How do you TIG weld COPPER?! 🤔

[@ls2005019227]

One of the most informative welding videos (across YT) in recent memory- Thanks!

[@ypaulbrown]

Robert. thanks so much for the comment and watching, it is difficult to cover all the bases in such a short presentation., I would have loved to go deeper into the other copper alloys, but time got the better of me...........Cheers, Paul

[@heliarcweldandmachine]

ive done a lot of bar tops, stills, and specialised copper work for distilleries and that, i always shear the same sheet i make the part out of and use that as filler metal, when its all polished it looks the same and same strength as parent metal.

[@ypaulbrown]

Great idea....thanks for commenting...Paul

[@Anenome5]

Genius!

[@alessandrolok5450]

How would you do it with repairs? Or do you just do custom work and always have enough extra material to make rod out of?

[@bobbyblair6862]

Fantastic idea!

[@Tigdude]

That a great idea, really smart.. Tks for sharing

[@mikeiver]

Been there, done that 20 years ago in another life. Did some 1/2" copper plate with a miller 300 welder. It did not like it one bit and tripped out the 100 amp breaker after the first pass. Had to preheat before the rest of the welds. Turned out beautiful. The Miller Dynasty 700 with the 450A water cooled torch doesn't even notice it and ripped thru like nothing. Throw in Helium and there is just about nothing in reason can't be welded. Love the tip to use Romex wire for filler, I did like others suggested and simply sheered sheet down for the filler.

[@ypaulbrown]

hey Mike, that is some hot welding for sure, thanks so much for sharing and watching, best wishes, Paul....glad you liked

[@gettygarrettable]

This is a great video on welding. Very comprehensive on the more advanced details.

[@ypaulbrown]

thanks so much Getty....appreciate that......thanks for commenting and watching, Paul

[@slappopotamus1001]

I recently did some 2"od, 1/4" wall copper pipes. Went through the "trying gasses and blowing up tungsten" phase until I figured it out. 300 amps, clean clean clean, preheat with MAP gas torch, 1/8" 2% Thoriated tungsten and used 12g. household wire as filler. That was a real test for me since I dont do a ton of TIG welding, but do have my pipe certs.

[@ypaulbrown]

slappopotamus, that is fantastic, glad you got the job done, thanks for watching and commenting, Paulie Brown

[@chrisamar5137]

Many years ago working at a shop where we made architectural doors and they took on a job from a sculptor who had no metalworking experience so I ended up fabricating all his pieces of his sculpture. One of the pieces was a copper cube about 12 in x 12 in and we just had the shear Guy shear off some of the parent material and that's what I use for the filler and it worked really well. Now this sculptor guy wanted the cube mirror finished which we did, and then he came in to inspect the work and decided he wanted the cube to now be a matte finish so he took a sanding disc to it and ruined this beautiful mirror finish we had created. And many of the guys in the shop want to lunge at him and choke this guy out ruining their work but he was the sculptor it was his right to do that.

[@ypaulbrown]

what a great story, I have experienced the same thing, customer wanting to grind beautiful welds flush. I work with a guy who gets the job, designs, has me fabricate, but he like to get his hands on too.....it is his design and customer, anyway, he will get a tig torch and rally bastardize a beautiful existing weld, or grind the my welds or his so they end up breaking......Artists believe they know all and their 'Vision' is holy.......by the way, the shearing of the parent material for filler is common in some situations and does work really well......not so much for stainless as some of the elements are are lacking when welding, so filler with 'extra' elements are needed....did you ever do any more work for the 'Artiste'? thanks for sharing this story and watching, I hope you got some insight into copper, best regards, Paul Brown

[@deankay4434]

I had to change my KZbin bell notifications because they changed it. But excellent information in the "Adventures of TIG And Copper". Thank you as I like to learn. Believe it or not, but I still use a SnapOn 400 Watt soldering gun and is now 40 years old! Since I use the the 400 watt tip, it works great on most all things automotive but honestly, but if I have much larger cables to solder, shrink wrap, cover with friction tape and secure in place, I have my grandpas soldering iron. He was an electrical engineer graduating in 1932 and ran field generators in WW-II for this new invention called radar. Yes, the original chunk of copper cast onto a steel rod with a wooden handle. 1" square and shaped into a point with flats, it was "The Tool" for decades. It was originally held in a fixture and heated by a hand pressured alcohol torch. Modern times, millions have no idea that ceramic knob & tube electric wire is not un-safe as it was separated, the ends where twisted and soldered for all connections! It was allowed in the middle of a run without a service box to fix it if a failure happened. Connections to switches had soldered leads, it was cover with friction tape. A word most older worker in home improvement stores would even know! Friction tape is way better than todays PVC w/natural rubber as the sticky stuff. The wire has changed for the better as it was cloth covered asphalt covered cloth mass produce for decades. It simply hardened with time and would crack. The fact it was separated by ceramic knob and tube, but all connections were twisted and soldered was Normal. This made it safer. I simply wanted to know how to extend the soldering tips life as the erodes with use. Costing $30.00 each but still sold! This is an insulated tube over a heating element with a copper tip. I have owned a MIG since 1984 new, but never had a reason to but a TIG or other! Thanks again for sharing your knowledge, background and experience! Thanks. DK, ASE Master Tech since 87, retired.

[@ypaulbrown]

Wow Dean kay, what a great bit of information, thanks so much for sharing....glad you enjoyed our demos and thanks so much for commenting and watching, best wishes, Paulie Brown

[@deankay4434]

@@ypaulbrown It is a genuine honor and duty to keep learning. God bless you my friend as knowledge is something no one can take away, only to be taught & shared. I held 4hr tech service seminars to techs, teachers, dealer techs in 7 states four nights per week in different cities in the upper Midwest, contract labor for Raytheon. Public speaking is the largest phobia and they kept hiring guys that couldn't do it, no ASE certification and you must be active in all 8 categories to take the 100 questions for advanced emissions or L-1. I missed 1 question. Only 3 of 56 passed or allowed to test. After 7+ years of 234 days per year in a hotel, I tore a rotator cuff in Dubuque stacking a P/S rack, had surgery two weeks later then the dissolved my position. Boy, wasn't that showing what happens if you do work? Put you out to pasture!

