weld
supplier's profits and generate more weld shop
confusion.
Auto parts a pulsed MIG weld report. Aug. 2004:The primary
issue I found with these automated, Bancroft MIG welded,
stainless Torque Converter parts was the 0.053 thickness and
the wide gaps. On MIG welded gage parts that are less than
0.075 “sensitivity to weld burn” through is always a
major production concern especially when welded with the spray transfer,
and these leak tested parts were not suited to short circuit
with it's inconsistent weld fusion. The weld burn through
issue on these parts was further compounded when the welds
required, had to compensate for a lap weld variable gap which
is packed with stainless mesh. Click
here for the rest of the story.
PULSED MIG CANNOT COMPETE WITH TIP TIG
IF WELD QUALITY IS YOUR FIRST CRITERIA.
When asked for his opinion on MIG spray transfer logic
versus
pulsed MIG, a college drop out named Albert, might have said
the following.
"Its logical that that the constant weld energy attainable
from CV
MIG spray transfer, is of course a prime attribute in
attaining
a consistent arc during high speed welds and constant weld
fusion".
If you read the early
1980s research papers published on the newly developing
pulsed MIG process, one of the prime justifications for the
development of the pulsed process for carbon / stainless
steel welds was to have a weld process suited to making
weld in all positions.
1990s. Photo on right. Ed testing pulsed MIG over head weld on
a 16 inch gas pipe pipe root.
Since the pulsed MIG introduction in the nineteen eighties,
when welding many steel applications vertical up
and over head, the pulsed MIG process
has not been able to compete with the "all position gas shielded flux cored wires"
developed in the 1970s - 1980.
It must be annoying to the MIG equipment manufacturers who
see great profits from the sales of useless bells and
whistles and circuit boards, that the $1.80 lb, E71T-1 flux
cored wires can attain superior all position weld results when
used on low cost, durable, $3000 CV. MIG equipment little changed since it was developed in
the 1960s.
In 2010 the USA has a process that produces superior pipe welds than both flux cored and pulsed MIG and that process is called TIP TIG
WHEN PURCHASING MIG EQUIPMENT THE WELD SHOP FOCUS
HAS TO ALWAYS BE
ON THE WELD QUALITY AND COSTS:
If before 2006, you were a frequent user of the pulsed weld
process and you were welding carbon steel applications,
it's likely in contrast to the traditional, CV lower cost
equipment and the spray transfer weld mode, you would have
been producing steel welds on parts > 4 mm with the following detriments;
[] Inferior weld fusion,
[] unnecessary weld porosity,
[] increased arc instability, typically noted on small
length robot welds and high speed applications,
[] welds with less weld deposition rate potential.
In 2011 if you are using pulsed MIG its likely you are still having the above mentioned weld issues.
Of course you may also have been using pulsed MIG
equipment for the last decade and were not aware that you
were overpaying for bells and whistles and having weld
quality and production issues, welcome to weld reality.
When examining new MIG weld technology, one should remember
that the conventional short circuit and spray transfer
modes that were developed and perfected over five decades,
also offer unique weld benefits. However the short circuit
and spray weld benefits are rarely derived from weld
personnel who have to "play around" with weld controls. To
attain MIG process benefits from low cost MIG equipment
requires MIG process expertise and thats a rareity in many weld shops.
Ed optimized both robot and manual MIG welds for more than a 1000 companies.
A FEW OF ED'S PROCESS OPTIMIZATION PROJECTS,
FORD F 150 FRAMES -
VOLVO CABS - CORVETTE FRAMES-
HARLEY FRAMES - NEW BEETLE SEATS
AND
ED ALSO ESTABLISHED
THE ROBOT WELD FOR THE
WORLD'S LARGEST CATERPILLAR TRUCK.
WELD PROCESS CHOICES ARE MADE MORE DIFFICULT ESPECIALLY
WHEN WELDS SHOPS ARE DAILY MMERSED IN WELD PROCESS
CONFUSION:
Many of you have worked or still work in weld shops in
which the managers, engineers and supervisors are not aware of
the real cost of that common MIG or flux cored, 6 mm fillet
weld.
Many of of you have worked in a weld shop in which AWS
inspectors daily criticize MIG and flux cored weld quality,
yet too many of these individuals lack the weld process expertise necessary to improve
those welds.
Many of you will work in weld shops which too many weld personnel
daily "play around" with their MIG or flux cored weld
controls?
Many of you have worked in weld shops in which the
management has an umbilical cord attached to the local weld
salesman, this guy has an open door invitation to come in
and demonstrate the latest MIG gas mix, weld consumable or
power source?
Many of you will work in shops where you know the weld
decision makers who selected the costly,
sales driven pulsed MIG equipment or unnecessary three part
gas mixes, were typically not qualified to make rational
MIG weld process / equipment selection decisions.
If you work at a weld shop that has to rely on a salesman
to demonstrate MIG weld equipment, or a flux cored
consumable, this typically means that the weld shop
decision maker lacks weld process expertise. This lack of expertise is common
in weld shops in which the management, supervisors and engineers have minimal
ownership of the weld equipment, processes and consumables
utilized on their weld shop floor.
DO YOU NEED TO CHANGE WELD PROCEDURES
WHEN YOU CHANGE PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT?
12/2008: Question. Ed. We pulsed MIG weld aluminum.
The weld wire most used is 4043. 3/64. For the weld gas
we use straight argon. For a few years we have been using
Miller XMT - 304, CC/CV Inverters for our pulsed welds.
The application comprises of aluminum parts 4 to 9 mm. As
we are expanding, we are looking to purchase six new
Miller 350 pulsed MIG units, approx. price $5000.
As I am the lead welder, I was asked to try out the
Miller 350P. Frankly I was a little concerned about the
criteria I should use for testing new pulsed MIG
equipment. By the way I asked our CWI level 111 inspector
would we have to make any changes to our pulsed AWS
qualified MIG procedures if we purchased this equipment.
The AWS code gives no advice about pulsed equipment
changes and weld procedure data.The CWI response to the
new pulsed equipment was indifference as we were changing
Miller pulsed equipment for Miller pulsed equipment.
Regards BA.
Answer from Ed. Good question Joel. With the aluminum
thickness range you are welding weld fusion issues and
porosity problems are common and any weld inspector
(most weld inspectors lack weld process control expertise) should be concerned with the introduction of new pulsed
MIG equipment irrespective of the source of that
equipment. Miller will be the first to tell you there are many differences between each pulsed power source they make.
Lets say for example you are pulsed MIG
welding 6 mm, aluminum fillet welds with straight argon
and setting that 3/64, 4043 wire around 400 to 450
inch/min with the Miller XMT - 304. You then set the same
pulsed wire feed settings with the Miller 350P, you would
be surprised to find that you will end up with a weld
that has less weld energy providing less weld fusion. Your XMT power source, has a
different aluminum pulsed program in which the pulsed
parameters will provide higher energy welds resulting in
more weld fusion than that attained with the 350P.
Note: With aluminum, extra weld energy also produce less
porosity. It's important to note the influence of the
weld process / application expertise (often lacking) of the individuals
who developed the pulsed programs and the sophistication
of the electronics that deliver the pulsed
welds. The bottom line is a 350 amp Pulsed MIG power source from one equipment mfg may have little in common with a 350 amp pulsed MIG power source manufacturer.
THANKS TO PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS
LACK OF INTEREST IN APPLYING GLOBAL PROCESS STANDARD
GUIDELINES TO THE PULSED WELD MODE, CHANGING PULSED MIG POWER
SOURCE MODELS SHOULD NOW BE CONSIDERED BY CODE BODIES AS AN
ESSENTIAL VARIABLE UNTIL SOME UNIFORM PROCESS CONFORMITY
IS ESTABLISHED:
Companies who are concerned with maintaining the MIG
weld quality they established in their weld qualification
procedures, need to be aware that when those short lived
pulsed power sources break down and are replaced, with
different pulsed MIG equipment, that at the end of the
day, unlike traditional CV MIG equipment, the pulsed
welds produced may have little in common with the welds
produced with earlier equipment utilized in producing the
original weld qualification procedure. Of course if you
are welding thin gage aluminum parts < 4 mm, the
differences in the pulsed equipment may not be relevant,
however when dealing with code quality welds on parts
> 4 mm, the weld concern factor needs to kick in, and weld
macros should be required to ensure the pulsed procedures
from the new pulse MIG are acceptable.
