Stainless Header fab.

The point of my reply is to let people know that no matter how hot you weld stainless steel you will not burn the NICKEL out. A discolored weld is caused by not protecting the weld from the atmosphere before it has cooled. So many people believe that the weld rusts because of what ever but they don't know!
I am not a UNION PIPE FITTER but I have been in the stainless steel sanitary pipe industry all my life, all I do is fabricate stainless, be sani pipe, stainless pressure vessels. I work in the BIO-PHARM industry and stainless is all I do!

Anyway your header looks kick a$$! Keep up the awesome work!

Dustin
 
I know I said I was done with this thread.

I had my Brother send me a pic of some stainless he welding at work. Hes a 597 Pipe Fitter also.

Notice the GOLD color? NO black ring from being welded to HOT. This is a done joint, NO passive crap dips, NO buffing. All he did was weld it and give it a light scrub with a S.S. hand brush.

I rest my case.
 

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man your brother is a machine!!!!!!!

ive never tigged but i will be soon. iam pretty good at every other kind of welding. but the above weld is just pure beuty. i called my gf in just to look at it
 
in my 24 years of life ive learned a few things and alot was from some old welders. one thing i learned realy quick was to never argue with one. listen and learn. you would be suprised how listening a little will improve your welding off rant
 
smoke machine said:
man your brother is a machine!!!!!!!

ive never tigged but i will be soon. iam pretty good at every other kind of welding. but the above weld is just pure beuty. i called my gf in just to look at it
Click to expand...

Thanks,
Just think, I'm the older one that taught him. I'm 3 years older, but have been a pipefitter for 8 years longer. He used to do autobody and painting, I kept telling him he was going to kill himself breathing all that crap.

I would have showed you some of mine, but I had hip surgery on June 9th and I am still recovering. Its been nice to have the summer off and spend time with my wife and kids.
 
smoke machine said:
ive learned a few things and alot was from some old welders. one thing i learned realy quick was to never argue with one. listen and learn.
Click to expand...

That's the main thing I can't argue with! :hehe:

Both Dustin & Tony are correct, but it's like a couple of blind guys arguing over what an elephant looks like - one's holding the trunk & the other's grabbing the ear.
Even though they know their trades well and are no doubt at the top of their professions, it's difficult for one person to know everything (or often even most things) about a fabrication process.

For example, in some applications it's beneficial to TIG stainless hot (= fast) to lower the total heat flux input via the weld, since stainless is a less efficient conductor of thermal energy than carbon steel - yet deforms significantly more than steel from elevated temperature.
I have often demonstrated to apprentices & journeymen how a fast 308L fillet @ 150 amps produces a cleaner, smoother, brighter weld than slow, heat-soaking low-amperage passes.

A professional TIG weld needs only a fine SS wire brushing to erase the heat zoning and clean the weld's carbon precipitation zone - but it should be brushed before the metal cools below a few hundred degrees (much easier & better looking that way). Purging & nitric passivating can be a PITA, and significantly increases manufacturing time unless we're talking batch processing, intricate weldments or process piping.

Nickel & chromium can "burn out" of stainless steel at >bright orange color temperatures - something we always had to monitor while hot forging 300 series and of course for refractory combustion chamber applications.
Obviously, excessive heat input from poor welding technique can also downgrade 316 to 304, to a magnetic 400-ish or even into straight carbon steel.

I've only been getting paid to TIG since 1981, so even though I've TIG'd everything from aluminum beer cans & inconel electrodes to magnesium radar antennae for the Navy, I figure there's still plenty to learn! :Cheer:

p.s. Nice job on the header - that should be your thesis for your TIG Master.
 
XLR8R said:
That's the main thing I can't argue with! :hehe:

Both Dustin & Tony are correct, but it's like a couple of blind guys arguing over what an elephant looks like - one's holding the trunk & the other's grabbing the ear.
Even though they know their trades well and are no doubt at the top of their professions, it's difficult for one person to know everything (or often even most things) about a fabrication process.

For example, in some applications it's beneficial to TIG stainless hot (= fast) to lower the total heat flux input via the weld, since stainless is a less efficient conductor of thermal energy than carbon steel - yet deforms significantly more than steel from elevated temperature.
I have often demonstrated to apprentices & journeymen how a fast 308L fillet @ 150 amps produces a cleaner, smoother, brighter weld than slow, heat-soaking low-amperage passes.

A professional TIG weld needs only a fine SS wire brushing to erase the heat zoning and clean the weld's carbon precipitation zone - but it should be brushed before the metal cools below a few hundred degrees (much easier & better looking that way). Purging & nitric passivating can be a PITA, and significantly increases manufacturing time unless we're talking batch processing, intricate weldments or process piping.

Nickel & chromium can "burn out" of stainless steel at >bright orange color temperatures - something we always had to monitor while hot forging 300 series and of course for refractory combustion chamber applications.
Obviously, excessive heat input from poor welding technique can also downgrade 316 to 304, to a magnetic 400-ish or even into straight carbon steel.

I've only been getting paid to TIG since 1981, so even though I've TIG'd everything from aluminum beer cans & inconel electrodes to magnesium radar antennae for the Navy, I figure there's still plenty to learn! :Cheer:

p.s. Nice job on the header - that should be your thesis for your TIG Master.
Click to expand...

Nice writeup. :clap:

I like the elephant part:hehe:

Its hard to beat NAVY standards.

I will also agree that you learn something new everyday, especially from the "old-timers". I love getting partnered up with an old-timer, usually makes the day go by fast with their stories. Their experience is great also.
 
tony597fitter said:
I know I said I was done with this thread.

I had my Brother send me a pic of some stainless he welding at work. Hes a 597 Pipe Fitter also.

Notice the GOLD color? NO black ring from being welded to HOT. This is a done joint, NO passive crap dips, NO buffing. All he did was weld it and give it a light scrub with a S.S. hand brush.

I rest my case.
Click to expand...

That thing is awesome! was it on a turn table or something to rotate the pipe??
 
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