aws welding journal october 2013

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PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN WELDING SOCIETY TO ADVANCE THE SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND APPLICATION OF WELDING

AND ALLIED JOINING AND CUTTING PROCESSES WORLDWIDE, INCLUDING BRAZING, SOLDERING, AND THERMAL SPRAYING

October 2013


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3WELDING JOURNAL

CONTENTS26 Cold Cutting: A Clean and Repeatable Technology

A variety of end profiles can be produced cleanly withmodern cold cutting equipment

M. Leska

30 The Three Rs of Welded ArtIndividuals with different backgrounds share acommon love for art and a deft ability to wield a weldingtorchH. Woodward, K. Campbell, and M. R. Johnsen

38 Producing Better Bevels with PlasmaComputer-aided manufacturing software along withadjusting arc voltage are the answers to improving bevelcuts with plasmaM. Avila

44 A History of the Oxyacetylene and Plasma Cutting Processes An interesting historical perspective is given on two majorcutting processesJ. Henderson and N. Hussary

Welding Journal (ISSN 0043-2296) is publishmonthly by the American Welding Society f$120.00 per year in the United States and possesions, $160 per year in foreign countries: $7.5per single issue for domestic AWS members an$10.00 per single issue for nonmembers an$14.00 single issue for international. AmericaWelding Society is located at 8669 NW 36th S# 130, Miami, FL 33166-6672; telephone (30443-9353. Periodicals postage paid in Miami, Fla

and additional mailing offices.POSTMASTER:

Seaddress changes to Welding Journal, 8669 N36th St., # 130, Miami, FL 33166-6672. CanaPost: Publications Mail Agreement #4061260Canada Returns to be sent to Bleuchip Interntional, P.O. Box 25542, London, ON N6C 6BCanada.

Readers of Welding Journal may make copies articles for personal, archival, educational research purposes, and which are not for sale resale. Permission is granted to quote from arcles, provided customary acknowledgment authors and sources is made. Starred (*) itemexcluded from copyright.

DepartmentsEditorial ............................

Washington Watchword ..........

Press Time News..................News of the Industry ............1

Aluminum Q&A ..................1

Brazing Q&A ......................1

Product & Print Spotlight ......2

Brazing & Soldering Today

Technology News ..............6

Brazing Profiles ................6

Coming Events....................6

Certification Schedule ..........7

Welding Workbook ..............7

Society News ....................7

Tech Topics ......................7

Guide to AWS Services ........9

Personnel ........................9

Classifieds ......................10

Advertiser Index ................10

283-s Application of Friction Stir Processing as a Pretreatmentto Fusion WeldingImprovements in the heat-affected zone and weld metalmicrostructure were achieved with nickel-based alloysJ. R. Rule et al.

291-s Influences of Laser Spot on High-Speed Welding for Cr-Plated SheetThe development of a suitable elongated spot pattern improved welding speed and joint quality on thin chrome-plated sheet

J. Zhan and M. J. Yang

297-s Supermartensitic Stainless Steel Deposits: Effects ofShielding Gas and Postweld Heat TreatmentIncreasing the CO2 content in the shielding gas had a markedeffect on tensile strength, hardness, and toughnessS. Zappa et al.

304-s Effect of Tempering Pass on HSLA-80 Steel HAZMicrostructuresThe microstructure and hardness of the grain-coarsened HAZ were analyzed after being subjected to simulated thermal cyclingmeant to represent tempering passes A. Cruz-Crespo et al.

Features

Brazing & Soldering Today

Welding Research Supplement

26

30

52

October 2013 • Volume 92 • Number 10 AWS Web site www.aws.org

On the cover: Dedicated bevel cutting heads tilt or rotate to match the angle being cut. (Photo courtesy of Hypertherm, Inc.)

52 Basics of Brazing with Induction HeatingSix key steps are explained for proper brazing withinduction heatingB. Daly

56 What’s Happening with Aerospace BrazingNew brazing alloys are helping improve the thermal life of

jet engine partsT. Sandin


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EDITORIAL

I’m proud to report that the AWS Foundation continues to take the lead in commu-nicating to students how rewarding a welding career can be. Let me tell you just a littlebit about the Foundation’s programs and what has been accomplished thus far.

Since it was established in 1989, the AWS Foundation has awarded more than $6 mil-lion in scholarships to more than 4850 students. The scholarship program includes thefollowing:• National Scholarship Program with a minimum funding endowment of $50,000.• District Scholarship Program that provides $7500 to each of the 22 Districts annually

for a total of $165,000 in funding to help students at trade/technical schools, commu-nity colleges, and universities.

• Section Named Scholarship Program, which now has 57 scholarships endowed bySections and/or individual donors within a Section.

• District Named Scholarship Program — 11 scholarships endowed by the Districtsand/or individual donors within a District.

• Graduate Research Fellowship Program — Two endowed at $500,000 providing anannual award to two students of $25,000 that is matched in kind by the university where they are conducting research.

Our scholarship program has grown over the last year, thanks to the AmericanWelding Society for its commitment to match all funds to new and existing scholarshipendowments. This matching program is still in effect. An endowed scholarship at theNational, District, or Section level can create a lasting legacy for you or your company.For more information on how you can start your own scholarship, contact Sam Gentryat [email protected] , or Vicki Pinsky at [email protected] . Act now, as this matching pro-gram is for a limited time.

Our Welder Workforce Development program and efforts continue to grow andexpand. Traffic on the www.careersinwelding.com and www.jobsinwelding.com Web siteshas increased. The Careers in Welding mobile exhibit began its initial tour in 2011, andtraveled 17,000 miles to 23 events in 13 states in 2012. More than 37,000 visitors have

walked through the exhibit. Now in 2013, the tour has begun and is currently scheduledto go to 13 events in 13 states. The first event this year was the Boy Scout Jamboree where more than 3200 scouts toured the exhibit.

We continue to offer “bricks” that will be displayed on the American Welding SocietyScholarship Wall at the AWS World Headquarters building. This is a long-term projectand proceeds from the sale of the bricks will be used to provide additional welding schol-arships. The wall is located in the garden and patio area for use by guests and AWS staff.The 4 × 8 in. bricks can be individualized — up to three lines can be engraved on themfor a $250 donation. The 8 × 8 in. bricks require a $500 donation, and can include up tosix lines. For a $75 up-charge, you can add a corporate logo or other symbol. We haveseveral companies that have purchased arrays with one “brick” having a logo placed inits center. Through your participation, we can grow additional funds for use in our schol-arship programs. The wall is part of a beautiful setting at the new AWS building. If youhave already purchased a brick, thank you. If you would like an order form, or if you havequestions, please e-mail Vicki Pinsky at [email protected] .

The AWS Foundation is showing students how manychoices there are regarding careers in welding and howrewarding these careers can be. We’re seeing many more young people showing an interest in making a weldingcareer choice. Help support these students by purchas-ing a “brick,” or endowing a scholarship.

OCTOBER 20134

Officers

President Nancy C. Cole

NCC Engineering

Vice President Dean R. Wilson

Well-Dean Enterprises

Vice President David J. Landon

Vermeer Mfg. Co.

Vice President David L. McQuaid

D. L. McQuaid and Associates, Inc.

Treasurer Robert G. Pali

J. P. Nissen Co.

Executive Director Ray W. Shook

American Welding Society

Directors

T. Anderson (At Large), ITW Global Welding Tech. Center

U. Aschemeier (Dist. 7), Miami Diver

J. R. Bray (Dist. 18), Affiliated Machinery, Inc.

R. E. Brenner (Dist. 10), CnD Industries, Inc.

G. Fairbanks (Dist. 9), Fairbanks Inspection & Testing Services

T. A. Ferri (Dist. 1), Victor Technologies

D. A. Flood (At Large), Tri Tool, Inc.

S. A. Harris (Dist. 4), Altec Industries

K. L. Johnson (Dist. 19), Vigor Shipyards

J. Jones (Dist. 17), The Harris Products Group

W. A. Komlos (Dist. 20), ArcTech, LLC

T. J. Lienert (At Large), Los Alamos National LaboratoryJ. Livesay (Dist. 8), Tennessee Technology Center

M. J. Lucas Jr. (At Large), Belcan Engineering

D. E. Lynnes (Dist. 15), Lynnes Welding Training

C. Matricardi (Dist. 5), Welding Solutions, Inc.

J. L. Mendoza (Past President), Lone Star Welding

S. P. Moran (At Large), Weir American Hydro

K. A. Phy (Dist. 6), KA Phy Services, Inc.

W. A. Rice (Past President), OKI Bering

R. L. Richwine (Dist. 14), Ivy Tech State College

D. J. Roland (Dist. 12), Marinette Marine Corp.

N. Saminich (Dist. 21), NS Inspection and Consulting

K. E. Shatell (Dist. 22), Pacific Gas & Electric Co.

T. A. Siewert (At Large), NIST (ret.)

H. W. Thompson (Dist. 2), Underwriters Laboratories, Inc.

R. P. Wilcox (Dist. 11), ACH Co.

J. A. Willard (Dist. 13), Kankakee Community College

M. R. Wiswesser (Dist. 3), Welder Training & Testing Institute

D. Wright (Dist. 16), Zephyr Products, Inc.

Founded in 1919 to Advance the Science,Technology and Application of Welding

Show Your Support forStudents

Gerald D. UttrachiChairman, AWS Foundation


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GAO: Mixed Results for Federal Supportof Manufacturing

In a recent report, the U.S. Government Accountability Office(GAO) concluded that government support for manufacturing is

strong with respect to basic research in comparison to other coun-tries, but lags behind in key areas such as commercialization and job skills. Global Manufacturing: Foreign Government Programs Dif- fer in Some Key Respects From Those in the United States, a report which analyzes the programs of the United States, Canada, Ger-many, Japan, and South Korea, reaches the following conclusions:

• The U.S. emphasizes R&D projects with commercial po-tential, while the foreign programs place greater emphasis on ac-tual commercialization to help manufacturers bridge the gap be-tween innovative ideas and sales.