BEST PERFORMING AND MOST COST EFFECTIVE PULSED POWER SOURCE: As for testing pulsed equipment, I like to be
aware of the optimum low and high pulsed settings that
can be used with the equipment and then I examine the
suitability of welds produced on the common thickness
used in the plant. If I am welding thin gage aluminum, I
look at the fast freeze characteristics of the weld and
the weld appearance. With the higher wire feed rates
associated with thicker aluminum parts I would examine
the weld fluidity attained and the control of the weld
puddle. At the end of the day I have a preference for
pulsed equipment which has optimum pulsed programs established by
a process / application expert, and unfortunately that rarely happens
with the major weld equipment manufactures. For this
reason, I like pulsed equipment that allows me to change
the primary pulsed parameters, one consistent, reasonable priced performing
pulsed power source that comes to mind is the OTC digital
pulsed MIG equipment shown on the right.
WELD PROCESS CONTROLS SHOULD
START IN THE FRONT OFFICE:
From an Ed Craig report to a General Motors plant 2001:
When your managers and engineers recognize that weld
process knowledge is far more important than the purchase
of costly, useless electronic weld equipment with bells and
whistles, your plants will take a giant leap towards
establishing Best Weld Practices and Weld Process Controls.
Dec 2008: Note from Ed: As GM, Ford and Chrysler go cap in
hand to the US government for billions of taxpayers dollars
to prop up their failing companies, it's interesting to
note that none of these companies or Ford have established uniform
Best Weld Practices or implemented Robot Weld Process Controls in their plants.
LINCOLN DID NOT SHED
ANY
LIGHT ON THIS POOR ROBOT / POWER WAVE APPLICATION:
One customer I assisted around 2005,
manufactured carbon steel street lamps 11 to 7 gage.
It’s a simple manual welding application. On the end
of the lamps they weld a flange that mounts the lamp to the
floor. The flanges were heavy duty approx. 13 mm thick.
They also weld around the pole access box, (gage material)
located near the flange.
This street lamp application became unnecessarily complex
the day they decided the parts should be welded with a
robot. The lamp company ordered a Lincoln Fanuc ArcMate 100
robot. The robot came with the Lincoln PowerWave, a
450-amp, pulsed MIG power source. The robot system was sold
by AGA who had the technical support from Lincoln and
Fanuc. Almost two years after the robot was installed the
robot had never come close to it’s daily weld
production quota.
When the robot was installed it was placed on the lamp
production line, however numerous weld issues occurred and
the management moved the robot to another part of the plant
so the highly trained plant personnel could “play
around” with the robot weld settings.
With the assistance of the robot / weld experts from
Lincoln, Fanuc and AGA and the lamp company personnel "played
around" with the robot weld data for almost two years with
pathetic results. For the rest of the story, click here.
Is your organization ready to stop playing with weld data and provide
MIG and flux cored weld process control training?
I hope the following comments on PULSED MIG and the weld
process comparisons with traditional MIG short circuit,
spray and the flux cored process,will provide you or your
organization a different perspective on the rationalization
of the purchase of pulsed MIG weld equipment.
1989. Ed was invited by the Brazilian Society of
Mechanical Engineers to
give a speech on welding in Rio. Ed titled
the speech;
Why you should avoid the robot welding
mistakes
of the North American
Auto and Truck
Industry.
YOU CANNOT OPTIMIZE A WELD PROCESS IN THIS CONFUSED INDUSTRY,
UNLESS YOU CAN SEPARATE THE MISTAKES OF THE WELD INDUSTRIES
PAST FROM THE WELD SALES HYPE THAT TODAY SATURATES GLOBAL
WELD SHOPS.
AN INTERESTING < 2005 WELD
SHOP QUESTION:
Management should ask this question more frequently.
To Pulse or not to Pulse especially if they want to produce welds without cracks.
MILLER MAXTRON / INVISION PROBLEMS: E-mail Question: Ed, my company is Hayes
Lemmerz. Hayes is a global manufacturer of
car and truck wheels. We use the Pulsed MIG process for most of our
wheel welds. Since we introduced the Miller Maxtron and
Miller Invision equipment to our automated, MIG weld
production lines, we have had extensive, weld production
and rework issues. The typical wheel pulsed weld problems
that we experienced with the Miller equipment were;
[1] welds skipping, resulting in weld areas that contain
unacceptable and
inconsistent thin welds,
[2] missed welds,
[3] welds with inconsistent weld penetration,
[4] weld globs,
[5] unexplained weld porosity,
[6] Inconsistent weld surface appearance,
[7] inconsistent weld undercut,
[8] numerous arc start, crater and weld tie in issues,
[9] numerous wire burn back issues,
[10] extensive weld equipment break downs.
At the request of the Hayes
management, I evaluated the pulsed MIG weld issues and
quickly revealed to the Hayes management the root cause of
their extensive weld issues and that root cause was the Hays management. To answer your questions and
for the rest of this story click here.
THIS OLD FART WILL USE PULSED
WHEN IT DELIVERS
REAL WORLD WELD BENEFITS AND PAYS THE BILLS.
FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT ARE LESS THAN 40 YEARS
OF AGE AND THINK I AM AN OLD FART STUCK IN A 1970 MIG
EQUIPMENT TIME WARP. MY WIFE WOULD AGREE THAT I AM OLD
FART, HOWEVER I HAVE ALSO BEEN AROUND THE WELDING BLOCK A
FEW TIMES. THAT'S NOT MY PICTURE ON THE LEFT. I HAVE SET SOME OF THE WORLD'S MOST SOPHISTICATED ROBOT
WELD APPLICATIONS, AND WAS ALSO THE ROBOT WELD MANAGER FOR ABB. I DON'T
BELIEVE I AM STUCK IN A WELD TECHNOLOGY TIME WARP, I KNOW
MANUFACTURING MANAGEMENT AND AFTER 40 PLUS YEARS I KNOW WELD SHOP CULTURE. I
HAVE PROVIDED MIG AND FLUX CORED WELD PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS,
TO MORE THAN A 1000 COMPANIES, IN 12 DIFFERENT
COUNTRIES AND ALSO TRAINED MORE THAN 2000 WELD SALESMEN AND I ALSO DELIVERED THE TIP TIG PROCESS TO NORTH AMERICA. IN 2006 I WAS THE WELD MANAGER WITH WSI (AQUILEX) A COMPANY THAT HAS
CLAD APPROX. 80% OF NORTH AMERICA'S WATER WALL
BOILERS. EACH YEAR, THIS COMPANY USES APPROX. ONE MILLION
POUNDS OF STAINLESS AND INCONEL WELD WIRES ON THE VERY
DIFFICULT, AUTOMATED PULSED MIG OVERLAY, WATER WALL APPLICATIONS.
THESE ASME CODE BOILER APPLICATIONS, ACHIEVED UNIQUE WELD
BENEFITS FROM THE PULSED MIG PROCESS. IN A FEW MONTHS OF PULSED WELD PROCESS DEVELOPMENT AT WSI, I CAME
UP WITH A NEW PULSED MIG METHOD / PROCEDURE, (WELD
PHOTO BELOW UNTOUCHED) THAT WAS PATENTED BY WSI IN 2007.
(SEE CLAD SECTION). MY INCONEL CLAD WELDS REDUCED BY 28% PER SQUARE FOOT THE AMOUNT OF INCONEL WELD WIRE REQUIRED FOR THE COMMON
GLOBAL BOILER CLAD APPLICATIONS . THESE WELDS , WOULD NOT
BE POSSIBLE WITH THE TRADITIONAL SPRAY TRANSFER MODE.
I STARTED MIG WELDING ON TRACTORS AT MASSEY FERGUSON IN
MANCHESTER THE EARLY 1960s. I WROTE MY FIRST MIG PROCESS
CONTROL ARTICLES IN THE LATE 1970s AND WHILE EXITED AT THE
FUTURE PULSED MIG PROSPECTS, WROTE MY FIRST PULSED MIG
ARTICLE FOR THE USA. WELD JOURNAL IN THE EARLY 1980s.
DURING THE LAST THREE DECADES I HAVE WRITTEN FOUR BOOKS ON
MIG PROCESS CONTROLS AND HAD MORE THAN 30 MIG AND FLUX
CORED PROCESS CONTROL ARTICLES PUBLISHED. I WAS THE
MARKETING, PRODUCT OR TRAINING MANAGER FOR FOUR OF THE
WORLD'S TOP SIX WELD EQUIPMENT AND CONSUMABLE
SUPPLIERS.