[@ypaulbrown]

@@deankay4434 so sad to hear how you were treated, I used to work as a contractor to Volvo Trucks developing educational material back in the 1990's....I was never an instructor , but had to make the information correct, ironically, when I took a break from college after 3 years, early 70's ,my first job was for a friends dad who had a small trucking company, and the 1st week, I was helping yank engines and rebuilding them......and this was for a guy who had just taken a break from 'ART SCHOOL" of all things....best wishes, Paul

[@deankay4434]

@@ypaulbrown Good for you developing training materials for Volvo. We had packaged books and a CD sent to us from GM's SPO, their service and parts operation in Grand Blanc, MI. With ACDelco on the 3rd floor, I asked a good developer that did your Volvo type job. I asked Mike, who come we don't have screen captures off the scan tool on real vehicles, plus, their is diagnostic holes big enough to drive a truck thru! These guys we teach have to fix them. He told me they don't have scan tools or vehicles much less a garage to work on these. WHAT? This is crazy and makes an instructors job harder and our training lame! I spend hours on weekends with my Tech-2 on my company car/truck using software to grab screen captures of air/fuel mapping, charging system control types (3 kinds) load shedding, EVAP engine off natural vacuum in the fuel tank, and on. How can we keep techs current on what systems they are creating in the name of emissions and global warming! This is madness! My problem was I owned a tool box and had to fix things to get paid! This gives me nothing and service techs who drive 2+hrs to get to Dubuque or Rockford, I'll. will not come back. I get 100+ people in Rockford. On salary, I spent way too much time driving home from KC or 5 hrs from Dubuque and part of Saturday doing attendance sheets & expenses, but then spend more time fixing a presentation? I was maddening. The others guys didn't do this. But their numbers of attendants dropped while mine went up. They even sent a Chicago GM training center manager to a seminar I was holding. Everyone was teaching air conditioning but I was teaching diagnostic codes, symptom codes, sensors, location, purpose, action, testing, blinking snow-flake on the controls, even Cadillac's Co, Hc sensor found in the grill. It closed off outside air. Just way complicated. I am going to shut up now since I have been up since 5AM. Injury's when young come back later in life to bite your ass.

[@ypaulbrown]

@@deankay4434 all I can say is WOW.....sounds so familiar.....thanks for sharing the madness......I have a few nitrating stories to share in the future....Best Wishes, Paul

[@davehammond8940]

I've been welding for over 40yrs fully skilled in all ferrous and none ferrous welding. Thus is the 1st time I've seen someone quench in a bog (toilet) for the US watchers Very good 👍

[@causewaykayak]

That was really entertaining as well as packed with good information. Nicely filmed too !

[@ypaulbrown]

thank you so much, we really appreciate hearing from you, Paul "Paulie' Brown and the crew at weld.com

[@maximilianoesteban8740]

Great video, thank you for sharing. I tuned in because I want to start making some copper sinks to put on market and I figured why not weld them up instead of soldering.

[@ypaulbrown]

Maximiliano, that is fantastic, thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the gang at weld.com, let us know how everything works for you.....

[@girliedog]

Many years ago I made a six foot decorative glass dome. I needed to create an armature out of 1/4" copper rods. I had no idea what I was doing, Ended up using the tig to silver solder the whole thing. Amazingly it worked great.

[@ypaulbrown]

Virginia, that is fantastic, thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the gang at weld.com

[@JSambrook]

This was really helpful. I had heard about helium being helpful in increasing heat input. Your video really brought it home for me.

[@MinhasA]

At first I thought Paul Brown was cool cause I am an Ohio State / Browns fan, but I have really been enjoying watching his videos! I liked learning about his old welders like that Powcon... I always saw those, but didn't know much about them. Anyways, he's definitely a wealth of knowledge and I enjoy his vids a lot!

[@ypaulbrown]

You really made my day SeaBass85....you may not know this, but I went to College in Columbus in 1970 till 1973, then returned in and lived in Cleveland in the early 80's, and back to Columbus in the early 90's....so I guess I am an Ohio kinda guy.......thanks for watching and commenting,,,,,,Paul

[@paulbernett1581]

Yes I've done alot of Copper and Brass. the trick is Helium Nothing can take it's place It's an extreme HeaT agent That when used with Aluminum Makes it Harder and it Machine's Quite beautifully.

[@ypaulbrown]

Paul, glad you liked and thanks for watching and commenting. Yes, the Helium is really helpful.....Thanks....Paul

[@jackmclane1826]

Welding copper is a special beast with about every method.

[@ypaulbrown]

you got that right jack,

[@DonziGT230]

I would have loved to see pieces being joined to see how strong the weld is.

[@ypaulbrown]

we wanted to do that, but the time was not available to do all in the one video.....maybe another episode to cover that.......thanks for watching and commenting, Paul Brown

[@jimegan7077]

Thanks for the video. I was looking at welding 3/8" copper bus bars, but I'm not sure my TIG machine will put out the amps needed. I do have Helium though.

[@ypaulbrown]

Preheat with the tig torch, or oxygen fuel....how big is your welder. Thank you for watching and commenting...cheers Paul

[@Broadpaw_Fox]

Just like with welding on larger parts that are beyond your machines ability, preheat is life. Get used to doing a consistent preheat, and you need a pedal because it will heat soak just like aluminum, so you need much less heat towards the end. Oh,cand obviously, practice a bit before trying on something important or expensive, but that should go without saying. I'm capt obvious though, so... 😉

[@ypaulbrown]

@@Broadpaw_Fox , thanks so much for that tip......thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@sawbladeheaddesigns2451]

Another bucket of nugget of knowledge! I’m looking forwarded trying this but i’ll have to find the right project for it.