• The United States is a leader in intellectual property pro-tection, but its government plays a less prominent role than theJapanese government in developing technological standards onindustrial products.

• A key difference related to training programs pertains tothe sustained role of government in coordinating stakeholderinput into a national system of vocational skills training and cre-dentialing, which helps provide a supply of skilled workers formanufacturers. This was particularly evident in Germany. In con-trast, the United States largely devolves vocational training tostates and localities and does not have a national system to issueindustry-recognized credentials.

The full report is available at www.gao.gov/products/GAO-13- 365.

House Passes Agency CustomerService Bill

The Government Customer Service Improvement Act of 2013(H.R. 1660) has been passed by unanimous consent in the Houseof Representatives. This legislation would require the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to develop minimum customerservice standards that federal agencies must use to develop de-tailed goals that improve response times for e-mail, telephone,and written inquires and to modernize existing processes to makeservice more efficient. It also would require agencies to developa customer service feedback system in coordination with OMBthat provides customers an opportunity to comment on the serv-ice they receive. An identical version of the legislation is nowpending in the Senate.

OSHA Outlines Inspection Strategy

As part of the justification for its fiscal year (FY) 2014 budgetrequest, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration(OSHA) has detailed its workplace inspection plans for FY 2014.The highlights are as follows:

• OSHA will target more than 50% of its inspection activitiesand resources on the construction industry.

• OSHA plans to conduct a total of 39,250 federal inspectionsin FY 2014 — 31,400 safety inspections and 7850 health inspec-tions.

• The number of health inspections continues to rise, reflect-ing OSHA’s view that exposure to substances ultimately can beas hazardous to health as workplace accidents.

• OSHA intends to develop an inspection weighting approach

in order to direct inspections to high hazard operations, includ-

ing inspections of refineries and chemical plants, emerging chem-ical and health issues and workplace violence, operations thatrequire much more time and complexity than the average OSHA inspection.

OSHA’s justification is available at www.dol.gov/dol/budget/2014/PDF/CBJ-2014-V2-12.pdf .

Fatal Occupational Injuries Decreasedin 2012

A preliminary total of 4383 fatal work injuries were recordedin the U.S. in 2012, slightly down from a count of 4693 in 2011,according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational In- juries conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2012total represents the second-lowest preliminary total since thecensus was first conducted in 1992. Other key findings includethe following:

• The rate of fatal work injuries in 2012 was 3.2 per 100,000full-time equivalent workers, down from a rate of 3.5 per 100,000

in 2011.• Most fatalities (41%) resulted from transportation incidents,including roadway accidents involving motorized land vehicles.

• Falls, slips, and trips accounted for 15% of fatalities, while12% were due to being struck by an object or piece of equipment.

• Most fatalities occurred in the construction industry, twiceas many as manufacturing.

New Rule Seeks to Protect Small BusinessSubcontractors

Government contractors are now required to alert the applica-ble federal agency if they do not use the small business subcontrac-tors that were key to producing the original bid proposal, accord-

ing to a new Small Business Administration rule. The regulation, which became effective in August, lists three conditions of smallbusiness involvement in a prime contract bid that will require thisnotification: a small business is specifically referenced in a bid orproposal; the small business has entered into a written agreement with the prime contractor to perform specific work as a subcon-tractor under the contract should the proposal win; or, the smallbusiness drafted portions of the proposal or submitted pricing ortechnical information that appears in the bid or proposal.

Congress Forms Aluminum Caucus

Members of Congress have recently established the bipartisanCongressional Aluminum Caucus. The purpose of the caucus is to

serve as an informal group of members, dedicated to elevatingawareness of the U.S. aluminum industry and every aspect of themetal’s production and use, from mining to manufacturing to recy-cling. The aluminum industry contributes $32 billion and 500,000 jobs directly and indirectly to the U.S. economy.♦

WASHINGTON

WATCHWORD

OCTOBER 20136

BY HUGH K. WEBSTER

AWS WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS OFFICE

Contact the AWS Washington Government Affairs Office at1747 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20006; [email protected] ; FAX (202) 835-0243.


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For Info go to www.aws.org/ad-index


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PRESS TIME

NEWS

Boeing Selects ESAB for Space Launch System Project

Boeing has selected ESAB Welding & Cutting Products, Florence, S.C., as a partnerin manufacturing fuel tank structures for NASA’s new heavy-lift rocket, the Space LaunchSystem (SLS). This will be the largest American rocket ever built and measure 200 fttaller than the entire space shuttle rocket assembly. The SLS will measure 384 ft in total

length with a weight of 6.5 million lb.ESAB engineers and experts have worked with Boeing and NASA for more than a

year to develop the Vertical Assembly Center — a giant orbital welding system capableof supporting the huge rocket fuel tank while circumferentially welding its sections to-gether with the friction stir process. When completed, this center will be the largest welding machine of its type ever built.

The center is being designed, engineered, and built at ESAB’s facility in Laxa, Swe-den; supported by the company’s North American Automation Division. The verticaltower assembly is being built in the United States using U.S. steel and componentmaterials.

The SLS project is viewed as America’s next-generation space program, with the goalof producing a rocket to transport people beyond Earth’s orbit. Slated for launch in2017, this expandable rocket will have capabilities for transporting payloads for deep-space explorations.

Nissan U.S. Manufacturing on Track

Nissan projects its U.S. plants willnearly double the number of export mar-kets it will be able to serve by 2015. In Au-gust, the car company shipped the first of more than 900 U.S.-built, right-hand drivePathfinders to Australia and New Zealand.With the addition of these two new areas,it is now able to export vehicles from itsSmyrna, Tenn., vehicle assembly plant to61 markets around the world.

In 2014, Nissan’s Canton, Miss., vehi-cle assembly plant will become the globalsource for Murano production, creatingexport opportunities in as many as 119markets.

Also, over the next few months, Nissanexpects to expand U.S. exports of Nissan Altima, Pathfinder, Maxima, and Infiniti QX60models into new markets such as Ghana, Nigeria, Philippines, Vietnam, Israel, Argentina,and parts of Latin America.

Auburn Manufacturing Celebrates $1.4-Million Expansion

Auburn Manufacturing, Inc., a developer, manufacturer, and marketer of textileproducts for extreme temperature industrial applications, recently broke ground on a$1.4-million, 22,500-sq-ft expansion to its Kittyhawk facility in Auburn, Maine.

According to Kathie Leonard, company president and CEO, expanding will provide

the extra room needed for its focus on advancing in coatings, nanotechnologies, andheat protection enhancements.

As of press t ime, the building was complete and equipment along with inventory were being moved into the facility. It should be fully operational by this month.

In addition, Auburn hopes to expand the facility again in another 3–5 years.

Hobart Institute of Welding Technology toGrant Scholarships in Honor of André A. Odermatt

The Hobart Institute of Welding Technology, Troy, Ohio, has established two new $5000scholarships in honor of its president, André A. Odermatt, to benefit students who attendthe establishment. The scholarships will be first awarded in May 2014. Odermatt has a longhistory with welding, working with Oerlikon Welding Industries and Hobart Brothers Co., where he began in 1964 until his retirement in 2001. Interested students are directed toapply for scholarships online at www.welding.org/g-13-scholarship-forms.aspx.◆

OCTOBER 20138MEMBER

Publisher Andrew Cullison

Publisher Emeritus Jeff Weber

Editorial

Editorial Director Andrew Cullison

Editor Mary Ruth Johnsen

Associate Editor Howard M. Woodward

Associate Editor Kristin Campbell

Editorial Asst./Peer Review Coordinator Melissa Gomez

Design and Production

Production Manager Zaida Chavez

Senior Production Coordinator Brenda Flores

Manager of International Periodicals and

Electronic Media Carlos Guzman

Advertising

National Sales Director Rob Saltzstein

Advertising Sales Representative Lea Paneca

Advertising Sales Representative Sandra Jorgensen

Senior Advertising Production Manager Frank Wilson

Subscriptions

Subscriptions Representative Tabetha Moore

[email protected]

