I Thought I Was Losing My Mind

[MrWhoopee]

Several months ago I ran out of argon for my AHP Alpha-TIG 200x. I don't use it a lot, so it took me a while to get a replacement bottle and it was a month or two before I needed to use it. When I did, I discovered that I had suddenly lost the ability to weld. Mind you, I'm no master weldor, but I've done a quite a bit of it. I can't stack dimes, but I can stick metal together in an acceptable manner. It was impossible to get a good puddle going and the welds had serious porosity. After checking all the settings (none of which had changed) and gas flow (my hearing is not great, but I could feel the puff of gas when I hit the pedal), I decided it had to be bad/incorrect gas. My LWS was surprisingly understanding and replaced the bottle. The problem remained. I suspected the two bottles must have been filled at the same time. I borrowed a bottle of argon from a friend, the problem remained. Now I'm really puzzled and frustrated. After thinking about it for a couple of weeks I decided to try a direct connection from the flow meter to the torch, bypassing the the plumbing in the welder. It was at this point that I noticed a very slight "disturbance" in the braid covering the torch lead, right where it exited the plug on the front of the welder. Closer examination revealed that I had, at some point, bumped something into the plug and cut the gas tube. The cut was not big enough to completely cut off flow, but sufficient to prevent adequate flow and allow air into the tube. I decided to repair it, because that's what I do. Because the power lead runs inside the tube, cutting and splicing was not an option. Scrounging around in the garage, I came up with some Romex jacket about the right size. I cut a 3 in. piece and slit it lengthwise. I then slathered the inside liberally with Shoe-Goo (my current favorite), wrapped it over the braided jacket and secured it with several hose clamps.

I can weld again!

 

[ericc]

The problem is that there is no good test for Ar-CO2 mixes. I wonder if one could do a "dogmeat" test with some sodium silicate bonded sand. I bet that Ar-CO2 would trigger the hardening reaction.

 

[MrWhoopee]

The problem is that there is no good test for Ar-CO2 mixes. I wonder if one could do a "dogmeat" test with some sodium silicate bonded sand. I bet that Ar-CO2 would trigger the hardening reaction.

Sorry, my computer inadvertently posted before I was finished. I'm using straight argon.

 

[RJSakowski]

The classic chemistry test for CO2 is bubbling though lime water (calcium hydroxide solution). CO2 will turn the clear solution milky and it is sensitive enough to detect CO2 in your breath.

 

[FOMOGO]

"I Thought I Was Losing My Mind"quote
Don't feel to badly, I lost mine years ago. I't comes around occasionally to visit, and then off it goes again. Not sure where it goes, but it seems to be having a good time. Cheers, Mike

 

[brino]

I've been in a similar situation......
I once took my Lincoln 180T MIG welder, the bottle of CO2 shield gas and about 200' of heavy extension cord to a site to do a job for a friend.

My welds were NOT looking as good as some practice I had just done on some of the exact same material in the shop.
I was using the same welder settings, etc.
I figured it was just the site wind causing the shielding to suffer.
I put up some wind blocks and did my best.

Later when I got home I found the problem.....

This welder has a short ~3" brass adapter to connect the gauges to whatever size gas bottle I currently have.
When I went to put everything away I found a small plastic washer laying on the shop floor.
It goes at one side of that adapter tube.

I made a little "mind the washer" sign with stamped letters into an aluminum tag and wired it onto that adapter.
I have not been caught by it again since.

-brino