Blogs about Orbital Welding techniques and best practices.
Welding is at the intersection of art, science, and labor. The artistry is in how the welder moves the molten puddle and controls weld formation. The labor is in cleaning the worksite and workpiece and preparing the joint for welding. The science is in the welding parameters that set the…
The hardest part of the welding process isn’t the welding itself. It’s trying to weld while crammed into a vehicle’s engine compartment, an aircraft’s wing structure, or while dangling from rafters two stories above the shop floor. Awkward, uncomfortable, or inaccessible positions are a common part of welding. One of…
Welding thin metals is the art of making many tack welds, then carefully welding longer beads to avoid heat distortion. Tube welding, in particular, requires a steady hand to maneuver the arc evenly around the entire circumference of the tube. Stainless steel welding requires careful prep work and a precise…
Titanium has a curious nature. It is thought of as futuristic and expensive, and yet titanium is the ninth most abundant element in the Earth’s crust and the seventh most abundant metal. It’s so common, in fact, that titanium oxides are used in sunscreen and as pigment in white paint….
Orbital welding machines are critical assets for completing high-specification projects to the required specifications and on time. If an orbital welding machine is damaged or otherwise unsuitable for service, it could mean that no welds can be completed until it is repaired or a replacement arrives. Since orbital welding machines…
Equipment issues that arise in the middle of welding are infuriating. Welders in every type of welding process know the blank moment of surprise that comes along with a stuck rod, a wire that curls off instead of striking, or a tungsten electrode ruined by inexplicably crashing into the weld….
Aerospace is the last place any welder or metallurgist would expect to come across stainless steel. Nevertheless, what is set to be humanity’s first interstellar space ship—SpaceX’s Starship—is designed with a hull of stainless steel due to the metal’s ability to retain strength under extremes of heat and cold. The…
A staple of dystopian fiction in the 1980s and 1990s was a world that had run out of oil. Today we’re living in a very different reality, with a glut of oil and not enough storage. In fact, oil storage briefly became a commodity that was more valuable than oil…
Many of the same defects common during traditional manual welding also occur during orbital welding as well. These include contaminated welds, lack of fusion, and poor formation of the weld itself. One big difference between orbital welding and manual welding is that in manual welding it is possible to compensate…
It isn’t uncommon for the wire in a wire feed arc welding machine to snag, melt back into the tip, and bring welding to a halt. The welder must then disassemble the machine to correct the problem. The culprit is usually the liner that guides the wire, which welders often…
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