American Welding Society

8669 NW 36 St., # 130, Miami, FL 33166-6672(305) 443-9353 or (800) 443-9353

Publications, Expositions, Marketing Committee

D. L. Doench, Chair

Hobart Brothers Co.S. Bartholomew, Vice Chair

ESAB Welding & Cutting Prod.J. D. Weber, Secretary

American Welding SocietyD. Brown , Weiler BrushT. Coco, Victor Technologies International

L. Davis , ORS NascoD. DeCorte , RoMan Mfg.

J. R. Franklin, Sellstrom Mfg. Co.F. H. Kasnick, Praxair

D. Levin , AirgasE. C. Lipphardt, Consultant

R. Madden, HyperthermD. Marquard, IBEDA Superflash

J. F. Saenger Jr., ConsultantS. Smith, Weld-Aid Products

D. Wilson, Well-Dean EnterprisesN. C. Cole, Ex Off., NCC Engineering

J. N. DuPont, Ex Off., Lehigh University

L. G. Kvidahl, Ex Off., Northrop Grumman Ship SystemsD. J. Landon, Ex Off., Vermeer Mfg.

S. P. Moran, Ex Off., Weir American HydroE. Norman, Ex Off., Southwest Area Career Center

R. G. Pali, Ex Off., J. P. Nissen Co.N. Scotchmer, Ex Off., Huys Industries

R. W. Shook , Ex Off ., American Welding Society

Copyright © 2013 by American Welding Society in both printed and elec-

tronic formats. The Society is not responsible for any statement made oropinion expressed herein. Data and information developed by the authorsof specific articles are for informational purposes only and are not in-tended for use without independent, substantiating investigation on thepart of potential users.

By early 2014, Nissan’s production capacity will eclipse two-million units in the Americas, driven by added capacity at its U.S. plants, as well as new facil ities in Mexico and Brazil.(Photo courtesy of Nissan.)


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Your Best Choice To Replace 2% Thoriated

Lasts Longer

E3® Electrodes

on a remote or

system and we

last at least 130

this particular a

when compare

2% thoriated.

s were tested

rbital welding

d were found to

0% longer in

application

ed to

2% thoriated

after 3 passes

E3®

after 8 passes

Both electrodes shown were

run on a remote orbital

welding system on a 20 inch

pipe with a 2 inch wall.

2% ran approx. 19 linear ft

E3® ran approx. 50 linear ft

after 3 passes

Both electrodes shown were

run on a remote orbital

welding system on a 20 inch

pipe with a 2 inch wall.

2% ran approx. 19 linear ft

ran approx. 50 linear ft

after 8 passes



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OCTOBER 201310

NEWS OF THE

INDUSTRY

Falls Stamping & Welding Ventureto Create 112 Jobs

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell recently announced FallsStamping & Welding Co. will invest $5.7 million for a business inthe town of Pulaski to supply metal subassemblies to the VolvoTrucks plant in Dublin, Va. This project will create 112 new jobs.

The metal stamping company, formed in 1989 and headquar-tered in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, serves automotive, trucking, andnonautomotive markets. According to Lane Witte, its vice presi-dent of sales, Pulaski’s benefits include proximity to the Inter-state 81-77 corridor and being close to one primary customer.

McDonnell approved a $175,000 grant from the Governor’sOpportunity Fund to assist the town and county with this proj-

ect. Through its Virginia Jobs Investment Program, the Virginia

Department of Business Assistance will provide funding and serv-ices to support the company’s recruitment and training.

Cadillac Coupe Goes Ultrasonic

Ultrasonic welding is helping the Cadillac ELR extended-range electric luxury coupe, which goes on sale in North Amer-ica in early 2014. General Motors’ (GM) Brownstown Battery Assembly plant near Detroit uses the process to join metal elec-trode tabs on the vehicle’s 16.5-kW-h, lithium-ion battery sys-tem. It also employs an automated system to execute millions of these welds each year.

Ultrasonic welding uses tools, an anvil and horn, for applyingrapid mechanical vibrations to the battery’s copper and aluminum

electrodes. A camera vision system shoots a reference image of

The 92,000-sq-ft extension of the Walter Surface TechnologiesInternational Bio-Circle facility has been completed on its origi-nal site in Montreal, Pointe-Claire, Quebec. This achievementfor the surface treatment provider of abrasives and various toolshas come after several years and represents an investment of morethan $30 million.

More than 300 guests, including some of Montreal’s top busi-ness leaders and metalworking industry executives, were presentfor the official inauguration. Tours were conducted by membersof the company’s team.

Serving as the overall international headquarters for the Wal-ter company, the campus encompasses corporate management,R&D, labs, product management, test centers, marketing, sales,

warehousing, distribution, and after-sales service.In addition, the Bio-Circle complex contains a bottling plant where production capabil ities are increased ten fold. Compo-nents include automated bottling systems, large mixing and stor-age tanks, plus pumping and packaging systems.

“The new campus is a major asset for our future growth. Now, we have the automation, the processes, and the facility to help usexecute our core value of delivering products and solutions thathelp our customers work better. Today, this focus on ‘makinggreen work’ is leading to the development of environmentallyhelpful initiatives, which are increasingly welcomed in our indus-try,” stated Pierre Somers, chairman and CEO of Walter SurfaceTechnologies International.

The new campus features include storage facilities with man-aged humidity for sensitive products; energy efficiency with 49 wells running 500 ft deep to capture geothermal energy; windowsthat contribute to overall temperature control; controlled watertemperature in all rooms; air filtering systems that clean the airbefore it is released into the atmosphere; and neutralizationof chemical effluents before they enter the municipal sewagesystem.

Employees follow a recycling program as well that covers vir-tually every aspect of daily operations from cafeteria services toindividual work spaces.

Pierre Somers, chairman and CEO of Walter Surface Technolo- gies International, cuts a chain to access the new Bio-Circle facility.

Walter Surface Technologies Inaugurates $30-MillionInternational Campus


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11WELDING JOURNAL

the weld area prior to operation. In addition, quality operatorscheck electrode tabs before/after welding, and the system moni-tors dozens of signal processing features during each weld.

This battery-specific welding process is a result of collabora-tion among GM’s Manufacturing Systems Research Lab and Ad- vanced Propulsion Center along with the Brownstown plant. Thecoupe is built at GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Plant, whileits battery pack is built at Brownstown.

General Motors’ (GM) Brownstown Battery Assembly plant usesultrasonic welding to join metal electrode tabs for the Cadillac ELR lithium-ion battery. (Photo by Jeffrey Sauger for GM.)

For info go to www.aws.org/ad-index



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OCTOBER 201312

EWI Opens Michigan Office

EWI held an open house August 27 to introduce area manu-facturers to its new metro Detroit facility in Madison Heights,Mich. Approximately 100 people met with EWI staff and watcheddemonstrations of its SpotSight™ and AcousTech™ Machiningequipment.

“This event was to tell people we’re here,” explained Ron

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During the open house, Jeong Na, EWI technology leader – NDE, demonstrated SpotSight™, EWI’s new matrix phased array-basedultrasonic imaging technology. The equipment, developed originally for use in the auto industry, can be used in a wide variety of manufacturing environments for structural inspection of metal, plastic, braze, and composite joints.

— continued on page 14


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Brown, EWI business development manager, Advance En-ergy/Automotive, who heads up the Michigan office. “The re-sponse has been very good from our customer base, and it alsoshows our customer base up here that we’re serious about takingcare of them.”

The facility currently occupies about 2000 sq ft of office and

classroom space adjacent to Easom Automation Systems, Inc.,but the space can be expanded, if necessary. EWI is collaborat-ing with Easom, an equipment manufacturer and technology sys-tems integrator. Only two or three people will work in the officeon a permanent basis; EWI will bring staff up from its main fa-cility in Columbus, Ohio, as needed.

Brown said plans are to hold training classes, workshops, orother events at the site every two months.

The office is located at 32429 Industrial Dr., Madison Heights.For more information, contact Brown at (603) 504-5148 or [email protected] . — Mary Ruth Johnsen, editor

Tritex NDT Opens U.S. Office

Tritex NDT Ltd., a manufacturer of echo ultrasonic gaugesthat measure metal thickness through coatings, has opened anoffice in Newark, N.J. Due to steady growth and an increasingglobal demand for its products, the company opened the officeto serve users in North and Central America, including Canada;provide local product support; and offer sales/marketingoperations.

Also, the company is now ISO 9001:2008 certified, which setsout the requirements of a quality management system.

North American Robotics CompaniesSet New Records for First Half of 2013

According to statistics released from the Robotic Industries Association, Ann Arbor, Mich., North American robotics com-

OCTOBER 201314

For info go to www.aws.org/ad-index For info go to www.aws.org/ad-index

— continued from page 12


NEWS OF THE INDUSTRY

The new Tritex NDT office has opened in Newark, N.J. Pictured is a worker using the company’s Multigauge 5500 for inspecting pipeline metal thickness through coatings.


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The New 400 Series Torches,with Patented Handles and theNew G Series Regulators

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Contact your local distributor or visit VictorEquip.comVictor is a registered trademark of Victor Technologies™. © 2013 Victor Technologies International, Inc.

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ALUMINUM

Q&A BY TONY ANDERSON

Q: Recently, a reader thought it may beinteresting to provide a short quiz on alu-

minum welding issues. Therefore, I have

created 12 questions to test your alu-

minum and aluminum welding technol-

ogy knowledge.