I HAVE BEEN TO 12 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES TO IMPROVE MIG / FCAW
/ TIG WELD QUALITY AND PRODUCTIVITY AND AT ALL THE COMPANIES I
VISIT, I PREACH THE REQUIREMENTS OF MANAGEMENT / ENGINEERS
PROCESS / EQUIPMENT OWNERSHIP, BEST WELD PRACTICES AND WELD PROCESS
CONTROLS. THE BOTTOM LINE, I BELIEVE I AM QUALIFIED TO HAVE AN OPINION ON WELD SHOPS AND WELD PROCESSES.
$10.000 ERRATIC PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT ON LEFT. $3000,
STABLE CV ON RIGHT. WHAT THE WELD EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURE PRODUCES AND WHAT THE WELDER NEVER SEES.
WHAT THE WELD EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS DONT SHOW YOU: AS THE ABOVE MIG PULSED CURRENT / VOLTAGE GRAPHS
INDICATE, (PANASONIC ON LEFT AND BETTER RESULTS FROM A LOWER COST CV UNIT ON RIGHT) A PRIMARY ISSUE WITH THE PULSED MIG WELDING
PROCESS IS NOT WITH THE UNIQUE PULSED WELD TRANSFER MODE,
IT'S WITH THE DILUTED PEAK TO BACK GROUND WELD ENERGY ALONG WITH THE INCONSISTENCY AND ERRATIC PERFORMANCE OF
MANY PULSED MIG WELD POWER SOURCES.
THE WELD INDUSTRY HAS SUFFERED TREMENDOUS WELD
COST
CONSEQUENCES FROM ERRATIC PERFORMING WELD EQUIPMENT.
2010: DURING THE LAST TWO DECADES, MOST OF THE ERRATIC PULSED
MIG EQUIPMENT REQUIRED NUMEROUS
E-PROM, CIRCUIT BOARD AND ELECTRONIC CHANGES, YET AS FAR AS I
AM AWARE, NO PULSED MIG POWER SOURCE RECALLS WERE EVER ISSUED
FROM ANY GLOBAL, MAJOR WELD EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER.
THE BOTTOM LINE. AN INDUSTRY THAT LACKS MIG WELD PROCESS
CONTROL EXPERTISE
WAS EASY PREY FOR EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS THAT MADE COSTLY,
FAULTY MIG EQUIPMENT THAT WAS PROVIDING ERRATIC WELD PERFORMANCE
AND VERY LIMITED STEEL OR ALLOY WELD BENEFITS.
Traditional CV MIG equipment can last 10 to 20 years and the
weld equipment repair costs carried out by the plant's
electrician is typically a few hundred dollars. Many of the
companies who purchased pulsed MIG equipment have paid $2000
to $5000 for pulsed weld equipment repairs before the
equipment was 48 months old.
2010: It would be interesting to find out;
[] WHAT PERCENTAGE OF PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT LASTS BEFORE
IT'S WARRANTY EXPIRED?
[] WHAT THE AVERAGE LIFE OF A PULSED POWER SOURCE IS?
[] IN A FIVE YEAR PERIOD, WHAT THE AVERAGE REPAIR COST IS
FOR PULSED EQUIPMENT?
[] HOW MANY COMPANIES TODAY WHO USE PULSED IN ROBOT CELLS,
WILL PURCHASE AN
ADDITIONAL PULSED POWER SOURCE SO THEY
HAVE A SPARE?
[] HOW MANY MAINTENANCE ELECTRICIANS WOULD FEEL COMFORTABLE
ATTEMPTING TO REPAIR A PULSED MIG POWER SOURCE?
[] HOW MANY COMPANIES REALLY ATTAINED REAL WORLD BENEFITS FROM THAT NEW COSTLY PULSED POWER SOURCE?
It's a sad reality that many companies
will pay $3000 to $5000 for pulsed MIG weld equipment
repairs, that's more than the cost of a new CV MIG power
source and wire feeder. Remember that CV power source, the
one which can provide optimum weld productivity / quality, (if you dont have to play around with weld controls).
It's the That's the power source
that should last one to two decades without repairs.
What helped the low durability, costly, erratic pulsed MIG
process become so popular in the last two decades? [] IN CONTRAST TO BUILDING TRADITIONAL CV EQUIPMENT, WHEN MAKING PULSED MIG
EQUIPMENT, THE EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER COULD REDUCE THE STEELS
/ ALLOY COSTS AND REDUCE THE LABOR
COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH
BUILDING THE CV EQUIPMENT.
[] ALL MIG EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS ARE AWARE THAT WHEN YOU
ADD ELECTRONIC BELLS AND WHISTLES YOU CAN DRAMATICALLY
INCREASE THE EQUIPMENT PRICES.
[] WHEN YOU SELL EQUIPMENT WITH A SHORT LIFE SPAN, YOU WILL
BE ABLE TO SELL MORE EQUIPMENT.
PRACTICAL PULSED MIG BENEFITS ON SPECIFIC
CARBON AND STAINLESS ROBOT APPLICATIONS:
Spray transfer can be too hot for some "carbon steel gage
applications" and there are numerous robot applications that
will use high current short circuit or globular transfer not
set correctly.
THE USE OF THE PULSED EQUIPMENT AND 0.045 WIRE AND THE
PULSED MODE ON SPECIFIC AUTOMATED 2 to 4 mm STEEL
APPLICATIONS COULD IN CONTRAST TO 0.035 WIRE, ALLOW SLIGHT
WELD BENEFITS SUCH AS A SMALL INCREASE IN WELD DEPOSITION
RATES.
IT'S IMPORTANT TO REALIZE. THAT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT A
SLIGHT PULSED MIG WELD BENEFIT HERE OR THERE, WE ARE
TALKING ABOUT BENEFITS THAT ARE IN REALITY NOT NECESSARY TO
THE SUCCESS OF A WELD APPLICATION. IF YOU HAVE MIG WELD
PROCESS EXPERTISE WITH THE AVAILABLE MIG WELD TRANSFER
MODES AND WIRE DIAMETERS, OPTIMUM, SPATTER FREE (NONE CODE QUALITY) WELDS CAN
ALWAYS BE ATTAINED WITH CONTROLLED SHORT CIRCUIT, GLOBULAR
AND SPRAY, FROM LOW COST, TRADITIONAL, CV MIG
EQUIPMENT.
Don't try this with your pulsed MIG equipment or you will fail.
Titanium TIG versus TIP TIG Welds.
If video pauses let it play through and repeat, usually better the second time.
TRADITIONAL ORBITAL TIG ON
GRADE 2 TITANIUM
MANUAL TIP TIG ON GRADE 2 TITANIUM
While using the slow manual or automated regular TIG process, there is always concern about the oxidation effects on Titanium alloys.
Typically all position, manual or mechanized titanium TIG welds on parts > 3 mm will be carried at weld speeds in the 3 to 6 inch/min range. To protect those low speed, high heat welds, trailing shields are a critical weld requirement to minimize the effects of oxidation.
When welds are sensitive to oxidation you know weld rework and weld porosity will be an issue. The high TIP TIG weld speeds and weld TIP TIG weld agitation will produce the highest quality, cleanest titanium welds.
With either the manual or automated TIP TIG process, TIP TIG titanium weld speeds will be much faster. The higher TIP TIG weld speeds will typically be 12 to 40 inch/min. The high TIG speeds enable some TIP TIG titanium welds on parts > 5 mm to produce 100% silver welds without the use of a trailing shield. This weld was made at 24 inch/min.
If your organization uses regular TIG on Titanium, you will be pleased to know that with TIP TIG, most manual or automated titanium welds will typically be done 100 to 300% faster with superior weld quality.
AN IMPORTANT WELD COST REDUCTION MESSAGE TO DEFENCE CONTRACTORS: As reported in the 2009. September. AWS. Weld Journal, the above (left frame) orbital Titanium welds were carried out on US Navy ships.