[@ypaulbrown]

Shawn, my buddy up in Cleveland used to do a lot of waterfalls inside office buildings, he is the one who told me, you will love it......he also does historical sculpture conservation......some are very huge.......glad you liked, and remember, you can weld copper to steel.......in a braze fashion.....cheers, Paul

[@sawbladeheaddesigns2451]

Well sometime this year i’d like to try it and when I do i’ll be talking with you first!

[@TradeWorks_Construction]

Great demonstration thanks a lot this helped me with a copper Weld issue I was running into. LARGE CUP and either add helium or pre-heat. Wanted to give you a friendly warning about dunking anything hot in toilet. If the object is SUPER HOT and ends up transferring to a localized area of the bowl, the porcelain MAY develop fracture lines or downright crack apart (either immediately or after someone settles into the seatbelt). Witnessed this after someone tried to quench a part he was heat treating 🎉.

[@jamiebuckley1769]

i thought the same thing about putting super hot metal into the toilet bowl and cracking the bowl.

[@ypaulbrown]

I was careful to not touch the sides, but that is very good information....thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the Crew at weld.com

[@danielsplayhouse3804]

It almost looks like it wets out like aluminum does? But I'll definitely have to get some copper and experiment with it and see what it feels like.

[@ypaulbrown]

well, it does not freeze as fast as aluminum, and seems to melt faster when the filler gets near the arc, probably due to the better heat transfer than aluminum....it is tricky to use......let us know how it works for you......thanks for commenting and watching......Paul

[@jiffyice]

Great video Paul!! Extremely informative!!

[@ypaulbrown]

thanks Jason, we need to come up to your shop and do an episode with you.....thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@ibrahimdeniz7308]

I just started learning welding next to being a cnc operator. Both communities or crafts rather have their own culture and love for their job, but i must say welding is a lot more fun haha.

[@pjh5337]

That opening copper joke just made my day

[@bcbloc02]

You did an awesome job!

[@ypaulbrown]

Thanks so much Brian, coming from an Engineer of your caliber, that means a lot to me, thanks for watching and commenting.....we love your videos, hopefully some of our viewers will check you out......best regards, Paul

[@connormattlin3292]

My last job i would weld orders of bus bars. Only a couple inches wide but would weld with a graphite backer and copper heat sinks all around the joint. I would max my machine at 400 amps and use half a piece of wire in just 2 inches of weld. Full pen welds I would dab at least 3 inches of wire in each dab. I would sand and blend both sides of the weld then each part had to be Rockwell tested to make sure I didn't put too much heat into the entire part and make them brittle. Very challenging parts but I actually enjoyed how technical they were. I did them by the hundreds and they were only 1/8" thick! Haven't met a lot of people who have welded copper on a manufacturing scale.

[@ypaulbrown]

Connor, thanks so much for sharing that with us....wow, 400 amps, 5/32 electrode or just a 1/8......assuming you were using a transformer machine....of course, to put less heat in, the more amps on the torch, the faster you can move and the less heat into the material, that is also important with stainless and aluminum.....thanks for commenting and watching, best wishes, Paul Brown

[@connormattlin3292]

@@ypaulbrown yes you're exactly right! The faster I could go the less heat and yes 1/8 electrode on a sincrowave 400. With just a 20 style torch too!

[@ypaulbrown]

@@connormattlin3292 more power......thanks for updating....I may have to get my old Synchrowave 250 up to 310 amps and try it out.....cheers, Paul

[@gabotrial]

Grest video!. What is the filter you use on the respirator?

[@ypaulbrown]

3M 2097 P100 I am pretty sure, thanks for watching and commenting, I bought respirator from Welding supply store here in Orlando FL, fits under the hood real well , cheers, Paul Brown

[@spenserh98]

What book is he referencing in the beginning of this video?

[@ypaulbrown]

the Lincoln 'Procedure handbook or Arc Welding'. available from James Lincoln Education Foundation for about 29 dollars, the best money you will ever spend, , first published in 1933, my copy is 1978, there is a new edition from about 1989 with a Brown cover......this is about 600 pages......you will not regret buying one, sometimes they are on EBAY, but for as inexpensive new ones are.....I would look there, just google it.....hope this helps, Paul Brown ....thanks for watching and commenting.....

[@spenserh98]

@@ypaulbrown Thanks for the reply! Very helpful!

[@ypaulbrown]

@@spenserh98 you are welcome.....Paul

[@jimray1111]

This video was fascinating. I had no idea you could weld copper. I'm not a real welder although I do have a mig and a tig. A true amateur to say the least. Thanks for posting. I'll add it to my list of things to do with a tig 😎

[@44R0Ndin]

