The Most Requested TIG Process You'll Never Use

[@CapablePimento]

this skill is actually critical to me. I always weld my coke cans together before an outing. that way I only have to hold half as many cans. Obviously i follow this by welding on an extra long open ended koozie.

[@ypaulbrown]

what a great idea, thanks for the tip.....Paul

[@ai_university]

"open ended coozie"

[@IMKINDOFABIGDEAL13]

Well look who thinks they’ve got it all figured out… hahahahaha

[@donttalkjustplay4274]

😂🤣😂👌🏼

[@weirdmatter]

@@ypaulbrown did you just refer to yourself in the third 🤔🙄😒

[@XBOXTOPUS]

As a relatively green welder ( I've been welding for about 3 years now, with a focus in TIG for the last year), this is something that's always in the back of my mind. I work at a sheet metal fabrication shop, so I am routinely TIG-ing material all the way down to 0.040 aluminum. The welding of cans is something my boss always points to as a mark of a very capable welder and man lemme say you made it look easy. I think cans like that are around 0.040 thick which is not easy stuff to weld, not to mention all the way around a circumference. Awesome vid, made me wanna try it with my everlast in the garage.

[@AllenKll]

Coke cans are definitely thinner than .040; even thinner than .032. Cut one apart and you'll see what I mean. A quick google search says that in the US soda cans are .010, but I don't know how reliable that is, I don't have a micrometer handy.

[@kubeek]

0.04" is roughly 1mm thick which would hold a battle tank. A beer can is closer to 0.004" thick or 0.1 to 0.08mm.

[@liquidesnake2]

cans are .003" to 004". I used .045 or .030 wire and lots of preactice. It is not as hard as you think once you get a feel for it. Lots of guys use it for practice for aireospace certification tests. Tacking is the hardest part (fit is critical), second is moving fast enough to prevent warping. You will get there

[@ScarryMarian2012]

The main reason for your fail is not exposing the the aluminium properly...most times the succes of a weld is the preparation of the weld...that's the heart of the weld bro,here's a tip to get that cleaning better,get an abrasive sponge pad of a fine grit and buff the bottom edges of the cans you want to join,the clean that with acetone (also clean the filler rod with acetone),then start practicing from there,next step,fine tune the way the arc melt the puddle (you actually don't melt a puddle on the cans but on the filler rod) by tweaking the balance of the machine,have a start from the settings presented in the video,good luck there 🙂

[@HappyDragneels_page]

@@kubeek you are using the wall thickness for the middle of the can, that extruded ring on the bottom is much thicker

[@draaks1]

Pretty cool, I had a neighbor who was retired worked for Miller I think it was. He used to go out and do trade shows and whatnot. He was sent to "show what the welders were capable of" he would weld cans, razor blades, and by far the coolest that he even still had an example of was 2 sheets of tinfoil welded back together. Dude was unreal.

[@seanthebluesheep]

I know absolutely nothing about welding, so this sounds like almost nothing to me, but everyone in the comments seems very impressed. I think that shows the depth of the field in that something apparently simple can take huge amounts of knowledge and skill to achieve. Well done to everyone involved, even if I don't know well enough what I'm congratulating.

[@WoodcraftBySuman]

Super thin material. Very hard to weld and not melt into a puddle of cheese

[@lordrichard8184]

It’s a super thin material with a very low melting point (like 1200 degrees). Welding aluminum happens at 1100 degrees. So you have a very small temperature window to start with. Throw in the super thinness of the material and it makes the welding window super super small. It would be very easy to melt the can and turn it into a puddle of cheese. Or just have massive burn through all along the weld

[@davidcraft4909]

This is probably by far the best practice, because I have 100s of cans/ coupons ready to go. to add to that just like steel too if you can weld super thin, then the thicker stuff is easy. not to mention if you can weld around a radius then flat becomes too easy, so go weld some cans and become a better welder

[@nickbesserer]

"Coupons" lmao

[@FrenchCheeto016]

I got the 250ex last year to learn to tig weld. I’ll probably never need another machine. Love it

[@jodymiller9328]

Been almost 10 years since I got my 250ex and it's still kicking today. Paint is faded and she is showing some age but it's still going strong. Actually turned out to be pretty solid welder.

