[Noisebridge-discuss] let's get a TIG welder

[Jake]

Matthew,

no thanks for the F.U.D. but perhaps you should stay home and lock your 
doors because things in the world could catch fire, or electrocute you, or 
give you the metal flu.

people at noisebridge already do plenty of risky things and TIG welding is 
totally awesome and produces no fumes other than noble gases, which are 
inert.

-jake

On Fri, 17 Aug 2012, Matthew Silvey wrote:

> I think this is a great idea but maybe not good for NoiseBridge for
> the following reasons.
>
> You may want to install it in a building not made of wood.  I don't
> think NoiseBridge is in one of these.
>
> TIG welding does not create noxious fumes in the sense that using a
> welding method that relies on an inert gas doesn't.  The material you
> weld might.  Some lightweight reference here:
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_fume_fever
>
> Thanks,
> Matthew
>
> On Fri, Aug 17, 2012 at 12:55 PM, Jake <jake at spaz.org> wrote:
>>
>> at Toorcamp i was reminded of how badly noisebridge, and all hackerspaces,
>> need a TIG welder.  It is the soldeing iron of welding, because you can melt
>> things without necessarily adding metal or sticking them together.
>>
>> Also, very importantly, TIG welding does not create noxious fumes because
>> the only gas released is Argon or Helium, as a shielding gas (to prevent
>> oxidation of the hot metal) and no flux is used.
>>
>> Harbor Freight Tools carries a TIG welder for $400.  It has good reviews and
>> I think it would be worth the money.  Monad has an Argon tank he will donate
>> toward its operation.
>>
>> It seems that its only drawbacks are the lack of a foot pedal (gee i wonder
>> if we could make one) and an unusual hose fitting for the argon (easily
>> replaced).
>>
>> I have welded with fancy and cheap machines and the cheap machines are fine
>> if you mod them to do what you want.  I had a cheap tiny Arc welder with a
>> low duty cycle (overheats fast) and guess what - if you put a fan in it the
>> duty cycle goes way up.  Imagine that?
>>
>> I just talked to the store in Concord and they have one in stock.
>> $399.  The guy recommended the 2-year extended replacement warrantee for $79
>> or 1 year for $49.  If we get it we should also get a nice automatic LCD
>> welding mask (i can donate a regular mask for spectators) and gloves and
>> shit.
>>
>> http://www.harborfreight.com/tig-mma-inverter-welding-machine-with-digital-readout-98233.html
>>
>> Professionals liked the smooth quiet ark. The highvoltage arc starter works
>> great (they should include this feature in the prod description).
>> Odd gas inlet connector but easily fixed by removing and replacing with a
>> 1/4" pipe elbow and hose barb. Don't be fooled by the light wieght. Modern
>> design uses a much smaller power transformer with a highfrequency power
>> supply (like all modern computers) to hold down wieght.
>> BOTTOM LINE Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
>>
>> Most Liked Negative Review:
>> Good Machine
>> I have this machine and was wanting a foot pedal. I might like this machine
>> more if I had a foot pedal.
>>
>> (I'm sure Rusty the Welding Teacher would turn up his nose at this welder,
>> because his TIG machine was $2000, but he also turned up his nose at helping
>> us with the bus so whatever to that.)
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>