Respondents who e-mail me at tony. anderson@mil lerwelds.com with all thecorrect answers by October 25 will be eli-

gible for a prize drawing. There is only

one right response to each question.

Out of the accurate entries received,

10 will be randomly selected to win a

signed copy of the AWS publication, Weld-ing Aluminum — Questions and Answers(2nd edition), plus their choice of a golf

shirt (available in small, medium, large,

XL, 2XL, and 3XL) or leather welding jacket (offered in small, medium, large,

XL, 2XL, 3XL, 4XL, and 5XL) — Fig. 1.

In your e-mail submission, include a

list of the question numbers along with

your answer letters. Also, to make the

process easier in case you win, provide

your name, mailing address, clothing

choice (golf shirt or leather welding

jacket), and preferred size.

The answers to these questions, as well

as the names of the winners, will be pub-lished in the Welding Journal’s December2013 Aluminum Q&A column. Good luck!

1. What is the principal alloyingelement in the 8xxx series alloy group?

A — CopperB — LithiumC — Zinc and TinD — Other Element

2. What do the 2xxx, 6xxx, and 7xxxseries alloys have in common?

A — Heat TreatableB — CopperC — Nonheat TreatableD — Chemistry

3. Which of the following aluminum al-loys has been solution heat treated andnaturally aged to a substantially stablecondition?

A — 6061-T6B — 2014-T4C — 5052-H32D — 7075-T62

4. When gas tungsten arc welding a6xxx series aluminum base metal withoutfiller metal (autogenously), what type ofdiscontinuity would you most likelyexpect to find in your weld?

A — PorosityB — Incomplete FusionC — Hot CrackingD — Undercut

5. What is the most common reason,when testing a weld made in 6061-T6

base metal, for a transverse tension test

OCTOBER 201316

F o r i n f o g o t o w w w . a w s . o r g / a d - i n d e x

Fig. 1 — All 10 winners will receive a signed copy of the AWS publication, Welding Aluminum — Questions and Answers(2nd edition), and their choice of a golf shirt or leather welding jacket.


19/142

to fail in the heat-affected zone and notmeet the minimum tensile strengthrequirements of the welding code?

A — Too Low PreheatB — Overheating Base MetalC — PorosityD — Hot Cracking

6. What is the most suitable 5xxx fillermetal to be used for welding a structuremade from 5454 base metal and that is to

be exposed in service to temperaturesbetween 150° and 350°F for prolongedperiods?

A — ER5356B — ER5183C — ER5556D — ER5554

7. What is the usual cause of porosityin aluminum welds?

A — OxygenB — SiliconC — HydrogenD — Nitrogen

8. The electrolytic process used forproducing aluminum that was discoveredin 1886 and is still used today is knownby what name?

A — Davy ProcessB — Hall-Heroult ProcessC — Wohler ProcessD — Henri-Etienne Process

9. In accordance with therequirements of AWS D1.2/D1.2M: 2008,Structural Welding Code — Aluminum ,what is the maximum preheattemperature when welding base metal5052?

A — 150°FB — 250°FC — 350°FD — It does not give a maximum preheatfor this base metal.

10. In accordance with therequirements of AWS D1.2/D1.2M: 2008,Structural Welding Code — Aluminum ,what is the minimum length of anintermittent fillet weld?

A — 11 ⁄ 2 in.B — 21 ⁄ 2 in.C — 3 in.D — 31 ⁄ 2 in.

11. In accordance with therequirements of AWS D1.2/D1.2M: 2008,Structural Welding Code — Aluminum ,when testing for a procedure

qualification using a 5083-H112 (1-in.-thick forging) base plate complete jointpenetration groove weld, what would bethe minimum tensile strength required topass the reduced section transversetension tests?

A — 36 ksiB — 38 ksiC — 39 ksiD — 40 ksi

12. In accordance with therequirements of AWS A5.10/A5.10M: 2012,Welding Consumables — Wire Electrodes, Wires and Rods for Welding of Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloys — Classification , the standard testingmethod for all ER Classifications ischemical analysis plus what other test?

A — Tensile TestB — Bead-on-Plate TestC — Radiographic Test

D — Guided Bend Test

17WELDING JOURNAL

TONY ANDERSON is director of aluminum

technology, ITW Welding North America. He is

a Fellow of the Brit ish Welding Institute (TWI),

a Registered Chartered Engineer with the British

Engineering Council, and holds numerous po-

sitions on AWS technical committees. He is

chairman of the Aluminum Associat ion Tech-

nical Advisory Committee for Welding and au-

thor of the book Welding Aluminum Questions

and Answers currently available from the AWS.

Questions may be sent to Mr. Anderson c/o Weld-

ing Journal, 8669 NW 36 St., # 130, Miami, FL

33166-6672 , or via e -mail at tony.anderson@

millerwelds.com .



20/142

BRAZING

Q&A BY DAN KAY

Q: What is the correct amount of overlapto use when brazing tubular aluminum

pieces together? Is the amount of overlap

for aluminum different than for other

metals such as stainless to stainless?

A: As a general guideline, I suggest thatthe amount of overlap for aluminumbrazed joints be about 1T to 3T, where Tis the thickness of the thinner of the twoaluminum pieces being joined. Figure 1shows sketches of a sheet metal joint anda tubular joint with the recommendedoverlaps.

Note that this overlap is less than thetypical 3T to 6T overlap that is recom-mended for all other base metals. Thereason for this relates to the closeness of the melting temperatures of the alu-minum brazing filler metal (BFM) and

the aluminum base metal being joined.Often, the solidus temperature (meltingtemperature) of the aluminum-basedBFM is only a few degrees lower thanthat of the aluminum base metals being

joined.Thus, when the BFM has reached its

melting temperature and is ready to flow,

there appears to be a stronger drivingforce for the BFM to react with and dif-fuse into the base metal rather thanmerely skate over the base metal surfaceand flow deeply into the joint by capillaryaction.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional sketch of a poorly brazed joint I encountered. Itshows how the aluminum BFM flowed atthe top of the assembly where the smallertube goes into the fitting and the BFMalso nicely filled in at the bottom of theassembly, but there is a large void aroundthe interior circumference of the joint.

Challenge questions to the reader:How could this happen? What is wrong

with this joint design?I was curious about how this joint was

brazed, so I asked the brazing personnelhow it was possible for the BFM to travel

all the way through the joint, and yetleave a large void between.

His answer did not surprise me. Headmitted he could not get the BFM toflow all the way through the joint afterrepeated attempts on several samples.Therefore, he just added extra BFM atthe bottom of the joint to make a nice

braze fillet at the other end of the joint, which looked satisfactory to him.

Note: Brazing should never involvefeeding BFM to both sides of the joint to

create a fillet on each end. Proper braz-ing requires filling the faying volume be-tween the two mating surfaces in the

joint. Thus, an important rule of brazingis “feed the BFM from one end of the

joint, then inspect the other.”Question: What should the designer

of this brazement have changed to en-sure complete joint penetration by ap-plying the BFM at one end of the joint?

As you can see from Fig. 2, the brazed joint did not meet the 1T to 3T overlapcriterion for aluminum brazing. Theoverlap shown is about 10T, far more

than is needed for full strength and leak-tightness (hermeticity) in an aluminumbrazed joint. With this excessive overlap,it would be extremely difficult, if not im-possible in my opinion, to get the BFMto flow all the way through that long

joint.Had this assembly used only 2T or 3T

overlap, the joint would have allowed theBFM to flow through to obtain complete

joint penetration and allowed visual in-spection of the opposite side of the joint.It would also have saved time, money,and materials by eliminating the need toapply a lot of extra BFM to the joint.

My recommendation is to practice

Fig. 1 — When joining aluminum base metals, the overlap should be only 1T to 3T, where T is the thickness of the thinner member.

OCTOBER 201318



21/142

brazing using 1T to 3T overlap to develop confidence in the strength andleak-tightness it achieves. Too many peo-ple, in my experience, try to ascertain the“goodness” of a braze joint by how they“feel” about the amount of overlap. Peo-ple have told me, “Oh, I don’t thinkthat’s enough overlap,” depending more

on their gut feeling rather than on hardfacts gained from testing and experience.It’s only with experience that design-

ers can develop confidence that overlapsof only 1T to 3T are satisfactory for mak-ing aluminum brazed joints.♦

19WELDING JOURNAL

This column is written sequentially byTIM P. HIRTHE, ALEXANDER E.SHAPIRO, and DAN KAY. Hirthe andShapiro are members of and Kay is an ad- visor to the C3 Committee on Brazing andSoldering. All three have contributed to the 5th edition of AWS Brazing Handbook .

Hirthe ([email protected]) currently serves as a BSMC vice chair and owns his own consulting business.

Shapiro ([email protected]) is brazing products manager at Ti-tanium Brazing, Inc., Columbus, Ohio.

Kay ([email protected]), with 40 years of experience in the industry, operates his own brazing training and consul ting business.

Readers are requested to post their ques-tions for use in this column on the Brazing Forum section of the BSMC Web site

www.brazingandsoldering.com.