You can get reels of just plain bare copper wire from Home Depot or Lowe's or any hardware store, it's used inside electrical boxes to connect all the grounds together or to connect the ground of the NMC cable(s) to a metal electrical box. You pay average copper wire prices for it (which is to say, not cheap, but probably less expensive than copper oriented towards being used as welding supplies specifically). And it's available in many many diameters, most hardware stores should have everything from 10AWG down to probably 16 or 18AWG. Thicker than 10AWG is available, but it tends to be only available as stranded wire, which isn't that useful for welding purposes unless you're intending to join that wire to another piece of copper (such as you might see in a bus-bar type application, tho a crimped and bolted connection is far more common for that). If you need thinner, you can buy solid wire ethernet cable or doorbell wire, ethernet cable is supposed to be 23AWG copper, doorbell wire is probably in the 20-22AWG range (but it'll say right on the package what it is). Apparently there's also wire specifically for thermostats. Now of course, if you for some reason need thicker copper for your fill rod, well 10AWG is already thicker than most fill rod, but you still have options from the hardware store, if you don't mind putting in some manual labor. Small diameter copper pipe like what you'd use to repair an AC system's refrigerant lines might work, if you can find it. Maybe it'll also be sold as line to hook up to a water dispenser on a fridge, I'm not 100% sure to be honest. Never had a use for copper pipe that small, but I've seen it in houses before so I know it must be sold somewhere. I personally don't see a need for all of those kinds of wire now that ethernet cable is so common, it has 8 wires in 4 twisted pairs, it's far over-spec for just use as doorbell or telephone wire but it's also probably more affordable since it's so much more commonly used than the other dedicated kinds of low-voltage wiring other than coaxial cables. Just so we're all on the same page, when I say NMC I'm using the same language the National Electrical Code uses to gather together all cables similar to Romex, because Romex is technically a trademarked name of a SPECIFIC BRAND of NMC (just like how "Band-Aid" is a specific brand of adhesive bandage, and Kleenex is a specific brand of facial tissue, and Coke is a specific brand of cola) NMC is an initialism that stands for "non-metallic cable" to differentiate it from BX aka armored cable or a few other types of cable that include metal in their construction for purposes OTHER than the normal task of carrying electricity. Oh and I called it an "initialism" and not an "acronym" because again I'm using a more precise term, of course most laypersons will call them acronyms regardless, but in reality there aren't many acronyms out there, the majority of these "words" are properly initialisms because they take the first (aka initial) letter of every word that makes up the full description. It's only an acronym when it doesn't always take the first letter. For example, Laser is an acronym, because it skips some words entirely, it stands for "Light Amplification (by the) Stimulated Emission of Radiation". Interestingly, there are earlier things that use microwaves instead of light, and one of those is called a Maser (Microwave Amplification by the Stimulated Emission of Radiation). There are also theoretically Xasers and Grasers too (for X-rays and Gamma rays, respectively). We haven't really had a use for it yet so we haven't really tried to make or theorize making one yet, but there might also be similar things for "ordinary" radio waves of frequencies lower than microwaves as well. Actually, those would be fantastically useful, even if they only have a tiny power output, because they could be used as a precision frequency standard much more accurate than a quartz crystal and potentially consuming less power than an atomic clock (these have already been greatly reduced in power consumption by the development of GPS, as to make GPS work you need to put many atomic clocks in orbit (inside the GPS satellites).

[@jarphabib]

Larger than #10 bare copper solid is available from electrical supply houses, it's used for grounding and bonding purposes.

[@44R0Ndin]

@@jarphabib The only problem with stuff larger than #10 AWG copper from a hardware store (and the reason I disqualified it from welding supply use) is that it's far more likely to be only available as a stranded wire, where when you are using it for welding, you'd really rather that it be solid.

[@jarphabib]

@44R0Ndin Yes, that's why I.said electrical supply rather than hardware store.

[@44R0Ndin]

@@jarphabib I was specifically talking about hardware store, you were talking about electrical supply, I think the prices at the hardware store will be better unless you have a contractor discount at the electrical supply place.

[@tdm8817]

I thought he was joking bout the toilet thing at first, but then nope, he was serious lol Good video tho, enjoyed the info👍

[@ypaulbrown]

TDM, glad you liked my high tech cooling device...haha.....I jokingly told the director I was going to do that, and when I went to the big industrial sink, he redirected me to the Head, it was about 5 minutes between when I stopped welding and did the quench due to the distance walked and set up.......I was surprised it was still so hot.......it is probably not a good idea to do, as it could crack the bowl.....stay safe and just use the sink........Directors and Camera guys are fun to work with.......cheers, Paul

[@tdm8817]

@@ypaulbrown haha that's funny. That part should have made it into the video

[@victoryfirst2878]

Nice job fella. I really learned a lot and the memories you gave me were really good. Thanks fella too. vf

[@ypaulbrown]

I really appreciate that, glad you got some good stuff from this, and the memory comment touched a piece of my heart, thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@victoryfirst2878]

@@ypaulbrown Peace and God bless too Paul. vf

[@ypaulbrown]

@@victoryfirst2878 thank you so much

[@michaellee6168]

Excellent video not too much out there on copper tig done this well.

[@ypaulbrown]

thank you very much Micheal...really hope you got some good info on that.....thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@HiTechDiver]

Thanks for the info and demonstration.

[@ypaulbrown]

thanks you for watching and commenting.......cheers, Paul

[@ajden]

Try weld it with AC. I use AC when I weld coper, thinks it welds better that way mutc less oxid in the welding zone.'

[@ypaulbrown]

I know ac cleans better, the deoxidized filler we used had🏁 a lot of trash floating in it, the pure copper was much better flowing and very clean. Thanks for the tips. We appreciate that, and thanks for watching...cheers Paul

[@wasimedoo7994]

Very good information nice video bro keep it up God bless

[@ypaulbrown]

Wasim, thanks so much, and thanks for watching, glad you got something from this.....Paul

[@VentureWelding]

Which form of welding copper is actually food grade safe? I've seen copper welds on distillation equipment, is why I ask

[@ypaulbrown]

Aaron, I do not know, but I would think that Beryllium Copper would not be one that is food safe....., thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the Crew at weld.com

[@paulkurilecz4209]

The electric wire will be electrolytic copper and be at least 99.5% pure copper. The 0.5% remainder will consist primarily of silver with lesser amounts of other elements. Burnthrough will also occur more so on a pure metal rather than an alloy. A pure metal, such as the copper types that you are using here, will have a very well defined melting point. This is different from steel and aluminum alloys where there is a temperature difference between the temperature at which the alloy begins to turn to a solid plus a liquid to where it turns into a pure liquid. For steels, this can be several hundred degrees Fahrenheit depending on the alloy composition, especially carbon content.