On one ship approx. nine orbital TIG weld units were used to weld CP Grade 2, titanium welds. The titanium welds were required on more than 12000 feet of titanium pipe which was used on each ship. Typical automated weld travel rates from the costly orbital weld equipment was 3 - 4 inch/min. If they had been able to use the TIP TIG process on the orbital units, the TIP TIG welds would have been made at minimum weld speeds of 12 to 25 inch/min producing a dramatic reduction in weld heat input, (less chance for oxidization) with no weld quality issues or costly weld rework concerns. It's also reality that with the TIP TIG weld benefits, these titanium welds could be made with the same quality and productivity with manual TIP TIG welders instead of that costly automated equipment. You don't have to be an accountant to figure out the dramatic equipment and labor cost reductions if TIP TIG had been the process of choice.
IF IT SOUNDS COMPLEX IT SHOULD
NOT BE IN A WELD SHOP?
IN AN INDUSTRY THAT DOES NOT THINK TWICE ABOUT
PLAYING AROUND WITH A
50 YEAR OLD, TWO CONTROL, TRADITIONAL
CV, MIG POWER SOURCE WE HAVE THIS BS?
< 2010. DURING THE LAST TWO DECADES OF SLOW PULSED EQUIPMENT
DEVELOPMENT, (THANK GOD COMPUTERS EVOLVED AT A MUCH FASTER
RATE), MOST PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT WAS PROVEN TO BE USELESS
AND UNSTABLE FOR MANUAL MIG OR HIGH SPEED ROBOT WELDS ON
CARBON / LOW ALLOY STEEL APPLICATIONS.
YET IN THIS TIME FRAME, THE MAJORITY OF NORTH AMERICAN WELD
SHOPS COULDN'T BUY THEM FAST ENOUGH.
IS THIS BS YOU WANT TO SEE
AND HEAR IN YOUR WELD SHOP?
The unique $12000 MIG power
source called called X-MIG, is controlled by a palm pilot,
it offers artificial intelligence with adaptive synergic
controls. X-MIG provides millions of wave form variations.
With X-MIG you get fuzzy, weezy, fuzzy woozy logic and triple
pulsed on triple pulsed. X-MIG also provides a refined super adaptive turbo
pulse which gives the arc an additional boost. Also included with
the X-MIG is a modified short circuit mode called MSC -
STP. Your new, X-MIG power source can also be hooked up to
your cell phone, or I-Pod and controlled if you feel the
need with the palm pilot through the ethernet. X-MIG comes
with a two week warranty, (check small print for warranty
clauses) and there is no return policy. By the way as we feel we are not responsible for the performance of this power source we feel you should be aware that it has never been field tested correctly. To order this unique,
useless MIG equipment, which cost the price of a small car,
contact the industry leaders in weld technology, at
askaWeldSalesman.com
HOW CAN YOU DO BETTER THAN
THIS?
Ed made this manual, optimum, spatter free MIG spray weld
with
a $3000 traditional CV. MIG power source that had no
electronics.
The low cost, durable, 400
amp, CV MIG power source I utilized on
the above weld, was developed four decades before wave
forms and fuzzy logic and electronic BS buzz words.
THE MORE COSTLY THE PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT, THE MORE COMPLEX
AND MORE EXPENSIVE THE MIG WELD EQUIPMENT REPAIRS.WHEN THE MAINTENANCE SUPERVISOR SAW THE NEW
PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT, HE REALIZED HIS ELECTRICIANS WERE SIMPLY NOT
CAPABLE OF FIXING THE MIG EQUIPMENT.
THE SUPERVISOR HAD A DIFFICULT TIME FINDING A LOCAL
EQUIPMENT REPAIR SHOP THAT COULD PROVIDE THE NECESSARY
ELECTRONIC PULSED WELD EQUIPMENT REPAIRS WITH A QUICK TURN
AROUND. TO MAINTAIN HIS DAILY ROBOT WELD PRODUCTION, HE
DECIDED TO ORDER ANOTHER 4 PULSED MIG UNITS AS
SPARES.
To purchase MIG equipment wave forms you don't need, how
much will your company this year budget for new pulsed MIG
equipment and the annual pulsed MIG weld equipment repairs?
Two weeks after the three year old warranty has elapsed on
that pulsed power source, you could end up with a pulsed
MIG weld power source repair bill that is in the $2000 to
$5000 range. The bottom line after that expensive repair,
that three year old pulsed power source is the equivalent
of a 10 year old car and you know what direction that power
source is heading.
ANOTHER INDICATION OF THE LACK OF EXPERTISE AT THE MAJOR WELD EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURES: Dec. 2008. Norfolk Virginia. I requested that the local
Miller rep bring in a Miller 350P pulsed power source to a
client of mine for a pulsed MIG demo on Aluminum. It took 10 to 15 minutes to figure the pulsed
arc characteristics were poor (insufficient energy for the
moderate rate wire feed delivered) on the 5356 program welding 1/4 (6 mm)
aluminum fillets. I switched the aluminum weld wire to 4043,
however we could not use the equipment as the 4043 program and the
arc control (voltage control) did not work. The demo failed.
TWO QUESTIONS YOU COULD
ASK
YOUR PULSED EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER.
[1] YOU ADMIT YOUR PULSED EQUIPMENT HAS HAD MANY
ELECTRONIC ISSUES, YET I CANNOT RECALL YOU INFORMING US
ABOUT THOSE FAULTS OR PROVIDING COMPENSATION FOR OUR WELD
ISSUES OR PROVIDING WELD EQUIPMENT RECALLS.
[2] AS WE RESENT BEING A TEST LAB FOR YOUR EVOLVING,
ERRATIC WELD EQUIPMENT, WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO
THOROUGHLY TEST YOUR NEXT NEW MIG EQUIPMENT WITH PERSONS WHO HAVE PROCESS / APPLICATION EXPERTISE BEFORE YOU
PRESENT IT TO THIS WELD SHOP?
Arc characteristics a minor detail for some
in the welding industry
.
PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT
PERFORMANCE:
As this MIG volt / amp graph of a 2004 PANASONIC pulsed MIG
POWER source indicates, the weld current (black) and
voltage (red) are anything but stable and the volt current spikes are unnaceptable.
Arc and weld energy stability with pulsed weld equipment is
something that should be a concern for any weld individual
that understands the importance of attaining consistent
weld energy for consistent weld transfer and consistent
weld fusion.
High pulsed MIG wire feed rates can lead to excessive
pulsed frequency resulting in high peak current weld
content, leading to excess weld fluidity and agitated weld
puddles.
Ed on right providing robot process control training for Magna plant in the USA 2004.
While there
he tested
Lincoln pulsed MIG Equipment versus CV equipment and spray transfer.
The following weld test comparisons were made using a Lincoln pulsed power source and a low cost
MIG power source, the Lincoln CV 400. The Lincoln CV 400 costs approx. $3000.
Compare what you pay for your robot weld equipment. In 2004,
the CV 400 robot MIG package, including wire feed and
interface, would sell for approx. $6500. For those tier one
companies who often get a twenty to thirty percent discount on the weld
equipment they purchase, did you pay more than $4500 for your
robot weld package, (power source and interface). Every penny
you spent over this price was a penny thrown out of your
window.
The Lincoln CV 400 will on the majority of weld applications outperform the much more costly Lincoln pulsed Power
Wave 455 and any of the Miller, ESAB or Japanese pulsed
equipment on carbon steel welds. In contrast to the low cost
CV equipment, the Lincoln Power Wave unit including a wire
feeder and interface will retail for around $12000 to $14000. In this segment the Lincoln CV welds are also compared with
the Lincoln Invertec, an inverter pulsed power source which
sells for approx. thirty percent more than the CV 400.
Lincoln CV 300 or 400: Ed made this untouched
"manual",
5/16, (8 mm) fillet weld, 0.045 wire, 450 ipm, approx. 13 lb/hr
Note: With this untouched spray
transfer fillet weld sample, no weld spatter, and the "flat"
smooth weld surface. Also note the spray weld's straight
edges which indicate consistent weld transfer and consistent
weld fusion.
PICTURE ABOVE: With an 0.045, (1.2 mm), E70S-3 MIG wire and
argon - 10% CO2 gas mix, Ed ran the 0.045 wire at a wire feed
rate of 450 ipm. The 450 ipm is an optimum spray transfer
wire feed rate for many auto / truck frame manufactures,
robot welding carbon steel parts 3 to 6 mm. The 450 ipm
wire feed rate will enable a 4 to 5 mm fillet welds at a robot
travel rates of 40 to 50 ipm. This deposition rate will also produce a
1/4, (6 mm) fillet weld at a robot speed of 20 to 22 ipm.