Fig. 2 — Cross section of a 6061 tube brazed into a 6061 fitting using AWS BAlSi-4 (4047) brazing filler metal. The

excessive overlap prevented the filler metal from penetrating the ful l length of the joint.




22/142

PRODUCT & PRINT

SPOTLIGHT

Oxyfuel Torch OffersClearer Cutting Path View

The 400 Series of oxyfuel torches in-corporate handle and cutting attachmentdesigns that enable better ergonomics, aclearer cutting path view, and visual cues.They are available in medium- and heavy-duty models and also sold as part of theMedalist® 250 and 350 outfits. The out-fits include the torch handle, cutting at-tachment, welding tip, G Series regula-tors, and hoses. In addition, the torchesfeature a patented contoured handle thatuses an engineered zinc-aluminum alloy,Zamak. The oxygen and fuel valves arecolor coded and labeled for instant iden-tification by indicating directions for openand closed valve positions. Their cutting

attachments provide good line-of-sight visibility as well ; the company accom-plished this through a sleeker three-tubedesign.

Victor® www.victortechnologies.com

(636) 728-3000

Soldering Irons IncludeBuilt-in LEDs

The company’s soldering irons for do-it-yourself and hobbyist applications havethree on-board LEDs that provide appli-cation lighting with minimum tip shadow-ing. Delivering a focused light beam to the work allows users to accurately solder andensure a good connection. The round, soft-grip, nonslip handle offers greater com-fort. Once the tip position is determined,the hand naturally gravitates toward thetriangular area that houses the LEDs.Backed by a seven-year warranty, the line

includes light-, standard-, medium-, andheavy-duty irons. They are available in15-, 25-, 40-, and 80-W models.

Weller www.wellerred.com(800) 476-3030

Book Devoted to PopularWelding Techniques

The Art of Welding provides in-depthcoverage of the equipment and techniques

Focus on Brazing and Soldering with Cutting Processes

The Braze Mate 100LS for brazing and soldering is designed for

medium-volume applications or short runs of various part styles. Thetwo-station machine offers automatic, timed heat control with multi-

ple torches attached to a retractable arm. Rates from 40 to 70 parts/h

are typical. In addition, the production sequence begins with an op-

erator loading the part into a stainless steel fixture mounted to an

18-in.-diameter dial plate. A deposit of the company’s paste alloy is

applied to the joint area with a hand-held applicating device. The

operator manually rotates the dial 180 deg to a locked position. The

heat cycle is activated, automatically positioning the burners in the

heat zone. Once the joining temperature is reached, the torches au-

tomatically retract into idle position followed by an air and water

cooling cycle. Then the operator rotates the dial plate 180 deg back

to the load/unload station. During heating/cooling, a second fixture

is loaded and pasted.

Fusion, Inc.

www.fusion-inc.com

(800) 626-9501

OCTOBER 201320

Brazing and Soldering Machine Built forMedium-Volume Applications



23/142

Just About the Only Typeof Positioner We Don’t Make.

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Koike Aronson, Inc./Ransome Arcade, NY USA 800-252-5232

www.koike.com

HT SeriesHead – Tailstock

TR SeriesTurning Rolls

HD SeriesGear DrivenPositioner

Locust I & IIWelding HeadManipulators

Koike Aronson positioning equipment can’t tee up your

392-dimple favorite, but we have you covered nearly everywhereelse — from 100 lbs. to 4 million lbs., at any angle. Koike Aronson/Ransome

can help you weld just about any type of piece more profitably. Call us to find out

how we can make your welding operation more efficient.

Visit us at Booth #N806at FABTECH in Chicago

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24/142



25/142

23WELDING JOURNAL

used in popular welding processes. Au-thor William Galvery, a member of the AWS Long Beach-Orange County Sec-tion, provides insight to the proper use of equipment and science behind welding,including how it affects different metals.

Ryan Friedlinghaus, host of West CoastCustoms on Fox Sports, provides the tipsand techniques he uses every day. Chap-ters include general tools, materials, andsafety equipment; oxyacetylene welding;oxyfuel and plasma arc cutting; and braz-ing and soldering. Detailed are the prosand cons of each process and informationon equipment, setup, safety, and weldingtechniques.

Industrial Press www.industrialpress.com

(888) 528-7852

CO2 Laser LensesProtected againstThermal Damage

The company’s CO2 laser lenses areoptimized for 10.6 microns and offered in

WE TAKE THEPRESSUREOFF

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HGG understands your problemscutting and making pressure vessels.

Chuck-type Stationary Pipe CuttingMachines (SPC) eliminate the time-consuming hassle of laying out lineson shells as well as grinding holesfor accurate fit-up. Holes are noweasily located, positioned and cutwith unparalleled accuracy and atmaximum speeds for all ranges of walled thicknesses. Vessels that usedto take 10 hours to prep and cut now

take about an hour.An SPC pays for itselfquickly. Learn more:

MAKING PRESSURE VESSELS



PRODUCT & PRINT

SPOTLIGHT

— continued from page 20


26/142

OCTOBER 201324

two versions — standard A/R coatingsthat provide < 0.2% total absorption anda proprietary Cool-CutTM coating that ab-sorbs < 0.15% of laser energy to protectagainst thermal damage. Suitable for use with lasers from 200 W to 4 kW, they fea-ture focal lengths from 3 to 10 in. in 0.5-

in. increments. Also, they come in plano-convex and meniscus configurations in 1to 2 in. OD sizes with thicknesses from0.250 to 0.380 in. and can be suppliedmounted.

Laser Research Optics www.laserresearch.net

(888) 239-5545

Dross Separator RecoversSolder

The Separo solder-recovery system al-lows companies to reclaim solder in-housefor cost savings. A shift’s worth of wavesolder dross can be turned into usable sol-der ingots in less than an hour. It works with lead-free or SnPb alloys and is capa-ble of treating 9–11 lb of hot or room-tem-perature dross per cycle. The heavier sol-der alloy settles at the bottom of the

The Emmet A. Craig

WELDING SCHOOL

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27/142

heated crucible while lighter dross oxidesrise to the top and are captured in a spe-cialized filter. After 30 to 40 min, moltensolder is transferred to the five ingotmolds below the crucible. No chemical ad-ditives are required, ensuring the re-claimed alloy is 100% pure and usable.

Manncorp www.manncorp.com/solder-recovery

(800) 745-6266

New Videos DemonstrateSelective Soldering System

The company has added to its Web sitefour new video demonstrations of the

Seitec STS-2533SJ selective soldering sys-tem with built-in spray fluxer. Designedfor use with multilayer and high-densityprinted circuit boards, the soldering sys-tem allows for flux application on smalltargets and through-hole components.The videos, showing soldering close-upslow motion, soldering process, solderingprocess 2, and inline machine demo, canbe viewed at www.seikausa.com/tv.

Seika Machinery, Inc. www.seikausa.com

(310) 540-7310

Waterjet Machine Availablein Range of Cutting Widths

The HydrocutTM LX waterjet shapecutting machine is a large gantry with ahigh-stiffness beam design featuring duallinear rails, plus rack-and-pinion drives.It can be equipped with up to four waterjet stations, and can also carry up to two,

high-definition plasma stations with thecompany’s m3 Precision Plasmarc system.The gantry offers all-steel constructionand rides on a floor-mounted, heavy-duty,85-lb crane rail system. It achieves speedcontrol from 0.1 to 1400 in./min, and isavailable in cutting widths from 8 to 18 ft

25WELDING JOURNAL

For info go to www.aws.org/ad-index For info go to www.aws.org/ad-index



28/142

OCTOBER 201326

For pipe cutting or weld preparationtasks related to maintenance ornew construction, there are prima-

rily two different methods commonlyused. The first is heat (thermal) cutting

with subsequent hand grinding, and thesecond is portable machining, popularlyknown as cold cutting, which produces a

weld ready surface — Fig. 1.

Reasons to Choose ColdCutting

While each has its adherents, cold cut-ting and beveling is considered by manya superior method due to its precision andinherent safety advantages. Machiningeliminates the risks associated with open

flame torch cutting, particularly impor-tant wherever volatile hydrocarbons arepresent. The cold cutting method alsoeliminates the undesirable heat-affectedzone (HAZ) created by thermal cutting,altering the molecular structure of themetal. Due to these factors, more indus-tries are specifying cold cutting as part of

their project bid process.Cold cutting in its simplest terms usesa portable machine tool to cut or prepprior to welding or flange assembly. Weldprep can take multiple forms: beveling,compound beveling (with two or morebevel angles), J prep, counterboring (ma-chining the inside of the pipe), facing(machining a square edge), and flangefacing (machining the mating surfaces of bolted flanges) — Fig. 2.

Form Tooling vs. SinglePointing

There are two basic types of portablemachining, form tooling and single point-ing. Form tooling uses shaped tooling (orcutting bits) to create the final contour

or profile of the finished prep. It tendsto pull larger chips and requires addi-tional machine rigidity and power thansingle pointing. The benefits of formtooling are it can be faster than singlepointing and may be easier to set up andoperate for a less experienced operator— Fig. 3.