[@ypaulbrown]

Paul, thank you so much for your comments and information , very informative......that is fantastic, thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the gang at weld.com

[@212ntruesdale]

“Don’t let your wife see you doing that.” Lol

[@ypaulbrown]

I know......thanks for watching and commenting , Paul

[@richardj163]

Copper puddle is a neat colour

[@ypaulbrown]

it really is, when cooling, it goes through many color changes.....and when you think it is cool, it will still be changing due to the oxygen in the air...thanks for noticing and commenting, cheers, Paul

[@wiredforstereo]

I just wanna weld up a couple third hands out of some copper rod I found. Looks pretty straightforward, maybe use some scrap wire out of some Romex. Doesn't need to be pretty.

[@ypaulbrown]

Solomon, the ground from Romex works great....much better than the deoxidized filler from welding supply.....cheers, Paul

[@TheL0k3]

you showed that the wire would melt before you could enter the puddle. i wanna ask something about this. you weld with the tungsten electrode pointing down to the front. what happens when you would drag your weld puddle instead of pushing it forward? does it change something?

[@G5Hohn]

The romex ground often has a clear coating on it, not just oxidation. You probably won’t remove it with a couple swipes of scotch-brite and if you don’t completely remove it, you’ll be putting hot plastic into your weld and it might not go so well.

[@HR-mp9ct]

What is the book y’all are using as a reference

[@ypaulbrown]

the Book is the 'Procedure handbook of arc welding' by Lincoln Electric, available for about 25 dollars from James Lincoln Foundation, worth every penny, has been in print since 1933 with updates ever 5 years or so.....do your self a favor and get one......600 pages of great stuff, you will not out grown it, believe me......thanks for commenting and watching, Paul

[@erikcourtney1834]

I welded copper to 316 stainless a few times. It was kinda tricky to start but welded nicely. I used stainless filler material and pure argon.

[@ypaulbrown]

Erik, did you commingle the two, or just do a braze weld with the copper sticking to the stainless....thanks for sharing, we recently did a silicon Bronze video, that braze welded stainless to copper and stainless to stainless....hpe you can check it out.....thanks for watching, cheers, Paul

[@hubbablahloo1843]

@@ypaulbrown @ have you guys done a video specifically talking about the difference between silicone bronze and aluminum bronze and which applications they are better suited for?

[@ypaulbrown]

@@hubbablahloo1843 if you have not checked out the Silicon Bronze video we did last month, please check it out and let us know what you think, thanks so much, Paul Brown

[@hubbablahloo1843]

@@ypaulbrown actually I found it after I left the first comment. I see in the comments for that video others asking the same question. I guess what I want to know most is other than cost is there downsides to using Aluminum bronze for brazing? It's supposed to be a stronger and more resistant to corrosion. I figured there most be some down sides other wise why wasn't it used more often? Look forward to your videos. Thanks for taking the time to respond to my comment 😉

[@bryonhectorwelding]

Made thousands of water features with copper, even with stainless fittings only used pure argon. The samples this guy welded were the worst weld beads I've ever seen done by a professional.

[@jessl8917]

Awesome video, learnt a lot, cheers!

[@ypaulbrown]

thank you for commenting and watching, sharing information is our goal......glak you learned something new....best wishes, Paul

[@rolandocrisostomo2003]

Does the copper loose some of its conductivity as is welded?

[@ypaulbrown]

Rolando, to my knowledge, it does not loose conductivity as long as you use the proper filler, and pure copper would be the same, De Oxidized copper would be another choice, I did not like the de oxidized ER-CU rod we bought, as it had some dross in the weld pool, the use of Silicon Bronze would reduce conductivity, but I really do not know the answer to that......thanks for asking, commenting and watching, Paul

[@hlrembe62]

@@ypaulbrown I have welded thousands of leads on electrical copper in transformer coils. No loss in conductivity and used pure helium cover gas w/ gas lense welds come out brilliant clean with zero black as you will get with argon. Ran weld beads up to .375" single pass or as small as .010"

[@atomichydrogenweld2823]

@@hlrembe62 that. is sum serious heat, thanks for sharing that info....how did you control the cooling to not get the oxidation after the weld was complete....it looked like he had oxidation even after the pure helium weld, as it was discolored......thanks....

[@hlrembe62]

@@atomichydrogenweld2823 we have the ability to use heat sink bars clamped on each side of the weld area and leave them in place until weld can be handled comfortably

[@atomichydrogenweld2823]

@@hlrembe62 kool, pun intended...thanks for updating me.....

[@robertoviana514]

There is a lot of copper melting off of the filler rod before it even sees the puddle?

[@ypaulbrown]

yes there was, it is very different than welding steel.....try it and you will see what I mean, Thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@alexdrockhound9497]

Acids are really fantastic at taking off those copper oxides too. Just make sure the welding job is ok with that. for some applications you need to keep it sulfur or chlorine free. Vinegar or citric acid could work well too. always makes it really shiny.

[@keithjurena9319]

Copper cleans up nice with acetone when hot.

[@ypaulbrown]

interesting.....will have to try that....we did have it up to about 72 degrees F when cleaning......cheers, thanks for commenting and watching....Paul.

[@keithjurena9319]

@@ypaulbrown Acetone acts as a reactive vapor flux to copper oxide. It can ignite so be careful. I've performed this on a dirty copper wire ball with a thin layer of acetone in a glass jar. Heat the copper with a propane torch and slowly lower it into the jar. When it contacts the acetone vapor, it makes pretty colors as the oxide is reduced. The copper will get hot enough to glow.

[@wilmesz1992]

Paul, I really enjoyed this video, very informative as well as entertaining. I knew that copper takes more heat to weld but your demo really put that into perspective, wow, 5 times more conductivity than steel. I had a question about your gas mixing setup, it looked like you just had a tee from two different tank regulators going into your supply line for your welder? I was wondering if you get decent gas mixing using that setup and if there are any issues with backfeeding through the lower pressure regulator from the higher one. I'd like to experiment with different gas blends but was always told that I'd need a proper gas mixer or it wouldn't work.