[@everlastgenerator]

You sound surprised lol

[@1008chaz]

I love seeing trades people strutting there stuff. He makes all this sounds so easy and straight forward but it takes so much experience and skill.

[@19mrscott69]

The BEST camera work of any channel I've seen

[@jessemccollum]

Ol camera guy is a certified pro, he comes up woth some really cool shots

[@2020HotShotTruckingLLC]

I have a lot to learn before even thinking about doing this. My trick with soda cans was from when I worked in a printed circuit factory, We would take some waste etchant, dilute it and set the can in it. It would dissolve the aluminum and if you diluted it properly you would have a perfect plastic can left. Soda is very corrosive and eats aluminum so there is a plastic coating inside the can. Etching the aluminum off leaves you with the plastic coating only.

[@evoxis1058]

Could you go i bit more in Detail? Sounds interesting

[@2020HotShotTruckingLLC]

@@evoxis1058 The etchant used was called Cupric Chloride, it was green colored. It had hydrochloric acid and chlorine in it as added ingredients but you started from a starter solution which is really just the same waste product which will have a certain amount of copper dissolved in it. the trick was to dilute it with water as the reaction with aluminum creates heat. If it's strong enough, it looks like a little flame around the edge of the line where the can is floating. Too much heat and the plastic melts. Too much water and it takes too long or won't work at all. So it's touch and go to find the right ratio. I'm sure there are plenty of acids that would work. I discovered this where there was a plastic tub used for draining the hoses used to pump out tanks into a semi and rain water had diluted it. Trial and error with many attempts and we would get a perfect plastic can.

[@macmaniacal]

but how do you learn a lot if you don't try!

[@James.Richter]

Dance monkey dance! Thanks for the video my 7year old and I both enjoyed it. He said "dad! That's your welder!" 👍 green machine!

[@jessemccollum]

Haha perfect! Thanks for the support man! Get that boy welding!

[@James.Richter]

@@jessemccollum I let them ( 12yr & 7yr ) play with the mig already👌 the 12 yr old is also running my paint guns occasionally. The trades won't be completely lost in the coming generation.

[@yecodothings493]

My welding instructor has the same welding cap

[@jamesh9678]

I tried this, just to see how hard it is. It’s very hard imo. I suppose the bigger filler rod and the lower melting point would help. I could make a little puddle on one can, but trying to fuse two together wasn’t even close. A big hole would appear immediately.

[@DAR10162]

That is the point of the exercise to teach better control in general

[@tonymottram1396]

I love how casual you are about doing such an awesome weld I've watched other videos of yours thankyou for your time

[@billclark5943]

I like using the pyrex cup on aluminum too. Especially when welding around tubing . Being able to look through the cup as I near the end helps tie in consistency. There is some distortion looking through the glass but once you know what your looking for its not that bad

[@afsarmstrongfiresafety7460]

Even illumination without a shadow from the cup is another great reason.

[@Bigdaddyweldz]

If you can weld cans together you can also repair tubes on radiators done it many times. it's a great skill to have.

[@king_Perixus]

thx man. ill actually use this method to make a Summer-Time Heatblower (hard to explain whole concept) but this information is going to be put to use when i have to weld like 10 cans to each other and have like 5-7 rows of them. put them into a fram, attach a blower/motor to the buttom, place it in the hot sun. also tickering with trying to add water into the system, and then into our main water tank :s

[@ThrashingBuddha]

Man, that's beautifully filmed, though!

[@yeoldepirate783]

Happy New Year friend !

[@jurrien541]

love your cans !!!!!

[@declanthiele]

I learned how to weld with a flux core mig and 22gauge sheet steel. Tell you what, was an experience. Definitely teaches a guy to go slow and be patient to let the heat disperse in the steel

[@Mk6GTIMike]

I got an automatic A in my TIG class for welding 2 cans together

[@metalbill]

This is how I've gotten a job before. Brought in cans I welded together as my calling card.