Single pointing refers to machining,using the point of the tooling to take afine cut and pull a smaller chip. The ben-

Cold Cutting:

A Clean and

Repeatable Technology

MARK LESKA is Senior Marketing Coordi-nator, ITW Orbital Cutting and Welding,E. H. Wachs® (www.ehwachs.com)

Industrial Products Division.

Portable machine tools for cold cutting have many advantages for end prepping pipe prior to welding

BY MARK LESKA

Fig. 1 — Cold cutting produces a precise,

repeatable weld-ready finish in a single

step.

Fig. 2 — Typical weld preparation profiles. Many profiles are only achievable by

machining.


29/142

27WELDING JOURNAL

efits of single pointing are the ability tomachine heavy wall or high-alloy mate-rial that tend to resist form tooling, andthe versatility of creating custom profiles.

Another benefit is the choice of usinga machine tool with a smaller powerrequirement.

In addition, single point cutting bitsare generally less expensive than formtooling cutting bits. They are often avail-

able as an insert bit and holder arrange-ment, with multiple cutting points offer-ing a lower cost per cut. By its nature,single point machining tends to havelonger cut times than form tooling, andin certain instances may require set upcalculations by the operator to success-fully create the final prep.

Machining Technologies

Machining produces the consistent,repeatable weld preps needed to ensure

weld integrity, critical to timely and prof-itable project outcomes. Machining ingeneral utilizes a wide range of technolo-gies to accomplish various tasks. Thesemachining technologies include lathe,milling, reciprocating, abrasive, chiplesscutting, drilling, and threading. No sin-gle technology is best for all applications,

with some projects or tasks employingmultiple technologies. Portable machin-ing also offers the ability to apply vari-ous remote control and automationschemes where required.

Lathe

Lathe machining offers great accuracyand repeatability by utilizing a rigid, ro-tating frame with fixed tooling. Lathecutting and beveling is used where a proj-ect requires 360-deg machining of objectssuch as tube, pipe, vessels, cylinders, andconical objects. Lathe cutting producesa finish that in years past was only achiev-able in a well equipped machine shop.The best known pipe-cutting machinetool using lathe technology is the split

frame, a rotating ring pipe cutter andbeveler named for its ability to “split” inhalf for mounting to inline pipe.

Machining with a split frame (whichmay also be referred to as a "clamshell")is highly versatile. Properly configured,it can be used for cutting, beveling, com-pound beveling , counterboring, facing(or squaring), and flange facing. With itscomprehensive group of accessories, thesplit frame becomes a complete, inte-grated machining system that can tacklemost field machining tasks — Fig. 4.

Fig. 3 — Form tooling offers ease of setup and operation.

Fig. 4 — Versatile split frame machining systems utilize lathe technology to deliver per-

fect preps.


30/142

OCTOBER 201328

Milling

Milling utilizes a rotating cuttermounted to a carrier that follows a lin-

ear or radial path. Compared to lathe ma-chining, milling produces fine chip de-bris and is not limited to 360-deg opera-tion. This is particularly useful for local-ized machining of pockets or windows,or partial segmentation. Milling opera-tions include cutting, beveling, facing,and grooving.

The modern market for pipe cold cut-ting technology goes back to 1949 withthe introduction of the Trav-L-Cutter®by E. H. Wachs. It is a portable millingmachine designed to cut, or cut and bevel

simultaneously, on most pipe materialsand schedules.

Reciprocating

Reciprocating cutting utilizes astraight blade moving in a repeated for-

ward and backward motion to achieve thecutting action.

The advantages of reciprocating sawsare their relative simplicity and ease of set up and operation. An example of thistype of reciprocating saw is the Guillo-tine®, which cuts horizontally, vertically,

or anything in between with an ellip-tical cutting motion that lifts theblade on the return stroke, enhanc-ing cutting efficiency and minimizing

blade wear.These saws can be configured with

remote control with auto feed andauto clamping operation for subseaor hazardous environments.

Chipless Cutting

Chipless cutting, also known asforeign material exclusion (FME) isdesigned to prevent cutting contam-inants from entering the workpiece.Chipless cutting is often used in food

and dairy, high purity, and powergeneration applications where metalshavings cannot be tolerated. In sim-ple terms, FME utilizes a sharpedged wheel that orbits while inwardpressure is applied to sever (cut) the

work piece, much like a householdcan opener. Other examples wherechipless cutting might be specifiedare hot cells, semiconductor, and de-activation and decommissioning(D&D) activities related to nuclearfacilities, chemical agents, and ex-plosive munitions.

Fig. 5 — One of the hottest technologies in cold cutting is abrasive cutting diamond wire saws.

Fig. 6 — Automated cutting technologies used

for demilitarizing WWII aerial bombs in Guam.


31/142

To illustrate, the U.S. Department of Defense needed to destroy a WWIIstockpile of chemical agents stored in-side steel, cylindrical ton containers (TC)at a military storage facility. The projectrequired the TC to be remotely severed

without generating additional contami-nates. Wachs’ FME technology helpeddestroy over 1800 TC, successfully end-ing over 60 years of agent storage at the

facility.

Abrasive Cutting

Abrasive cutting utilizes a hard ma-trix material bonded to the leading sur-face of various shaped cutting end effec-tors. The newest machine utilizing indus-trial abrasive cutting is the diamond wiresaw (DWS), which cuts with a diamondmatrix cable rotating at high speed, fedinto the workpiece with controlled force.Diamond wire cutting is useful where the

risk of material collapse, known as com-pressive cutting, exists.

It’s the best solution when cuttingmixed material types such as concreteand steel, which tend to quickly dull con-

ventional saw blades. In addition, DWSset up quickly, making them useful fordestructive cutting — Fig. 5.

Drilling and Threading

Drilling is a cutting process that uti-lizes a rotary cutting tool (drill bit) that

is advanced into a workpiece to cut orbore holes, or remove material to enlargea hole. Threading is a rotary cutting toolused to create screw threads. Traditionalhydraulic powered industrial drills fordrilling and threading are manufacturedby E. H. Wachs, plus a line of specializedsubsea drills.

Utilizing two hydraulically poweredopposed drills, the subsea drill is de-signed to drill inline holes for pin inser-tion used for installing solid rigging bars.This procedure facilitates decommission-

ing and removal of structures such asmultiple string casings and oil platformlegs in near shore and subsea applica-tions, so they can be safely lifted in larger,stable assemblies.

Cutting Automation

Automation technologies can be ap-plied to cutting processes where humaninteraction is difficult or impossible, suchas zero visibility, radioactive environ-ments, explosive environments, and deep-

water subsea operations. Automation op-tions can include remote, topside or re-

dundant controls, automatic feed, auto-matic clamping, ROV power and control,up to complete sequence automation withsystem integration — Fig. 6.

Repeatable Results

Properly machined weld preparationsare a vital prerequisite to achieving theprecise, high-integrity welds required in

today’s modern industries. Cold cutting, with subsequent or simultaneous bevel-ing, produces the repeatable weld prepsthat contribute to weld integrity.♦

29WELDING JOURNAL

Contact Your Local Equipment Center Today:

Chicago 847-537-8800 Baton Rouge 225-644-7780 Houston 713-983-0784San Francisco 707-439-3763 Toronto 905-830-8888 Edmonton 780-469-6402

Pipe cutting & beveling rental equipment sizes in stock, from 6” to 72”. Partner with Wachs for sales, service, rentals & maintenance/repair suppor t throughout North America.For more information, visit our website @ ehwachs.com

Wachs simultaneous cutting and beveling technology:

• Provides you with superior weld fit up

• Eliminates risks related to torch cutting & grinding

• Minimizes your operating costs with multi-function applications

Cutting Edge Equipment

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Contact Y ur Local Equipment Center T

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Minimizes your operating costs with multi-function applications

Eliminates risks related to torch cutting & grinding

Provides you with superior weld fit up

achs simultaneous cutting and beveling technology:

ent Center day:

welding equipment.orbital tube cutting &Supplier of Orbitalum

Minimizes your operating costs with multi-function applications

For more information, visit our website @ ehwachs.com Wachs for sales, service, rentals & maintenance/repair supporPipe cutting & beveling rental equipment sizes in stock, from 6” to 72”. Par

T707-439-3763San F anciscoBaton Rouge847-537-8800Chicago

or more information, visit our website @ ehwachs.comvice, rentals & maintenance/repair support throughout Nor

veling rental equipment sizes in stock, from 6” to 72”. Partner with

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F o r

i n f o g o t o w w w . a w s . o r g / a d - i n d e x

Change of Address?

Moving?

Make sure delivery of your Welding

Journal is not interrupted. Contact

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32/142

OCTOBER 201330

L iving your passion and getting paidto do it sounds too good to be true,but the artists portrayed in this ar-

ticle are doing just that. All of thesecraftsmen love to tinker, weld, and ex-press their creative ideas by putting stuff together in fanciful ways. For them, solv-ing each fabrication problem encoun-tered along the way becomes a labor of love that makes the final product moremeaningful. Their ultimate joy is havingtheir artworks appreciated by others whobuy them for display in their homes andplaces of business. Read on to be inspiredand, when you feel the urge, raid a scrappile, go into your shop, and give weldedsculpturing a try.