[@petermccuskey1832]

Thank you learned something

[@ypaulbrown]

makes me happy to hear that.....thanks for watching and commenting, best wishes, Paul

[@chrisabraham8793]

Never used tig for copper, i use oxy propane or you can use oxy acet, no need to clean or use a flux. Watch out for over heating bubbling with Oxy acet as it makes the weld joint bubble making it weak. Filer wire just use electric copper wire. The joints welded using this method are that strong they with stand swage crimping and lathing.

[@ypaulbrown]

Chris, sounds like a great way to weld copper, without the expense of a TIG machine, especially thinner material....thanks for the tip and thanks for watching.....Paul

[@chrisabraham8793]

Give it a try.

[@kaneherbert2369]

When brazing copper, I find a really quick and easy method of cleaning away oxide is to submerge it in Goddard silver dip for 20 seconds, then rinse of. It's designed for silverware but works equally as well on copper.

[@ypaulbrown]

Kane, great tip, there used to be a product called Tarn-X here in the US that is probably similar.....thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@sawbladeheaddesigns2451]

I really think you missed a big opportunity to utilize that bottle of helium for what it’s really used for! Making chipmunk link voices and balloons! 😏😁

[@ypaulbrown]

Oh Contrare........we chilled some Adult Beverages with it.......almost like your Cooler form last summer.......

[@ypaulbrown]

we did get some singers in the back ground to inhale some Helium...kzbin.infoqiHo8DeWf2w

[@slugwelding5879]

Interesting stuff. Very good information, looking forward to giving it a shot.

[@ypaulbrown]

it is fun, a little frustrating at first, take it slow, and move fast when it get hot, you can always back off on The amps and maybe pulse it.....hope this helps, thanks for watching, Paul

[@RTRtrooper2014]

I weld copper products and also hard face them. All our welding requires pure helium gas. I don't know the thickness of the copper we are welding but we are usually running our machines at about 530/560A.

[@ypaulbrown]

outstanding...thanks for commenting and watching, Paul

[@junkyardboost8372]

I successfully welded two pieces of 3/8” copper tubing together with my tig.

[@ypaulbrown]

hey Junkyard....was that 3/8 wall thickness......did you have any issues doing it?.....and did you use filler? thanks for commenting, Paul

[@junkyardboost8372]

@@ypaulbrown 3/8 diameter. Yes, filler was used. I’m not sure on wall thickness but I’d guess around .065. I just tried it for fun and was pretty impressed when I actually did it. Took me a lot of tries!

[@atreaunews6174]

Are you able to tig weld copper to stainless steel by chance. I always wanted to but couldn’t find anything except brazing but I want complete weld is it possible?

[@strobo24]

I have tried my self with 200A on a 20Kg 100/15 mm bar! It was hopeless. It spread the heat so fast that I couldn't open a single moment the fusing bath. Even if I've keep heat the other end with a big acetylene torch. It starts to be OK when the bar get red, but to hot to stay close, also impossible to weld because of oxidation. Yah, probably if you have a small piece, as he do, you may be able to add a few drops from the stick, but to weld two parts and have a real welding... it is not possible.

[@ypaulbrown]

Strobo, I have to admit, I have never tried welding copper that big, thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the gang at weld.com

[@zakirsharifmahammad6708]

Copper to Carbon Steel which filler wire using sir I please tell me sir

[@ypaulbrown]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKe1Y6Rjg9qNeJI, check out this video on silicon bronze, You can use aluminum bronze, A2 or A3, copper, deoxidized copper, silicon bronze.....you can use oxy/fuel with low fuming bronze which has zinc, but does not work well with tig as the arc is so hot, there are also stick [smaw] electrodes you can use. in the video listed, we braze some copper to steel......and stainless to steel, and galvanized, hope this helps, thanks for watching and commenting, Paul from Weld.ocm

[@onerandomvoice]

Is there a reason other than you have to strip the other wires in a romex wire bundle that you cant use them? Thanks for the video!

[@colonialroofingofnorthcaro441]

What size cup you running and why, tks

[@SolarMillUSA]

#12, he explains why at the end. Cup size is usually driving by the amount of stickout you need as well as the amount of gas coverage, and copper likes a lot of coverage so you need to get that flow rate up.

[@ypaulbrown]

@@SolarMillUSA thanks so much for pointing that out .....we sometimes use the longer stick out in shooting the video so to get a better view.....even with a 20 second post flow at 25 cfh we would get oxidation because of residual heat.....copper seems to not only conduct heat better, but it stays hot longer......thanks for watching,,,,,and commenting, Paul

[@ypaulbrown]

Thanks for watching and asking, as Solarmill said, we used a #12......are you welding copper roof? a much longer post flow is needed due to the retention of heat by the copper......otherwise it will oxidase.....not sure of the actual amount......hope this helps, Paul

[@richardseifried7574]

Could you silver solder on copper with tig?

[@tapllarrow3984]

Yes, but not practical. it's a rapid and uneven heat source. The arc wants to concentrate heat in a small area vs a gas torch flame can wrap around a joint and provide more even heat transfer. Plus there's a chance of melting the copper with tig and that's not what you want for a soldered joint

[@SolarMillUSA]

@@tapllarrow3984 great answer.

[@ypaulbrown]

@@tapllarrow3984 thanks for answering that, very good description.

[@jaredloveland5314]

sadly your respirator has particulate filters on it which will do nothing to protect you from the fumes created in welding. I am by no means a Safety NAZZI but I do believe if you are putting out safety information you should do so correctly .