Pulsed MIG versus MIG Spray. 0.045
(1.2mm)
steel wire set at 350 ipm.
Picture above. I made the pulsed weld on left sample with the
0.045 wire. Compare it with the spray weld I made on the right using the
same wire size, the same technique, the same WSO and same wire feed rate using conventional CV
spray. Both welds were made with the wire feed set at 350 inch/min
delivering approx. 9 - 10 lb/hr. When set at 350 inch/min the
0.045 wire is at an "optimum" pulsed wire feed setting. The
0.045 wire set at 350 ipm is also the approx. "start point"
of spray transfer weld. Again note the pulsed weld
inconsistency is clearly evident in the convex, irregular weld surface and
inconsistent weld edges. When sectioned, you know which of
these two welds provided superior weld fusion.
If you want robot weld stability at high weld deposition
rates, purchase a CV power source and pay approx. $6000
rather than waste $12000 plus on pulsed MIG equipment. If you have
already spent your dollars on that pulsed power source and
want to improve weld fusion or arc stability switch over to
spray transfer.
Pulsed MIG versus MIG Spray. 0.045
(1.2mm)
steel wire set at 450 ipm.
Picture Above: Again you don't have to be a weld expert to
see that when the 0.045 wire is set at 450 ipm, (approx. 13
lb/hr), which weld is optimum. The 0.045 wire set at 450 ipm
is used on many robot spray welds on parts > 5 mm. This one
picture tells you why auto industry executives and engineers
have wasted millions of dollars on paying an expensive
premium for electronic pulsed equipment that has not created
any steel weld benefits for their plants
.
Pulsed MIG versus MIG Spray. 0.045
(1.2mm)
steel wire set at 550 ipm.
PICTURE ABOVE: Of course if you want the maximum possible
MIG weld deposition rate or highest ROBOT weld speeds from
the robots on steel parts > 8 mm you will use an 0.045
wire set around 550 ipm, 15 to 16 lb /hr. This is a common
spray wire feed setting you don't want to set with that
costly pulsed power source. One thing you can say for the
pulsed process, at low or high wire feed rates the weld
inconsistency is consistent.
IT'S ALSO TRUE WITH 0.035 (1mm) WIRES.
PICTURE ABOVE: With the 0.035 wire and argon 10% - CO2. I
opened the wire feed control to it's maximum setting and
provided a wire feed rate of 700 ipm. Again look at the spray
weld on the left versus the pulsed weld on the right. The
pulsed weld with the 0.035 wire indicated the same
inconsistent weld transfer pattern as with the 0.045 wire.
The pulsed weld was again more irregular and convex and the side wall weld
fusion was again less inconsistent than the spray weld. Again
note both welds are untouched with no spatter.
0.035 WIRE SET AT AN OPTIMUM MID
RANGE PULSED WIRE FEED RATE OF 550 ipm,
Compare with the MIG spray weld, you know which is the
best weld.
Picture Above. Again note the 0035 wire comparison of the
pulsed mode versus spray transfer weld. In the pulsed picture
on the right, the welds are made at a mid range wire feed
setting of 550 ipm. As the weld indicates again the
traditional spray mode shows more consistency in the metal
flow rate.
If you want the most effective robot and manual MIG
and
flux cored weld process control training program,
visit here..
Ed's process control training resources.
Pulsed MIG welding Torque Converters:
THIS COSTLY LINCOLN POWER WAVE,
WAS NOT
UP TO THIS SIMPLE WELD CHALLENGE.
After years of trying to educate an apathetic big
three weld management, it's only fitting that my last auto weld
consulting job in the year 2000, ended up in a Detroit
General Motors plant and the application was using the
infamous Lincoln pulsed MIG equipment.
The GM management and engineers who typically like Ford and Chrysler engineers are not aware of the process fundamentals that weld their vehicals were
not satisfied with their new multi-million dollar torque
converter line pulsed MIG welds. This line had been set up to
automatically pulsed MIG weld approx. 1000 torque converters
daily.
The GM torque converter parts are delivered to the weld
stations by conveyors. In the weld cells, the round parts
rotate while the MIG welding guns are stationary. The parts
required a continuous 3/16 (4.8 mm) horizontal
lap seal
weld.
Each weld station had three MIG guns which would
simultaneously weld the converters as they rotated. The
pulsed MIG weld problems generated from the Lincoln equipment
and a process that often does not deliver optimum weld quality delivered a product with the following;
[a] The torque converters had a 4 - 8% leak rate from the multi MIG pulsed welds. In
the auto industry this leak rate in some plants would be
considered good, however at this GM plant, as the weld production
volume was extensive, the finished machined torque converters
were very costly and weld repairs were not allowed.
[b] Excess weld heat from the multi-torch operation was
also causing production "assembly" issues.
The Lincoln pused weld equipment arc weld instability at recommended pulsed wire feed settings established by Lincoln
engineers and technicians caused extensive weld quality issues, weld rework and
productivity issues for GM. The GM engineers had worked out the
annual weld rework and loss of productivity losses for this
plant would be in the range of 1.5 to 2 million dollars. For
a little weld process logic from Ed who fixed the problem and never even got a thank you card from Lincoln and for the the rest of the story
click here.
I2004. Another Pulsed
MIG Problem from Miller and I was
wondering, do those guys at Miller know what defines a good weld
and do they ever
test their pulsed MIG equipment?
2004: This time my pulsed MIG application was a major tier one
manufacturer of stainless exhaust coupling and flexible
fittings as used in the auto / truck industry. The tight
tolerance, stainless parts, are rotated in an automated
Bancroft welding machine with the single MIG gun stationary. The stainless MIG welds were made
inside the flange. With these automated parts I was again provided
the opportunity to evaluate pulsed MIG versus traditional
spray.
To weld the stainless coupling parts, the manufacturer had
selected Miller Invision pulsed MIG
equipment and the weld transfer mode utilized was the pulsed
MIG mode. The 0.045 (1.2mm) 300 series stainless weld wire
was set at what should have been an an optimum,
conservative pulsed wire feed rate of 300 ipm with optimum weld volts. After
welding each part, the parts were leak tested. The pulsed
welds looked good, yet the average weld rework as revealed
by the leak test was over ten percent.
To fix the leaks, I first switched off the pulsed mode and
within a few minutes established new "spray transfer" weld
parameters. With the spray mode I set the 0.045 wire feed
rate higher, at "400 ipm". With the higher spray wire feed
rate I increased the actual weld production by 25%and the leak test for the new spray transfer welds was "zero
percent".
AS THE WELD TRAVEL RATE AND WIRE STICK OUT WAS CONSTANT, THIS WAS A GREAT APPLICATION TO COMPARE THE MILLER PULSED
MODE WITH SPRAY TRANSFER. To reevaluate the pulsed mode at
the same wire feed rate set with the the spray weld, I then
reset the Miller Invision power source back to the pulsed
mode and set the pulsed wire feed rate at 400 ipm. I then
fine tuned the pulsed parameters to minimize spatter with
the shortest optimum arc length. The new pulsed welds looked as
good as the spray welds, however when the parts were leak tested approx. 8% of the pulsed MIG welds required
weld rework. I turned the pulsed mode off and from 2005 and
these important auto / truck part welds are made the old
fashioned Ed Craig way, using "spray transfer".
As much as weld equipment companies benefit from
making their weld equipment complex and costly, please note MIG welding has never been rocket science. The wires in your $10 Chinese
toaster provide the correct amount of resistance and
current to maintain the wire in a consistent red heat
condition.
As the photo on the right indicates, for a few hundred
dollars, you can put two car batteries together. With the
24 volts hooked up a small spool wire feeder gun you can
then produce an excellent MIG weld.
In the simple task of melting the tip of a small diameter,
MIG wire, weld equipment manufactures today don't blink as
they offer a sophisticated, electronic pulsed MIG power
source at the cost of a small car. If you have more money than sense you know you need pulsed MIG equipment for you steel welds.
Miller Pulsed MIG Update 2008.It's the same
stainless coupling company I visited in 2004, only this
time we compare the Miller Axcess pulsed mode against lower
cost CV equipment and the traditional spray transfer
mode.
In 2004 when this auto parts supplier had problem with the
Miller Invision pulsed MIG flange welds on the stainless
couplings, I found that we could get the consistent weld
results the company desired by switching the pulsed mode
off and welding the the flange stainless welds with spray
transfer. (See above story).
