OK so not much experience with the EZ weld TiG wire. It appears that most agree with pre-heating and then using stick with 99% Ni (if I read that right).
I also have an Irwin vise that a friend of mine broke shortly before he died. Since it was broken completely (along the column that sits over the acme threaded rod, I decided to try that first with the EZ weld TiG wire. Considering the explanation given by "Mr. TiG" on the video, I just decided to try it exactly like he described. I cleaned the two pieces scrupulously and wiped it with acetone. I did not preheat. After going to the Miller Welder Calculator (I use that for guidelines to set things up) I turned up the amperage on the TiG to about 160. (It is a Lincoln 175 Square Wave).
Now it is important to understand that when I was working, I got to spend a good deal of money on good tools, knowing that eventually I would stop working and want to have those tools to "play with" on my farm. I'm not a "nice car, or nice clothes kind of guy, but I have a really bad "Tool Jones". I'm especially bad about getting really good layout and measuring tools. (Read: WoodPecker T squares, etc).
Given that, I bought what I thought are good tools, including a Lincoln PowerMiG 216, an ESAB 700 plasma cutter and the Square Wave 175...all brand new. NO second hand equipment for those. I buy a lot of second hand equipment for a lot of things, mostly hand tools (especially if I recognize the make and age and condition).
Additionally, I was NOT trained in the metal arts after 9th grade (some 51+ years ago) I have learned practically everything I NOW know by either just messing with it and seeing what happened or watching MrPete222 on YouTube and a few other well presented videos on using the lathe, milling machine and some other kinds of equipment.
So, now you have some idea of how I am going about all this. So, in the pursuit of this style of learning, I went ahead and tried the TiG with the EZ weld TiG wire. My results were quite good (at least they seem pretty good at the moment. I have not worked on the parts I mentioned earlier since there was NO going back if I boogered them up...(which HAS been known to happen in the past. Since that vise was already broken, I figured there was nothing to lose by trying. I did wire brush it before cleaning the edges. I did clean with acetone and let it dry. Then I just tried it. Since I have NEVER had a welding class or instruction other than how to strike an arc with a stick when I was 14, I figured I would have to break down and just try it. So far, it worked pretty good. I have not put the vise back together since I had the two parts in completely different buildings which are pretty far apart. I am trying to decide whether I want to "improve" what I did or wait to see what happens when I put that vise back together and crank down on that handle.
So, that is what has happened so far. I do have the Oxy-Acet rig so I can always resort to that but other than knowing how to light the torch and do a bit of cutting with it, I am not yet schooled in how to weld with it...or braze (which means I really don't know the difference.)
I'll let you all know what happens. It is a work in progress .
For now, I am still working on getting all those Foley-Belsaw carbide grinders back to working properly. I had to tear the 367 down to "parade rest" today and clean every single part. One of the way rods wouldn't come out so I managed to coax it out with a brass hammer and then I put it on my Smithy lathe with a steady rest and turned about .005 off of the end that was binding. I also used a bore grinding tool on the drill to clean up the holes through which the rod passes, figuring that both techniques would afford me an easier re-assembly...and it did. I put that machine back together and am now in the process of getting it set up according to the book.
I got the FB 357 carbide grinder working yesterday but am missing the critical chart at the end of the book called the "Hook and Top Clearance Angle Chart" which is no where to be found. It is driving me crazy. I spent about an hour trying to develop an equation for grinding the faces and that worked out well. I still don't have an equation for solving the distance on the tangent for the top clearance angles. If anyone knows of or has a copy of that chart, I would be eternally grateful for a copy.
Cheers,
Trim sends