[@ypaulbrown]

Jared, well, that is a welding respirator for use under a hood,... it may not filter Nuclear Radons or IsoCyanates, and other aromatic solvents, but we were not working with those type vapors here. here is what 3M says about their filter. Recommended Application Assembly and Mechanical, Brazing, Chemical Manufacturing, Cleaning, Composite Finishing, Final Finish, Manufacturing, Metal Pouring, Paint Preparation, Painting, Pesticide Application, Petrochemical, Powder Charging, Powder Coating, Pulp and Paper, Remediation, Sanding, Soil Preparation, Soldering, Spray Coating, Torch Cutting, Welding, Wood Processing Recommended Industry Construction, Design & Construction, Facility Sanitation, Food Processing, Food Safety, General Manufacturing, Heavy Infrastructure, Industrial Maintenance, Marine, Metal Production & Fabrication, Mining, Oil & Gas, Transportation .NIOSH approved for environments containing certain oil and non-oil based particles. The 3M™ Particulate Filter 2091, P100 helps provide respiratory protection against exposure to lead, asbestos, cadmium, arsenic, and MDA. The filter is effective for concentrations up to 10 times the Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) with half facepieces, or 50 times PEL with quantitatively fit tested full facepieces. This filter helps protect against a wide range of oil and non-oil based particulate contaminants. 3M’s Advanced Electret Media (AEM) provides a comfortable lightweight, easy-breathing combination. The 2091 is commonly used for welding, brazing, torch cutting, metal pouring and soldering. Inventory needs and training requirements of safety equipment are reduced because this filter works for many different applications. The filter is both flame and water resistant. Industries where this filter is commonly used include agriculture, construction, general manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and primary metals. The filter works with a wide range of facepieces, including 3M™ Half and Full Facepieces 6000, 7000 and FF-400 Series. If used with 3M™ Adapter 502, the filter may also be used with 3M™ Respirator 5000 Series or 3M™ Cartridge 6000 Series. If used with the 3M™ Scott™ AV-632 Bayonet Adapter, the filter may be used with the 3M™ Scott™ AV-3000 HT and AV-3000 SureSeal facepieces. The filter is NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) approved for environments containing certain oil and non-oil based particles. The filter has been assigned the color code “magenta” in the NIOSH system. Passing NIOSH’s P-series test criteria, the 2091 P100 filter provides at least 99.97 percent filter efficiency against particles. Breathing hazardous particles can pose a risk to your health. NIOSH, a Federal government regulatory agency, has tested and approved the 3M™ Particulate Filter 2091 to help reduce exposure to certain particles. If you can recommend a different filter set up, please let us know, I have not found one that is compact enough to fit under a welding hood. Thank you for trying to be helpful....., Best Regards, Paul

[@wiredforstereo]

I'm remembering that Copper is highly conductive but not highly radiative, whereas Aluminum is highly radiative. So the heat is going to build up really fast because it has nowhere to go.

[@ypaulbrown]

Solomon, thanks for that information, I did not know this, thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@marksleeper9385]

Great vid

[@ypaulbrown]

Mark, thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@I88-4-88I]

How about TIG welding two separate copper pieces together 🤔.

[@ypaulbrown]

I did show some of that at the end, where I welded the .022 thick at my shop, just not on camera....

[@speeddemon4579]

I honestly had no idea there were different kinds of copper. Let alone so many, I always thought copper was copper

[@trickymicky642]

What’s the tungsten that your using

[@davidyeager2096]

Great video. One quick question though, can I use helium with an air cooled TIG torch?

[@adamv1546]

Yes, absolutely. Will need to increase flow rate by at least 25% compared to argon

[@ypaulbrown]

as Adam said, yes.......helium rises up, so a little more flow is needed, unless you are doing overhead......just make sure the air cooled torch can handle the amperage you may put in to it......like we pointed out, you don't really need a lot of amps on thinner copper, the helium will make the volts go up, but the machine automatically takes care of that, unless you are MIG-ING......let us know how it works out for you, cheers, Paul

[@mikebrewster3542]

What’s the Lincoln book he’s using??

[@RobertLBarnard]

Learning all sorts of things, learning the effects of various gas' and mixtureses on metals (gloves & hands) is invaluable. Never thought of a toilet as a welding tool, other than to watch welding videos on...

[@InchFab]

Can't even get helium here in Las Vegas. Well, it just takes a couple weeks, but who has time for that?

[@ypaulbrown]

Yes, Helium can be difficult is some areas to get, the darn ballon people use a lot of it......about 10 years ago, it was near impossible in some places.....it is great for adding to aluminum welding to give more heat when needed.......thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@F12-i2g]

Great video

[@ypaulbrown]

thanks for watching, glad you like, Paul

[@taiwanluthiers]

My question is why weld copper? Why not TIG braze it? Brazing copper doesn't seem particularly demanding as far as heat goes. Maybe not as strong as welding, but it's copper, how strong could it possibly be?

[@enderxzebulun]

Electrical conductivity, I believe.

[@enderxzebulun]

Electrical conductivity, I believe.

[@taiwanluthiers]

@@enderxzebulun People solder circuits all the time, so welding isn't necessary.

[@coloradosprings7147]

I weld 1 inch thick copper plate

[@ypaulbrown]

C S....I bet that takes some serious heat...... thanks for watching and commenting, Paulie Brown

[@coloradosprings7147]

@@ypaulbrown yup it sure does

[@chaoticpuppet1]

I'd try this at work but not sure about gas. We use use argon/hydrogen

[@ypaulbrown]

I believe the hydrogen/argon is more for stainless and Hastaloy. let us know how it works for you, can you use straight argon? because that would be fine. thanks for commenting and watching, Paul

[@tylerthompson3294]

can you actually weld some pieces together?

[@ypaulbrown]

we did weld some coupons together, big stuff starts out with little parts....thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the Crew at weld.com

[@NelsonBarbero]

Excelente video estimado! Sería bueno q lo traduzca a español ! Gracias por compartir atte Nelson Barbero desdé argentina

[@ypaulbrown]

thank you so much, I hope you learned a few things.....cheers, Paul

[@djhizmskizm2873]

Steady that torch hand a lil big guy🤣🤷

[@ypaulbrown]

thanks Josh, I was late in the day, and as being an old geezer with no lunch that day, I was getting a little shaky ....thanks for commenting and watching, Paul and the Crew at weld.com

[@jonr4651]

Watch your angle and wait for your puddle. Your filler metal burn back is seriously screwing your weld consistency.