In 2008 Miller delivered it's new Miller Axcess with a promise
that the pulsed mode was now stable and would achieve
the desired weld quality on the automated
stainless coupling welds. The coupling company was dubious about Miller's promises so they invited me back to compare the
Miller Axcess pulsed mode against the traditional spray
mode I had previously established.
IT'S LOGICAL FOR ANY WELD SHOP TO ASK, WHAT REAL WORLD WELD BENEFITS ARE
DERIVED FROM MAKING THE MIG WELD EQUIPMENT
MORE COSTLY AND COMPLEX?
WHAT DOES THE PULSED MIG EQUIPMENT HAVE TO DO TO
MAKE THAT COMMON 1/4 (6 mm) FILLET WELD? As the pulsed MIG weld wire travels into the weld at
typical speeds of 100 to 700 ipm, that highly sensitive,
artificial intelligent pulsed MIG power source has to;
If the weld shop was confused about
the two control short circuit and spray modes,
what hope does the shop have understanding pulsed
MIG if pulsed parameter adjustments are required?
A traditional CV, MIG power source may be
short on electronics, however it does a great job while
welding as it automatically maintains the arc length during
wire stick out variations.
The low cost, durable MIG equipment provides three unique
MIG weld transfer modes suited to all metals. Short circuit
provides controlled low heat input suited from 20 gage to
0.100. Controlled globular produces a small amount of weld
spatter and suited to weld 14 gage to 0.125 and depending
of the use of robot or manual welding, spray is suited to
welding all steel parts >0.070.
WHAT ABOUT THOSE INVERTERS OR CC/CV MULTI-PROCESS
POWER SOURCES?.....Did you know the regular lowest cost CV
power source is superior to an Inverter and a multi-process
or pulsed power source when used for the MIG weld modes,
short circuit or spray and for welding with the gas
shielded flux cored wires?. (This info is not available from Miller, ESAB or Lincoln, however the evidence is available in my MIG and flux cored Process
Control training CDs.
There is a great value for any weld decision maker, when
they combine weld process expertise with a $2000 - $3000 CV power
source and a simple two part gas mix that can handle the vast majority of the world's
welding applications.
Ed providing MIG and flux cored process control training to
60 engineers
and managers from 6 countries.
2010: MIG WELD BEST PRACTICES AND PROCESS CONTROL
TRAINING FOR WELD OPTIMIZATION. MOST COMMUNITY COLLEGES
DON'T PROVIDE IT, UNIVERSITIES THAT OFFER WELD ENGINEER DEGREES
DON'T DO IT, COMMUNITY COLLEGES THAT TEACH WELDING RARELY DO IT, AND WELD SHOPS GIVE IT MINIMAL CONSIDERATION .
IF THE WELD PROCESS CONTROL TRAINING IS PROVIDED FROM MY CD,
MIG AND FCAW POWER POINT PROGRAMS, THE WELD RESULTS FOR YOUR
ORGANIZATION CAN BE REMARKABLE.
[a] WELD PERSONNEL WILL NO LONGER "PLAY AROUND" WITH WELD
CONTROLS ATTAIN OPTIMUM WELD DATA.
[b] WELD PERSONNEL WILL KNOW WHEN TO SWITCH FROM SHORT CIRC,
GLOBULAR SPRAY OR PULSED OR WHEN TO CHANGE THAT WELD WIRE
SIZE OR GAS MIX FOR OPTIMUM WELD QUALITY AND
PRODUCTIVITY.
[c] WELD PERSONNEL WILL IMMEDIATELY UNDERSTAND THE ROOT CAUSE
OF THEIR WELD ISSUES AND WILL PROVIDE INSTANT WELD PROCESS
RESOLUTIONS NECESSARY FOR THE COMMON ALL WELD ISSUES.
[d] WELD PERSONNEL WILL UNDERSTAND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN
WELD COSTS, WIRE FEED SETTINGS AND THE WELD DEPOSITION RATES
THEY DAILY ATTAIN.
A FEW OF ED'S PROCESS OPTIMIZATION PROJECTS,
FORD F 150 FRAMES -
VOLVO CABS - CORVETTE FRAMES- HARLEY FRAMES -
NEW BEETLE SEATS
AND
ED ALSO ESTABLISHED
THE ROBOT WELDS FOR THE
WORLD'S LARGEST CATERPILLAR TRUCK.
WHY NOT GIVE THEM
THIS FUNDAMENTAL MIG WELD
PROCESS CONTROL TEST
HOW FAR IN THE WELDING INDUSTRY DID WE EVOLVE BETWEEN 1988
AND 2008? In the graphs below we have two MIG welds both
set with optimum weld data. If you believe in the
importance of MIG arc stability take your choice. Compare
the spray voltage (red) and current (black) graph on right from a
regular $2000 MIG power source built in 1988, with the
optimum pulsed mode graph on the left from a $12.000 USA
manufactured pulsed power source built in 2008.
Even lawyers could figure
this weld equipment performance graph out.
In one weld process control presentation I provided a process control work shop with a large group of
ASTEC / Kolberg managers and engineers. There was two lawyers present,
ready to give a talk on patents. I asked the lawyers which
of these graphs they would accept in the attainment of consistent,
optimum MIG weld quality. You know they both picked the one
on the right.
The next two pictures are are two 3/16 (4.8 mm) fillet
welds I made during 2003 on 1/4 stainless steel. The welds
were made with a Lincoln 300 Power MIG. The 300 power
source was a single phase, pulsed MIG unit that retailed at
that time for approx. $3,700. This pulsed MIG power source
has pre-scheduled pulsed programs for specific wire types
and diameters.
This Lincoln pulsed MIG power source was purchased by a
company that welds both steel and stainless parts. Due to
it's daily welding issues, (most caused by lack of process
expertise) this company believed it needed Lincoln's so called unique pulsed
power source. The MIG wires used for the 3/16 fillet welds were
0.035, (1mm) - 308L and 309 wires.
With the Lincoln power source, I set the 0.035 wire feed at
550 ipm, a setting that should have been an optimum pulsed
wire feed rate. The power source provided the pulsed
parameters, I simply had to set the trim, (fine tune the
weld voltage) to attain the optimum pulsed arc length. The
manual welds were untouched after welding. Take note of the
mediocre pulsed weld appearance and also the heat affected
zone in contrast to the spray photo.
A PULSED PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS. A MACRO
LOOK AT THE PULSED MIG FUSION MAY CAUSE MANY COMPANIES CONERN.
$3700: Lincoln 300. Pulsed MIG "On".
Lincoln 300: Same wire feed settings as above
with the pulsed mode turned "off".
With the pulsed mode switched off, the Lincoln 300 power
source was set to spray transfer. The same weld wire and
wire feed rate as the pulsed weld were used for the 3/16
stainless spray transfer fillet weld. As you can see above,
even the spray weld was poor with an obvious lack of weld
energy. Poor slope output for spray is common from pulsed
MIG equipment. As you can see when comparing both welds
even the HAZ is similar. My point is simple. Why pay extra
for the pulsed electronics when you don't need them? Why
pay for something that provides inferior performance to
traditional CV equipment and is less durable and more costly
to repair?
Check the weld similarity
from the two weld transfer modes.
Check out the Lincoln poor performance for both the pulsed and
spray weld.
The above welds would be dramatically improved using the
same wire feed settings and spray transfer from a regular
> 250 amp CV power source. So we have another weld shop
that purchased a pulsed product that did not live up to the
salesman promises.
IF YOU WANT TO FIND THE WORLDS WORST WELDS
PAY A VISIT TO AN AUTO / TRUCK PLANT
NO WELD EQUIPMENT ISSUES HERE,
JUST LACK OF ROBOT WELD PROCESS EXPERTISE.
2003 - 2004. Weld Equipment.
Lincoln Pulsed Power Wave.
Purchased by managers and engineers who lacked
the ability to take ownership of a welding process.
These Ford truck robot welds were
managed and programmed by engineers and
robot weld personnel who thanks to inexperienced management lacked the ability
to
establish
Best Weld Practices and Weld Process Controls.