Morphing fromMicrobiologist to Welder

Kendall Polster, a microbiologist, re-called that throughout his life he builtthings and made furniture, but he creditshis brother, Craig, a qualified welder, forteaching him how to work with metal.Metalworking became his passion. Pol-ster said he was fortunate to have thetools readily available and an expert totrain him on their use.

“I started welding metal tables for my-self. My friends liked my furniture, so Isold some and made more,” he said. In1994, after working three years as a re-

search biologist at The Blood Center of

Southeast Wisconsin and starting med-ical school, Polster took a leave of ab-sence to pursue his newfound craft. Henever went back. Instead, he went on tobecome known as “The Weld Guy” —Fig. 1.

Crude Scrap Becomes

Treasures

Having worked in construction andlandscaping during high school and col-lege, he likes it when things have a func-tion. “Therefore,” he said, “I don’t mind

when a customer wants me to change apiece. Other people have good ideastoo.” On the other hand, much of Pol-ster’s work is imaginative art that he sellsto museums, individuals, and galleriesaround the country. His creations havethe rough, raw look inherent in the scrap

metal he uses to create his happy dogs,eerie demons, whimsical robots, lamps,guitars, huge hand guns, and bowls of rusty flowers — Figs. 2–4. Althoughmuch of his work exhibits delicate details,they are also robust and earthy. He likesto call it “manly art.”

Thus began Polster’s profitable careerselling a prolific assortment of weldedartworks that ranges from fanciful orna-mental tabletop and wall decorations toqueen-sized beds, 24-ft-wide estate gates(Fig. 5), and myriad other creations.

“Now, I’ve hit 40 and I weld junk,” he

joked. “If that doesn’t make my momproud of me.”

Polster even revels in the beauty of theprocesses he uses to transform the crudemetal pieces he salvages from scrap pilesinto these treasures. “I should say that

welding, torching, and grinding metal canbe quite a performing art in itself — it’san experience. Torching through galva-nized metal, watching the flames jet outas you pierce through, then observing the

yellow, green, and blue haze glow for half a minute after you’ve stopped torching asit continues to burn, and the fountain of sparks produced while and after you stoptorching on magnesium-filled cast iron.”

He noted, “On some furniture withexposed welds, I lay a real nice bead andon some sculptures I purposely weld a re-ally bad drippy globby bead just to makeit look less refined.” He mused, “I’m surea little Dr. Seuss never hurt anyone.” He

recommends reading Green Eggs and Ham . Quoting Dr. Seuss, “I like non-sense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasyis a necessary ingredient in living.”

Polster urges everyone pursuing welded crafts to observe safety practicesand wear protective clothing — lessonshe learned the hard way.

“I started working out of one side of atwo-car garage with no heat for my firsteleven years in business,” he recalled. “A few years into it, I took over the otherside. My first tools were just a Miller

Thunderbolt stick welder, a 14-in. abra-

The Three Rs of

Welded ArtMARY RUTH JOHNSEN

([email protected]) is editor and

KRISTIN CAMPBELL ([email protected])

and HOWARD WOODWARD

([email protected]) are associate

editors of the Welding Journal.

Reuse, recycle, repurpose: theartists profiled here take the principles of those three Rs to heart

BY HOWARD WOODWARD,

KRISTIN CAMPBELL, AND

MARY RUTH JOHNSEN


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31WELDING JOURNAL

Fig. 1 — Weld Guy, Kendall Polster, is

shown at the Harley-Davidson Museumwith some of his sculptures for sale. Visi-

ble are a robot, wall mask, and a guitar.

Fig. 2 — Happy-dog sculptures have al-

ways been popular, fast-selling critters.

Fig. 3 — Every den needs a demon mask to

chase away the blues.

Fig. 4 — Polster’s gun collection includes

large wall decorations and life-sized re-

volvers in realistic and fanciful designs.

The stars are steel screw heads.

Fig. 5 — A bird and a squirrel reside in this

graceful iron-tree gate that Polster de-signed to complement the estate’s land-

scaping.

Fig. 6 — Harley-Davidson commissioned

this curved steel wall panel for its board-

room, specifying the letters to be hand cut

for a more rustic appearance.

Fig. 7 — Bicycle parts come alive in this in-

tricate 2-ft-wide fish sculpture that fetched

$25,000 at a SRAM Corp. fund-raiser.

1 2 3

4 5

6

7


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OCTOBER 201332

sive chop saw, and an oxyacetylenetorch.” He remarked, “It is amazing whatall you can do with just a few tools. Now,I have a 6000-sq-ft shop with all sorts of machines, plasma cutters, angle and platerollers, a shear, various saws, press brake,and a machine shop, too. It seems themore tools I get, the more I want. WhenI got my first plasma cutter, it seems thetorch got dedicated to just heating things

up. When I got my first Miller MIG welder , the old sti ck welder only gotpulled into service when I had to help afriend weld on a rusty trailer. And whenI got my plate shear, I used the saws andplasma cutter less. I have several weldingmachines and plasma cutters now andhave never had a single problem withthem over the years. As for advice to peo-ple wanting to start out making art, I say just do it. Get at it and make something.I think people would be amazed at whatthey can do if they just try.”

Creative Therapy

Polster derives another benefit frommetalworking. “I started diligentlysculpting when I was feeling a bit de-pressed over the ending of a relationship with a girlfr iend. Sculpting ,” he said,“took my mind off of the sadness. I guessit was my form of therapy. It was duringthis time that I welded my first dog. Up tonow, I have made close to 1000 dogs. Iguess a dog can’t help but make you

happy.” Polster enthused, “It is also neatto see how much personality you can givea dog sculpture just by varying the place-ment of the head, body, and ears.” Hedoes not name his dogs. “I want the peo-ple who purchase them to give their ownname. Once this is done, the sculpture iscomplete. I hope they enjoy their newrusty-junk dogs.”

Dozens of businesses have commis-sioned works from him including MillerBrewing, Red Bull Energy Drink, John-son Controls, Wahl Corp., and Harley-Davidson (Fig. 6), a colorful fish sculp-

ture made from bicycle parts that sold for$25,000 (Fig. 7). Polster’s artworks arecurrently exhibited and sold at CranstonGallery, Milwaukee; Lindsay Gallery,Columbus, Ohio; Marc Delorme, Paris,France; Roan and Black Gallery inSaugatuck, Mich.; Harley-Davidson Mu-seum, Milwaukee; and Art Space,Kohler, Wis. Polster is pleased to say the vast majority of the sculptures picturedon his Web site have been sold. “It is agood problem to have,” he said. “The gal-leries always want more.”

Emboldened by his ongoing success,

Fig. 8 — Kyle Thilmany (left) and Kurt Hermansen-Jent pose next to the 7-ft-tall flower

(one foot of which is below ground) they fabricated using slotted spoon handles in 6- and 12-in. lengths. The dragonfly attached on a stainless steel twisted rod is mainly made out

of small spoon handles.

Fig. 9 — The assortment offered by Bending & Welding Spoon Art includes flowers, water

hose holders, and displays for empty wine bottles.


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33WELDING JOURNAL

the Weld Guy tells everyone, “You nameit, I weld it! I am flexible and will work withany ideas to create a custom-fit piece for

whatever you want.” Additional informa-tion is available from Kendall B. Polster,The Weld Guy, [email protected], www.weldguy.com.

‘Forking’ It Over: TurningSilverware into Art

With the thousands of forks andspoons Kurt Hermansen-Jent and KyleThilmany have purchased, you wouldthink they were preparing for a huge eat-ing competition. Instead, they have beenusing these utensils for making clevercreations ranging from tabletop figuresto tall flowers — Fig. 8.

Earlier this year, the childhood friends

started Bending & Welding Spoon Art( www.bendingandwelding.com) in An-chorage, Alaska. The venture, whichstarted from gifting silverware stickmen to family members, has rapidlytaken off.

Currently, the new business serves as

a fun part-time job. Hermansen-Jent, afreelance welder and former commercialdiver/underwater welder, trained at theHobart Institute of Welding Technology.Thilmany has aspirations to become a po-liceman. They also both work in the com-mercial fishing industry.

And although the young duo neverimagined they would be selling art,they declare this new path has been‘fork’tastic.

“What’s nice about silverware is thatit is relatively easy to get ahold of in bulk,and it is stainless steel, so we don’t ever

Fig. 10 — Instead of using plain drawer

pulls for furniture, why not be clever and

repurpose cutlery?

Fig. 11 — This “singing in the rain” jewelry

holder has two spoons that make up its

legs while another forms the midsec-tion/head. Two forks serve as its arms.

The mesh umbrella holds earrings, and

the raindrops carry necklaces and

bracelets.

Fig. 12 — It does not look like this angel is

built with silverware, but two bent fork-

tops create wings while the center is a

whole fork with its stem and top also bent

into a kneeling position with hands, a

head, and halo.

10 11

12


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have to worry about the art rusting or atleast not over a long time,” Thilmanysaid. “And they are welded sturdy enoughso that they can be left out year round,even in our Alaskan winters.”