[@ypaulbrown]

Thanks Jon. I did need a little more time using it. What you saw was a first go at it....no reshoots....appreciate the comments....Paul

[@michaelszczys8316]

I welded a couple of copper bars together with tig once, never bothered with it any more. Now I'm going to have to try it some more. I think at our shop we even have some argon - helium mix used for something.

[@ypaulbrown]

kool, let us know how it turns out, thanks for watching and commenting, Paul

[@tedbastwock3810]

I like this guy, hope i can be like that one day .. if I make it. Im interested in TIG copper/brass/bronze, this was really helpful, thanks for sharing .... ps idk where I can get He though, seems not common at the gas supplies in my area that I know of

[@caseythompson2614]

I miss Bob Moffatt..

[@ypaulbrown]

they are taking new students at his college in Kansas, give him a shout......thanks for watching, Paul

[@caseythompson2614]

@@ypaulbrown I'm in NC it'd be a dream to meet him but doubt it'd happen

[@ypaulbrown]

@@caseythompson2614 you never know Casey.......where in NC, I lived in Greensboro from 94 till 05......cheers, Paul

[@caseythompson2614]

@@ypaulbrown Rocky Mount NC not far from Greensboro

[@gregrburnett3400]

I still want to see someone weld with neon as a sheilding gas.

[@geneticdisorder1900]

Dang your video killed my hopes of making art projects out of copper tubing , guess I’m taking all my scraps and cashing it in so I can buy a mig for steel.

[@ypaulbrown]

Genetic, I hope you do not get rid of your copper, what was it that scared you into not doing your art.....you can always get a roll of silicon bronze wire for your mig or use copper wire for tig, you only need argon gas for either.....thanks for watching and commenting, and check out the silicon bronze brazing with mig video we did last month.....hope this helps, Paul Brown

[@michaelshortridge6379]

Welded copper-nickel pipe before.

[@ypaulbrown]

I have never done copper nickel and was wondering if it is super sluggish......I heard about a sailboat made of cupronickel that was in a marine environment for 20 years and never had any marine growth on it.....expensive to build, but sure saved a lot on maintenance.....thanks for commenting.and watching.....Paul

[@WilliamPayneNZ]

I messaged you over on Instagram but you are probably too busy to have seen it. I’d love to find out more about yourself and your career? What is your story? I bet it’s a great one.

[@ypaulbrown]

William, , I am not on instagram everyday, I will check for your message, I did not see it this morning, Saturday the 23......check this video we did back in October we did......hope you like, thanks for watching and commenting and reaching out, Paulie Brown. kzbin.info/www/bejne/l2O4cn6fpJ6LnJY

[@JMRSplatt]

That respirator doesn't protect against fumes, but 95% of particles. Gas cartridge recommended

[@justanoldman697]

classic cooling facility!🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@ypaulbrown]

glad you liked Dave, I also use it for cleaning paint brushes with water base paint......thanks for watching and commenting , Paul Brown

[@diquanmontgomery3088]

Dang he tore that plate up

[@matthewtarvin3675]

Are you guys listening to my conversations?

[@ypaulbrown]

Matthew, I thought you knew we weldors were actually Aliens......hope this video was timely for you, if you have any questions, shoot me a line and I will try to answer, I am not an expert, but have a great library to research.....cheers, Paul, and thanks for commenting and watching.....

[@matthewtarvin3675]

@@ypaulbrown thank you for the information. This channel has been loads of help. I have received basic mig, stick, and tig education as they apply to my job. I work in a robotic welding setting and my fixtures take some abuse and so far I've been limited to making copper spatter guards on a brake or vise. I was speaking to my engineer the other day about needing to further my education into welding copper and here I am receiving some pointers. I'll be sure to start snagging some romex scrap from our electrical room and tell them it's going to save the company money. Thanks again👍🏼

[@ypaulbrown]

@@matthewtarvin3675 so happy to hear this, you made my day with your comments......you are exactly the viewer we are trying to help or inspire.....if any questions need answering, fell free to ask here or better yet on the forum where other members can chime in......best wishes, Paul Brown....... 🌅🌟

[@someguy7258]

Is this dude seriously cooling the piece in the bowl of the fucking toilet?! What the hell? LMFAO!

[@ypaulbrown]

it is a high tech cooling device right???? happy to give you a laugh......thanks for watching and commenting , Cheers, Paul Brown

[@atomichydrogenweld2823]

I tried this once or twice my self......the wife was not impressed.....steamed up the bathroom....

[@tullgutten]

While welding both the helium ones looked horrendous. Looked like it was super dirty and flaky

[@ypaulbrown]

Oxidation is a trait of copper welding. As far as looking dirty, you may have been seeing oxidation...only way to completely not have that, is in a vacuum.thanks for comment, and watching. Paul

[@mikeeagle2653]

You should not be getting a shock from welding at any point. If so you have something wrong with your machine or your ground cable

[@ypaulbrown]

Ever lean on a table and be really sweaty, or have a hole in a glove and have a high frequency arc jump to the filler, and then your hand. If not, you have been lucky, try welding in the rain and have wet clothes or gloves and then lean on a concrete wall while inserting a rod in a stinger. Field jobs sometimes require things like this.

[@mikeeagle2653]

@@ypaulbrown dude this is a tig welding video. Not stick welding. And you’re the one shocking yourself not the machine

[@jeffreylong9405]

You must not weld much.

[@henmich]

In grammar school, I would have called you six eyes.

[@morgansword]

I think this might work with brass or copper radiators... just saying

[@chrisw1462]

Watch those sharp corners if you actually use a toilet to cool your parts!! That ceramic is tough stuff, but a decent rap from a sharp corner can easily cause a crack.

[@user-Calebculwell]

I giggled @10:50 😂

[@benjaminbuilds5761]

Just like welding water 💦

[@ypaulbrown]

just about, but water can be welded below 32 degrees F or 0 degree C....thanks for watching, Paul