[@everlastgenerator]

Touche! I've heard razors, but cans is a good one too.

[@fuzzzeballs]

I will try that when I go for the interview Wednesday at the Amazon warehouse

[@jrcll7856]

i usually have a welded pop can on my work bench for people to see.... it gets peoples attention, especially for those who don`t weld

[@jeffclark5024]

I tried this, failed terribly and somehow took out the high frequency start board in a brand new Lincoln tig welder.. luckily they repaired it under warranty.

[@Patrone68]

Lol nice cans brother! I'm curious what you were using to get your shots of the actual weld, camera in a welding mask?lol

[@jessemccollum]

Sooooo thats a really fancy lens on a DSLR camera, with a filter basically meant to look at the sun. I'm doing a weekly live stream now and we are using a camera by MeltTools that is meant just for arc shots, mounted to my hood. We have a test video of the setup, and we just got done with the first live episode about an hour ago! The videos are posted under the everlast channel page

[@Patrone68]

@@jessemccollum That's really cool!

[@MegaGzusTube]

Amazing.

[@jamesmartin3914]

education doesn't come cheap, thank you

[@ricolorenz7307]

Nice cans, Bro

[@michaelbarefoot6334]

That IS a nice set of cans!

[@randellgribben9772]

great work, fun to watch...thanks

[@ypaulbrown]

Jessie, wonderful video, cheers, Paul

[@juanignaciocaino]

bwahahahaha the tone in your voice when you said "how'd ya like my cans" dropped to 30 hz. Heat input baby!

[@richardhaen]

Jesse, that is very good, u did a very good job. Thanks

[@norelation5344]

Shure got a nice set of cans

[@arrowphillips6902]

Back in the day in my early twenties almost all tig welders would weld the cans so I spent some time and was eventually able to weld two cans side by side long ways...I’m not a production welder anymore. I have been in management and have been a owner of a sheet metal manufacturing, Arospace, and structural steel fab and install company for years so I can weld almost anything but probably couldn’t weld the cans today but I remember how blown away new hires used to be and they would have instant respect after seeing me do it😂😂😂 good old days

[@Eyore82]

0:58 I friggin love that sticker inside your hood!

[@jessemccollum]

Dang.... It finally made an appearance.... I tried to keep it off video

[@mjlmbl]

Anything but a broken heart or the Crack of dawn. Super cool!

[@sk22ng]

Pretty Awesome.

[@charlesgraham9954]

i work at Bass Tracker Boats. iv welded two cans together many of times to win a bet.

[@joelyounger]

Nice set of cans!

[@James.Richter]

Perfect handfuls

[@everlastgenerator]

Jesse's cans are unmatched

[@goatsinker347]

How about a coke can welded to an aluminum ladder?😆

[@jpbsv]

How about a coke can welded to an engine block?

[@donaldcarter1206]

Did that once in the 80's with a 110 volt mig welder. I think it was a hobart handler on 030 wire. Did the bottom fine without blowing through but could never get the sides to weld.

[@Schralenberger]

You're mostly right. Most people will never need this. However, there are exceptions. Example: there is a government contract shop(in Bergen county NJ), that does jet engine components. Their interview weld test, has the invited candidate, welding a stainless steel alloy tubing not much thicker. Now yes indeed, stainless is different from welding aluminum. But this is a cheap practice piece still. For the rest of the world yes, no one is going to do this , for a practical application. But it is still a useful exercise, welding paper thin stock. There are applications for welding uber thin stock. However few, and far between they are.

[@DrCranberry]

to be fair, I feel like there'd be much better, cheaper tests then welding 2 cans together. Like for instance, literally just buying aluminum plates from Home Depot, or Lowes that just need to be cleaned/acetoned and then welded.

[@Schralenberger]

@@DrCranberry I didn't say that they had you weld 2 cans. I said that it(welding the cans) was cheap practice, for welding thin stock.