Purchase the most expensive and
most sophisticated electronic
MIG equipment available. Make some bad choices on the weld
wire size selected. Mix in inexperienced, hands off weld
management. Toss in some poorly trained engineers,
supervisors and technicians and you to will have the right
combination to produce truck frame welds that look like
they fell out of the rear end of a pigeon as it flew over
the parts.
What a combination, America's most expensive pulsed power
source welding on America's most expensive truck, it was a lousy marriage. Here in
the USA we can blame the loss of many jobs on overseas
lower labor costs or superior Japanese quality, which from
a weld perspective is simply a myth. If we face weld
reality, we may want blame a good portion of the demise of
the Big Three and North American job losses on under
qualified, manufacturing management who for decades lacked
the ability to control and optimize the equipment they
own and therfore lacked the abilty to recognize the process control training necessary for their plant employees.
Remember optimum MIG welds
are not about a unique weld transfer mode such
as pulsed, they are about a balance between the weld energy
(slope output)
delivered and the wire feed rate utilized.
Visit Ed's Weld Process Control Training Resources.
THE FOLLOWING IS A CASE OF WELD PRODUCT MARKETING /
SALESMANSHIP AND BOVINE FECAL MATTER THAT FROM MY
PERSPECTIVE IN HAS REACHED AN ALL TIME LOW.
I was amazed to read one advertisement in the Nov. 2003.
Weld Journal, a magazine that often struggles to walk a
line between it's source of advertising revenue and
maintaining unbiased weld technology credibility.
The advertisement in the Weld Journal was from National
Standard, (NS), a primary North American MIG wire
manufacturer. The NS advert made ridiculous
claims for it's new Pulse PLUS Steel MIG Weld Wire.
National Standard claimed. "That with their unique MIG wire
and the pulsed MIG process you will get less weld
spatter, less weld fumes and their MIG wire will
reduce the need for grinding. NS also claimed that
their pulsed wire is supposed to provide a wider
operating range than competitive MIG wires. NS made four claims
that were simply four lies.
BS from National Standard on it's so called Pulsed MIG Plus MIG
Wire.
When an industry has to rely on salesmanship,
there will always a supplier
ready to deliver it. The sad point is the Weld Journal should not deliver it.
SHAME on National Standard, a major North
American weld wire manufacturer for it's gross product lies
and complete lack of respect for the intelligence of it's
North American welding customers.
SHAME on a Welding Journal affiliated with the
none profit American Weld Society for providing this ad.
This is a journal that prides itself on it's technical articles, perhaps this journal forgot that it only benefits it's "paid subscribers" as long
as the information and advertising it provides is
credible.
SHAME ON the welding industry that's been
using the MIG process for more than five decades, an
industry which still has many gullible readers that
actually believed the NS claims and purchased this
ridiculous MIG wire.
< 2005. When it comes to reading advertisements
and welding literature written by personnel who work
for world's leading MIG equipment and consumable
manufacturers, before you believe what you read, put
that weld shield in place, check the wire feed
rates you can deliver, examine the arc and weld consistency,
THEN CUT THE WELDS AND BELIEVE IN THE WELD FUSION YOU
SEE.
Ed Craig 2005.
Hello Ed. We are trying to
utilize GMAW-P on an HY-80 steel pipe welds. I was pushing
for gas shielded flux cored wires, but our engineers will
not allow flux cored wires for our procedures. The
engineers complain of poor mechanical properties from the
flux cored wires on the HY metal. We can't use spray as
many of the welds are out of position. We are having a
difficult time passing UT with our Miller Invision pulsed
power source. The MIG pulsed parameters required provide a
wide arc zone and long arc length, this results in
inconsistent weld fusion.
We are thinking about switching to Lincoln Pulsed
equipment, as they tell us with their equipment that we can
control the pulsed wave forms and get better results. The
Miller Equipment does not allow wave form manipulation from
the interface, you have to run off the factory resets. Do
you have any suggestions on getting better results with our
GMAW-P equipment?
Ed's Reply: Forget that nonsense about "pulling a magic
wave form out of that red machine". Your question brings to
light some of the pulsed process issues I have been talking
about for more than a decade. Pulsed variable parameters
and pulsed arc length sensitivity combined with a lower
energy, fluctuating pulsed MIG arc plasma will have welding
consequences especially to those who are concerned about
the weld fusion attained. Of course to attain more weld
energy with pulse one can always increase the pulse
parameters. However there are limits and when those
parameters are outside the optimum pulsed parameter range,
you will not likely be pleased with the resulting
welds.
Good luck with the Lincoln Power Wave and it's numerous
wave forms.
I think you will find that wave form control which sounds
great in the Lincoln marketing brochure is going to have
have little impact on your weld applications. You may want
to read one of my many experiences with the Lincoln Power
Wave when it created serious weld quality issues for
American Axle, a major tier one axle manufacturer. Check
out the MIG equipment section.
Your statement on the engineers
comments on unacceptable gas shielded flux cored weld
mechanical properties shows a real problem in your
organization and a common major problem for many
companies.
If your company is interested in attaining consistent weld
fusion and higher than traditional weld strength it should
fire the engineers who made the ridiculous flux cored
statement and quickly get used to welding with the highly
cost effective gas shielded flux cored consumables or better still take a look at TIP TIG.
Your companies weld issues are typical of many companies in
the pipe and pressure vessel industries, companies where
you will find many engineers who provide MIG and flux cored
weld opinions, yet few are qualified to make a rational MIG
or flux cored weld process decision.
Ed's answer. You are
finding the weld reality that the pulsed equipment you
purchased does not live up to the promises made by the
equipment mfg. Call me reference the solution to this
problem. Ed.
ROBOTS AND HIGH SPEED PULSED MIG WELD CONCERNS: The pulsed,
inconsistent, lower open arc energy attained from < 2005
pulsed equipment was not the logical choice for many high
weld speed robot applications, especially when you consider
the two prime weld quality issues on many robot welds on
steel or stainless parts > 4mm was;
[1] marginal or lack of side wall weld fusion.
[2] inconsistent or skipped welds caused by inconsistent
transfer of the electrons across the arc.
SPRAY VERSUS PULSED PLASMA
AND THE WELD STREAM:
In contrast to the ever changing, peak to back ground
pulsed MIG transfer mode, the constant energy, higher
velocity, denser plasma with the spray transfer weld
stream, offers three unique weld attributes;
[1] Spray Transfer: With consistent weld parameters, spray
transfer will provide a less fluctuating, more consistent
plasma shape and therefore maintain the
location of the arc plasma energy influencing the weld
fusion potential. In contrast to spray, the pulsed plasma
is typically weaker as 50% of it's time its at the back
ground current setting. In the pulsed back ground to peak
condition, the plasma profile continuously collapses
between a narrow and wider plasma.
[2] Spray transfer can weld with a much shorter arc length
than pulsed. The shorter arc length focuses the most
concentrated area of the arc plasma plasma energy in the
weld rather than over the external weld surface. The
concentrated, higher energy spray plasma is beneficial to
attaining optimum weld fusion and stable electron transfer
with high speed welds.
[3] The traditional spray transfer plasma configuration and
short arc length potential can provide an arc less
sensitive to mill scale or specific coatings.
THE WONDER OF THE REGULAR MIG ARC: When you read anout the pulsed MIG
electronics performing miracles as the MIG arc lengths
change, remember In most robot and automated welding
systems, the MIG arc length (wire tip to work distance)
variations that take place during the welds should be
minuscule. However if the constant voltage (CV) arc length
does change during the weld, the traditional CV MIG power
source has always had that unique slope feature in which a
small voltage change in the arc will result in a high rapid
weld current change that instantly "self corrects the arc
length".
E-mail from l. KD - P&F. 12 /07
DON'T FORGET THE INFLUENCE OF THE SPRAY WELD
GAS ON THE STABLE SPRAY TRANSFER WELDS.
GAS MIXES CAN PROVIDE A GREAT CONTRIBUTION TO WELD
STABILITY AND WELD ENERGY
In a time of equipment electronic bells and whistles,
please remember with MIG gas mixes, that the CO2 gas
dissociation and oxidation properties, are often not given
the credit or consideration they deserve.
Ed introduced 4 important gas mixes in North America and recommends you
visit the MIG gas section of this site.
The Japanese will often add electronics to welding
equipment
without understanding why they add the electronics
E-mail. Oct 2008:
I am emailing you because I have come to a questionable
snag with my pulsed MIG equipment. I have the equipment set
in the spray mode. I am welding on 5/16” carbon steel material, my
settings are set to spray transfer (29 volts 500 wire speed
in/min).
