Video of the Week: Aerospace TIG Welding Practice

This video is about practicing for an Aerospace TIG welding test using plain cold rolled carbon steel.

Since the alloys used in aerospace can be very expensive, it makes sense to start off with plain cold rolled steel.

Once you can produce a test weld that meets the requirements of AWS D17.1 spec for aerospace fusion welding, then it's time to practice on the more expensive alloys like:

4130 chromoly  

15-7ph stainless steel  

Inconel 718

6061 aluminum  

AZ31b Magnesium  

6Al4v Titanium  

Haynes 188 cobalt alloy

One tip for tig welding test joints in a back purge fixture like the one shown here is to make sure the flow rate of the purge gas is not too high.  The fixture I used is pretty big and requires around 15 CFH but I have used some fixtures that only require 5 CFH or so.