[@gregwilliams1054]

I've been waiting for 40 years and I Have done that with A torch

[@55afishead]

Oh wow! You are so cool!

[@outdoorzone]

Great demo!! Thx

[@everlastgenerator]

very welcome

[@jonboro2000]

Can you do this with a 255EXT? I'm thinking about buying one, but I would like confirmation that the 255EXT also starts up nice and soft and doesn't blow holes in the cans. This actually really truly is important to me as I do work on stuff this thin.

[@everlastgenerator]

255EXT would be even better choice for doing something like this, more exact control of variables. Part of the reason we used the 250EX was just to highlight how good our analog machines are as well.

[@A-sq2dy]

Love your cans 😳😂

[@checkoutthatthing]

Rocking that dixxon though🤘

[@jessemccollum]

They are my jam. I have too many haha

[@ecleveland1]

I was told that this was a test when my cousin went to school for welding. I don't know if they had to weld them together as you did or if they cut the can in half at its thinnest point and had to weld that back together. He passed the test whatever it was. He was supposed to be a very good welder before he got hurt on the job at a Shell Oil refinery.

[@benjaminboyden4739]

Butt welding the middle of the can would almost be impossible.

[@HappyDragneels_page]

@@benjaminboyden4739 steel yes, aluminium no. aluminium transfers hear insanely fast, so when your welding on super thin aluminium with low power its harder to blow through than steel, you can weld aluminium foil and that is certainly thinner than a can

[@benjaminboyden4739]

@@HappyDragneels_page You post a video butt welding a beer can back together I'll Venmo you a bill.

[@moblirankar8401]

It was great, I had never seen metal welded so thin 👍👍😊

[@Mafia2637]

I want to learn how to weld soooo badly.

[@thecarl168]

what was the actual welding current. ? the machine was set at 43A but you were using the foot pedal as control

[@gomesgarage6537]

Muito bom parabéns 👏👏👏🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷

[@russellstephan6844]

This past Fall I cut up a set-at-the-curb-for-trash-day water heater to be used as stock sheet steel for a beefy DIY snow shovel. The finished shovel out rather nice. We're still waiting on enough show to test its functionality, though. My Everlast 70 amp plasma cutter makes quick work of disassembling such scavenged source metal.

[@Gkitchens1]

Wait you're telling me no one else welds their sodas together before drinking them? Dammit I've been wasting so much time lol

[@stevebrown6215]

Great job! Great skill.

[@MrFunkinPure]

Mad skills. Hat doffed to ya.

[@angelfigueroa310]

Got my everlast , I love it

[@RAWRMotorsports]

How u keep the top of that table looking so fresh 😍

[@jessemccollum]

I never even think about mig or stick welding on it! I keep a pretty nice coat of linseed oil on it as well... Its a tog only table and she gets buffed down every few weels

[@therebelrobot4691]

"He is good with my help he could be the best." Do it while the cans are full and unopened!

[@NanashiSC2]

So you're telling me this isn't The captain of the Canterbury

[@paulkurilecz4209]

Having a good ground is also important as there is a thin plastic film on the cans in addition to the ink/paint for the label. Scuffing the tops of the cans is also good for getting a good ground.

[@davidholmes5220]

I did this 40yrs ago to really test yourshelf cut one can in half turn 90 degrees weld back together, go slow . We didn't have the machines then as we do today.

[@chrisheltra]

Nice dixxon

[@Jerryhayes2]

"Here's a nice set of cans" - I see what you did there

[@davidholmes5220]

To add more, back then i welded artificial hart valves, I've been retired 7yrs ,last 10 i was welding aircraft parts. I loved my work till my body said you can't do it anymore.

[@michaelgarrow3239]

Lol Nice set of cans!

[@vernacular1483]

Technique-wise, what if you had two objects that formed a cavity like these cans, and you needed to weld them together, but could not punch a vent hole? How would you manage or mitigate the outgassing pressure?

