Certain industries that involve welding of their products have very strict quality standards to ensure the production of sound welds. Many others however, do not. They simply weld and unless one of their products fails they don’t pay special attention to welding procedures, detailed inspection of welds or testing the skill (performance) of their welders. […]
A career as a Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) can be very rewarding. This certification, which is awarded by the American Welding Society, carries a lot of weight both nationally and internationally. The main responsibilities of a CWI is to make sure that welding operations are manufacturing products that comply with specified welding codes and standards. CWIs essentially are expected […]
The AWS D1.1 Structural Welding Code (Steel) welder qualification plate tests consists of a groove weld with a 45-degree included angle. The plates are prepared to a knife’s edge and a ¼ in [6 mm] backing strip is used. The test for unlimited thickness will use plates that are 1 in [25 mm] thick. Anything […]
In our previous article we mentioned that a customer was inquiring about running their 98% argon / 2% carbon dioxide (98/2) shielding gas on mild steel. This gas is used on stainless as it maintains the amount of reactive gas (in this case CO2) under 3%. Our quick answer was “yes, you can weld carbon […]
Today we received two different requests for help pertaining to shielding gas selection. The first caller requested a chart that tells them what materials can be welded with the different shielding gases that they had. They wanted a chart that can be provided to the welders to make sure they used the right gas on […]
A welding procedure specification (WPS) consists of a series of welding variables and corresponding allowable ranges. The selection of these ranges is very important. The idea is that if the welder is within all acceptable ranges he or she will deposit a sound weld, provided of course that the welder has the required skill. The […]
The majority of troubleshooting calls we receive regarding the GMAW (mig) process has to do with erratic wire feeding. This problem disguises itself in many forms, from bad looking welds to lack of penetration. Sometimes the effects of poor feeding are obvious and easily corrected. However, sometimes these effects are not easy to troubleshoot and […]
Distortion is a nasty problem we experience in welding. Understanding what causes distortion is important in order to be able to minimize or eliminate it completely. There are physical and mechanical properties that affect distortion susceptibility of materials. To learn more about this you can read 4 Material Properties That Affect Distortion. As fabricators we hardly […]
What is the difference between globular and short-circuit transfer? Short-circuit is a mode of metal transfer in GMAW in which metal is transferred from the electrode to the weld pool via a series of electrical shorts. When the electrode (wire) touches the base material a short occurs and the arc goes out. At this point […]
The qualification of welders and welding procedures often involves macro-examination of welds. Performing macro-etches is a relatively simple procedure, but strict guidelines must be followed to ensure safety. Most chemicals used in etching solutions are hazardous and must be handled accordingly. Any person etching with these chemicals must familiarize him or herself with the corresponding […]