‘Spooning’ a Signature Style

The array of decorative items made with this cutlery, for garden and indoor

exhibition in flower pots and such, is de-scribed below and featured in Figs. 9–12.• Backyard creatures, including butter-

flies and dragonflies• Bowls• Displays for empty wine bottles• Flowers, including daisies and tulips,

for vases and in tall forms for yards• Furniture drawer pulls• Holders for water hoses and business

cards• A line of “Hooked on Alaska” hooks

in crab, airplane, starfish, fishermen,

and other styles for jackets, pots/pans,and more

• Jewelry holders and trees• Tabletop figures in many forms, includ-

ing one with a disco flair that has ascouring pad ‘fro, an angel, and guyson a toboggan.Their art is available at many antique

and gift stores in Anchorage, and onlinethrough Etsy (go to www.etsy.com andthen search for Bending & WeldingSpoon Art). Recently, a sales repre-sentative has begun marketing their

creations.

Fabrication Facts

At first, it was challenging to narrowdown the techniques for making a fluidpiece of art with the least damage, abra-sions, and discolorations. Trial and errorhelped; for example, gas metal arc weld-ing produced too much heat and melt-through on forks and spoons. Today, gastungsten arc welding (GTAW) is per-formed using direct current electrodenegative with 2% thoriated tungstenelectrodes and 100% argon shielding gas.

“It’s cool to take metal and change it,”Hermansen-Jent said. He likes thatGTAW is a clean, easy-to-control process

with varying amperages, but given thatthe torch is small, a lot of focusing isrequired.

Brazing is also used in small spots. Assembly takes place in the 10 × 20 ft

garage at Hermansen-Jent’s parents’house. The dedicated space has ample

working room and area for storing silverware — Fig. 13.

Most bending work is around sized

metal tubes. For tighter, more decorativebends, silverware is heated until red hot,then bent without leaving plier marks,causing bends to look more fluid.

“Because of the way that we preparethe pieces, finalizing the product is veryeasy,” Thilmany added.

There is usually not a need for finish-ing work, but spray painting flowers indifferent colors, and occasionally heattreating designs, such as tulips, to give apurple/gold color, is performed.

To build a small figure may take about15 min while a larger, more complex piece could take more than an hour.

Utilizing New Utensils

Originally, they used recycled silverware but quickly realized it was more ex-pensive, time consuming to clean, andcaused inconsistencies.

“That is when we made the switch tousing new silverware for our ‘assemblyline’ collections,” Thilmany said.

They purchase cutlery in large quan-tities at Sam’s Club and salt shaker tops,

which are used for the center of flowers,from a local restaurant supply store. Theytake donations of materials for fancier,unique pieces or for special requests.

Inspiration Insight

“A lot of our collaboration comes fromfriends and family. Some of our bestideas, though, come to us when we are

just out in the garage working,” Thilmanysaid.

They exhibit at public art shows, andare open to new concepts/suggestionsoffered by attendees that they will trylater. They appreciate receiving honestfeedback.

“Our favorite part of our work is re-ally immersing ourselves in the art com-munity. Before this adventure, neither of us really had much of an interest in localbusiness nor artwork. That has com-

pletely changed now,” Thilmany said.

What’s Next?

Up ahead for the duo is revealing theirnew designs. They have made moose,

mosquitoes, and other items that havenot been seen before. In addition, they

want to create a winter line and are always trying to come up with Alaskan-themed models. Custom boxes are beingmade to keep their festive figures in, too.

“We tend to think that our main goalfor customers is to make them happy,”Thilmany said. “We are not limited to anyone thing, so we will do functional piecesto just straight artwork with no real useother than decoration.”

For two guys not having any previous

introduction to art, they have served upsome pretty hearty portions so far.

Building on a MassiveScale

Although he’s been working as a welder for more than 20 years, John An-drews believes he didn’t find his true call-ing in the welding field until 2011 whenhe began work on his first large-sized artpiece. Andrews initially built that sculp-ture, a seated dragon with a wide-open

mouth and upward-pointed nose (Fig.

OCTOBER 201334

Fig. 13 — In their garage workshop, Hermansen-Jent performs gas tungsten arc welding,while Thilmany heat treats a piece of stainless steel silverware.

Fig. 14 — Norm, the first massive sculp-

ture Andrews created, at its viewing place

in downtown Grand Rapids, Mich., for the

ArtPrize competition.


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14), in hopes of selling it to pay off somedebt. However, after his sister, Jenny,told him about ArtPrize, an international

art competition, he decided to enter thecontest. The dragon — named Normafter Andrews’s 14-year-old dog whodied during its construction — placed inthe top 25 of the competition. That suc-cess inspired Andrews to enter again this year. This time it’s a “flying” dragon (Fig.15) he named Monty after another dogthat has since passed away, a Clumberspaniel owned by Andrews’s wife’s bestfriend. By design, the faces of both drag-ons resemble their namesakes. Monty’screation is chronicled on Facebook; justsearch for “Monty, a Dog Gone Dragon.”

Additional information is available at www.jracustomwelding.com.

The 19-day ArtPrize competitiontakes place in downtown Grand Rapids,Mich. It welcomes entries from a wide variety of artistic media, including music,painting, and sculpture. Although thereare six juried awards, the public selectsmost of the winners, including the$200,000 top prize, by voting via text mes-saging, through the competition’s mobileapp, or online. This year’s ArtPrize ranfrom September 18 through October 6.

With Monty, Andrews said, “I wanted

35WELDING JOURNAL

Fig. 15 — Monty, Andrews’s entry for the 2013 contest, completed and ready to be driven to Grand Rapids.

Fig. 16 — An assortment of flowers and this wine tree are among Andrews’s smaller

creations.


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to create something special, somethingthat would be bigger and more dramaticfor the public with hopes of getting into

the top ten for 2013.” (The top ten vote-getters receive cash prizes.)

How He Got His Start

Andrews, who grew up in Reed City,Mich., first learned to weld at WyomingTechnical Institute in Laramie, Wyo.,

where he was studying auto mechanics. After being disappointed in that field asa career, he entered Ferris State Univer-sity in Big Rapids, Mich., where he wasfirst enrolled in the Mechanical Engi-neering program, then switched to Weld-

ing Engineering Technology. He movedfrom Michigan to Gainesville, Fla., in2002, working for three different weld-

ing businesses before opening JRA Weld-ing, LLC in 2002. It’s a two-person oper-ation, with Andrews doing the weldingand wife, Susan, taking care of the officeoperations.

“After I moved to Florida I started tomake welded gifts for my wife. I wouldstay after work and use scrap metal,” An-drews recalled. “She loved my gifts andit was easy on my wallet. One day I over-heard her say that I could make anythingand I felt ‘if she has that much confidencein me, why not weld a large sculpture,’and that’s how Norm came about.”

Prior to the first dragon, Andrews’sart had been smaller in scale. He’d cre-ated a small motorcycle, fish, flowers,

swords, bookends, and wine trees, amongothers — Fig. 16. “I also made a bunchof ants and trellises for botanical art fes-tivals and called my display ‘Ants in YourPlants’ (Fig. 17). I did okay with that, butit wasn’t satisfying enough for me,” hesaid.

One of his big first jobs after goinginto business for himself was as part of afour-person crew that built a “green”home out of 12 steel shipping containers.

“We turned the shipping containersinto a certified L.E.E.D. Platinum homethat is an industrial work of art,” he said.

OCTOBER 201336

Fig. 17 — These metal ants were part of Andrews’s “Ants in Your

Plants” display.

Fig. 18 — Andrews used gas metal arc welding to create the

dragon’s body.

Fig. 19 — The sculpture prior to attachment of the scales.

17 18

19


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“While working on that job site, I wastaking a break and came up with the ideaof using shipping containers for scales onthe dragon.” The painted containers

would provide color for the art piece andeven if those colors faded, the Cor-Tensteel the containers were constructed of

would develop a rust-colored patina.

From Nose Tip to Tail

Andrews built both dragons out of scrap material, and while cost played animportant role in why he chose to usescrap, the fact he could keep the steelfrom being melted down or being sent toa landfill was also important.

Monty is 101 ⁄ 2 ft tall and 81 ⁄ 2 ft wide, witha 20-ft wing span. If it was possible tostraighten it out, the dragon would be77 ft long. The sculpture weighs in at4000 lb.

In addition to shipping containers, apartial inventory of the materials he used

on Monty includes a beer keg; various

sized propane, helium, kerosene, and water tanks; a light pole; mini plowblades; antique cow drinking fountains;stainless steel prosthetic hip parts; and agoal post. Andrews poured 480 lb of con-crete into the tail as ballast.

To build the first dragon, Andrewsused a Hobart 110-V plasma cutting ma-chine with a built-in air compressor. “Itdid the job cutting over 7000 scales, butit didn’t last very long into Monty’s 12,600

scales,” so he bought a 220-V ThermalDynamics plasma cutting machine and alarge air compressor. Welding was done

with a Lincoln Electric 135 gas metal arc welding machine with a combination of steel and stainless

aws welding journal october 2013

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