[@everlastgenerator]

weld them up, leave a small gap at the end, let the parts cool, preflow some argon into cavity.... hit the last little bit hard and fast.

[@timobatana6705]

This video is the perfect length

[@stevegriffin2626]

Not that anyone cares but the bottom of the cans have a coating of varnish on the very rim. It’s put on there to make them slide easier on a conveyor belt during manufacturing and filling.

[@NemesisRTCW]

Nowadays with aluminium cans it is, but in the old days with steel cans it was also there to protect the rim from abrasion by the conveyors and in the stores, as the bottom would rust out from the outside as the bottom was left uncoated steel.

[@Rocksolidhandyman]

Love the title!😳🤣🔥🙌🥫

[@drizzle335]

Very nice set of cans

[@elaineevander]

what tungsten u used for this?

[@mustafanhtl]

What wire model did you use?

[@littlewarlock9361]

Good day, we have an Everlast STI 221, I love it but no matter how low I go with the amp settings (20 amps) I can not weld thin aluminum, period. If it is not thicker than .80" then it just blows through. I am using 1/16" tungsten with a 15 degree sharpened end. It still blows through. I know it is me but do you have any recommendations? Other than thin aluminum this thing welds like a dream.

[@jessemccollum937]

Hit me up on Instagram or Facebook and lets see if we can get that sorted out!

[@metalheartmachine]

You should be getting lower amps than that. At 1amp per .001”, at 20 amps. That is limited to .020.

[@billarroo1]

A main problem I had was Not keeping the rod right there, Keeping the rod always at the edge of the puddle guarantees filler metal taking most of the heat and not the thin can. Plus don't lag, move fast enough, keep the rod ALWAYS right at the puddle so you have instant filler metal.

[@metalheartmachine]

This might help; I upgraded my stock pedal and my amps dropped from 10 ish to 7. It could be the pedal. I have occasional found bum pedals at work.

[@littlewarlock9361]

I just barely touched the pedal at 20 amps and it still blew right through, I often wondered about that pedal. Thanks!!!

[@patdexter9188]

I did that years ago. Use small tungsten a keep adding rod to absorb the heat

[@JasonVladimir]

Rock on!

[@bigbaderek1978]

if you had to weld without a relief hole how do you do that?

[@DzDzDzzzz146]

let it cool down before closing the last small gap

[@TheDistur]

It is cool to see even if it's not super practical.

[@datboisxe]

4:06 you were saving that for the whole video XD

[@lv2keepfit493]

What did you use for tungsten and it's diameter if you can remember?

[@1963SMITTY]

What cup is that?

[@rcarmisin3465]

I hope your boss doesn't catch you fooling around in the shop, you might get "canned".

[@raygun23]

U are a wizard

[@michaelshortridge6379]

Cut the cans in half and weld them together. A friend of mine welded them together. He welded for Mc Donald- Douglas in Long Beach.

[@dennisyoung4631]

Might work for .025 - .050 sheet and tubing?

[@callumglasgow3105]

I used to TIG weld a 315 degree outside corner on 25 SWG 0.020" aluminium regularly at between 18-24 amps, but that's aerospace defence contracts for you.

[@Noahlochner0]

Nice cans

[@thzzzt]

I've always wondered why you can't get a truly tiny bead with aluminum. I guess molten aluminum just has a minimum viscosity.

[@adam-bf8li]

My life is changed forever.

[@valuepurposemission7517]

mmmm love me a nice set of cans, pressed together just waiting for that filler rod to laydown a nice smooth puddle. ..... Semper Fi

[@lead5s]

35 years ago my welding teacher in high school did this with a oxygen acetylene torch

[@olegvelichko1659]

Oh I'll use this process alright. At least once just to see if I can! Other than that - maybe to make art... "art"

[@5tr41ghtGuy]

Amazing!

[@ironpark4042]

nice work

[@bradyderise8884]

Awesome

[@russia_winner]

Can you welding two filled cans?

[@dislike7973]

I Tig and Dance to this video very nice :D