When making a 3/16” fillet weld with the 0.035 wire I
have noticed that at the end of the weld, the weld flattens
out and has what I have been taught to refer to as a
“fish eye” ( I am not sure if this is the right
term for this problem ).
The attached photo will show you what I am referring to.
When coming to the end of my weld I back over the weld
about ¼” instead of just stopping. I don’t
pull my nozzle away before I let the trigger go, so I
don’t think this issue is caused due to the length of
the stick out. My gas is set to 35cfh argon/CO2 mix.
Could you please advise what may be causing this poor
finish is this just cosmetic or an issue that needs to be
addressed? If this is an issue that needs to be addressed
could you please explain the proper procedure for fixing.
These parts are under extreme vibrations and some stresses
Vertical / Horizontal and Lateral. Thank you.T
Eason.
Ed's Reply. Two things going on here.
[1] First the weld picture indicates poor side wall fusion.
As you are using good spray parameters the lack of fusion
is likely a result that the weld surface was wire brushed, however
the mill scale has been left. If you are concerned
about fatique properties you don't MIG weld over mill
scale. Grind the weld area before welding, I am sure you
will see a difference in the weld appearence.
[2] A fish eye is typically a pore evident in a failed weld
and the bright shiny appearence in the pore indicates the
presence of hydrogen, so you dont have a fish eye. You do
have a pulsed power source that has a built in defect. This
is a a commom classic issue with pulsed equipment in which
the machine controlled end parameters or burn back
parameters are set too high, (more evidence that pulsed
equipment manufactures don't correctly test the equipment
they build.) I see this defect all the time in pulsed equipment in robot
cells. At the end of the weld, the high voltage spike
applied for the burn back causes a suck back effect in the
arc leaving that classic hole in the crater. In many
instances if you examine with magnification you will find
shrinkage cracks around that hole and with your fatigue
concerns, this defect has to be ground out and the crater
filled in. My MIG process control training resources deal with this
issue and provide process solutions, however you would be
well served to send the power source back to the company
who manufactured it. It's ironic that this defect would not
occur on a lower cost traditional CV power source.
THE PULSED MIG PROCESS HAS MORE THAN ONE ACHILLES
HEEL: Even with the world's best pulsed equipment, on many
common applications the Pulsed MIG process will always have
its Achilles Heel. Visit section 2 of pulsed MIG. Find out
about useless wave form options and concerns for lack of
weld fusion.
Invest in your weld career, its your choice talk to a salesman or order
Ed's books and MIG
and flux cored, manual or robot weld process control CD training
resources.
PULSED MIG CANNOT COMPETE WITH TIP TIG
IF WELD QUALITY IS YOUR FIRST CRITERIA.
If you are teaching your self, or providing weld
process control training for others, the following
resources are the key to attaining MIG and flux cored
weld process optimization.
Item.1. The Book: "A Management & Engineers Guide
To MIG Weld Quality, Productivity & Costs"
Item 2. A unique robot MIG training or self teaching
resource.
"Optimum Robot MIG Welds from Weld Process
Controls".
Item 3. A unique MIG training or self teaching
resource.
" Manual MIG Weld Process Optimization from Weld
Process Controls".
Item. 4. A unique flux cored training or self
teaching resource.
"Optimum Manual and Automated Flux Cored Plate and
Pipe welds.
Item 5a."Proceso de Soldadura MIG Manual" (MIG Made
Simple. Self teaching in Spanish)
Item 6a. The Self Teaching MIG Book/ Video. (MIG
Made Simple in English).
Note: Items 2-3-4 are the most comprehensive
process control, self teaching and training
programs ever developed..
Visit Ed's MIG / flux
cored process control books and CD training
resources.
PULSED MIG A,GOOD PROCESS. CONSIDER TIP TIG IF NDT EXAMINATION OF INTERNAL WELD QUALITY REQUIRED OR LESS WELD HEAT IS DESIREABLE.
It must be annoying to the MIG equipment manufacturers who
see great profits from the sales of useless bells and
whistles and circuit boards, that the $1.80 lb, E71T-1 flux
cored wires can attain superior all position weld results when
used on low cost, durable, $3000 CV. MIG equipment little changed since it was developed in
the 1960s.
WHEN PURCHASING MIG EQUIPMENT THE WELD SHOP FOCUS
Many of you have worked in weld shops in which the
management has an umbilical cord attached to the local weld
salesman, this guy has an open door invitation to come in
and demonstrate the latest MIG gas mix, weld consumable or
power source? 
produced with earlier equipment utilized in producing the
original weld qualification procedure. Of course if you
are welding thin gage aluminum parts < 4 mm, the
differences in the pulsed equipment may not be relevant,
however when dealing with code quality welds on parts
> 4 mm, the weld concern factor needs to kick in, and weld
macros should be required to ensure the pulsed procedures
from the new pulse MIG are acceptable.
WELD PROCESS CONTROLS SHOULD
START IN THE FRONT OFFICE:
Hayes is a global manufacturer of
car and truck wheels. We use the Pulsed MIG process for most of our
wheel welds. Since we introduced the Miller Maxtron and
Miller Invision equipment to our automated, MIG weld
production lines, we have had extensive, weld production
and rework issues. The typical wheel pulsed weld problems
that we experienced with the Miller equipment were;
IN A FEW MONTHS OF PULSED WELD PROCESS DEVELOPMENT AT WSI, I CAME
UP WITH A NEW PULSED MIG METHOD / PROCEDURE, (WELD 
2010: DURING THE LAST TWO DECADES, MOST OF THE ERRATIC PULSED
MIG EQUIPMENT REQUIRED NUMEROUS
E-PROM, CIRCUIT BOARD AND ELECTRONIC CHANGES, YET AS FAR AS I
AM AWARE, NO PULSED MIG POWER SOURCE RECALLS WERE EVER ISSUED
FROM ANY GLOBAL, MAJOR WELD EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER. 
[] IN CONTRAST TO BUILDING TRADITIONAL CV EQUIPMENT, WHEN MAKING PULSED MIG
EQUIPMENT, THE EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER COULD REDUCE THE STEELS
/ ALLOY COSTS AND REDUCE THE LABOR 
PRACTICAL PULSED MIG BENEFITS ON SPECIFIC
CARBON AND STAINLESS ROBOT APPLICATIONS:
As much as weld equipment companies benefit from
making their weld equipment complex and costly, please note MIG welding has never been rocket science. The wires in your $10 Chinese
toaster provide the correct amount of resistance and
current to maintain the wire in a consistent red heat
condition.
In the weld tests the Miller Axcess
performed well in the pulsed mode. With both the pulsed arc
and spray arc lengths finely tuned to 
minimize spatter. The weld results were again
interesting. The Axcess package is priced about 50% more
than a standard CV Miller Delta Weld package, however the Miller Axcess pulsed mode did no
better than the regular MIG spray mode. It's true that the average weld
current from the pulsed mode was less, however lower
current on this application which was subject to leak tests was not a
benefit. As for weld spatter, the coupling weld position
and small ID create an excellent weld spatter trap, so weld
spatter was a major concern. Again the Axcess did well on
the spatter count, however the spatter results between the
pulsed mode and spray mode were so miniscule that when the
pulsed and spray parts were placed side to side, no one
could tell which was the spray weld and which was the
pulsed weld. The important bottom line for this company was there was no justification to pay the extra price for the Miller Axcess. In the afternoon 
Your statement on the engineers
comments on unacceptable gas shielded flux cored weld
mechanical properties shows a real problem in your
organization and a common major problem for many
companies.
Note from Ed: This is one of the largest
tier one suppliers to Honda and Toyota in the USA. The
plant has hundreds of Panasonic robots and Panasonic
pulsed MIG equipment.
Many Japanese companies are hobbled daily
with their Achilles approach to manufacturing. What is
that Achilles heel? It's an arrogance that what they do
is superior to anyone else. Bringing erratic performing
Japanese weld equipment and Japanese MIG wires to America
was like sending second grade coal to Newcastle, UK. The
costly Asian weld wires provided no benefits, the
Panasonic weld equipment was a disaster of inconsistency
and erratic performance of the Panasonic Japanese robots left
a lot to be desired.
5/16” carbon steel material, my
settings are set to spray transfer (29 volts 500 wire speed
in/min).
