How to Use Pulse on the AHP AlphaTIG 203xi TIG Welder & Why & When Pulse Is Helpful - Kevin Caron
5,594
Published 2021-08-25
Video Highlights:
00:12 How to Find AHP AlphaTig 203xi Pulse Controls
00:25 How to Page Through AHP AlphaTig 203xi Menu Options
00:34 How to Set AHP AlphaTig 203xi Pulse Frequency
00:51 How to Speed Through AHP AlphaTig 203xi Menu Options
01:10 How to Set AHP AlphaTig 203xi Base Amperage
01:15 How to Set AHP AlphaTig 203xi Time On
01:41 Why Use Pulse When Welding?
02:35 Why Pulse is Good When Welding Thin Metals
03:47 How Thick Can Metal Be When Using Pulse?
03:48 Can you hear me now? ....
From www.kevincaron.com/ - Artist Kevin Caron explains how to use welding pulse on the AHP AlphaTIG 203xi TIG welder and why and when pulse is helpful.
Kevin Caron is looking at the AHP AlphaTIG 203xi TIG welder, which just came out a few months ago.
A viewer asked, "How the heck do you turn the pulse on? I can't find the buttons."
Kevin Caron turns on the welding machine and shows its LCD screen and which button to push to make 3 additional menus pop up!
As you page through, you can see the little red box indicate which setting you are on. In the pulse submenus, the first setting is Pulse Frequency - that is actually how many pulses per second you get. Kevin Caron has his set at 1 pulse per second.
He also shows a cool trick: if you push in on the knob, the settings advance more quickly. Without pushing on the knob, the settings go up by a tenth. Push in and you can get wherever you want a whole lot faster, up to 250 pulses a second.
Next is the Base Amperage setting, which is a percentage of your welding amps.
Finally is the Time On setting. Pulse is on for that amount of time, so it's the percentage of time it's welding at the base amps.
So that's how you get to the pulse settings on the AHP AlphaTIG 203xi. It's a great welder! It has plenty of functionality. And once you get used to the pulse, get it in your brain what it's for and how you use it, it makes your work so much easier.
Definitely, if you have pulse on your welder, play with it, learn what it does and how you can make it work better for you.
What does pulse do? The pulse function takes your welding amperage up and down. Pulse is going to go from, say, 100 amps down to your base amps, say, 50 amps. Your pulse time on is how many milliseconds the welder is going to stay at 50 amps, and then it will go back up to welding amps again. So you have 100 amps to weld with, to melt the metal, and to add your filler.
If you're working with 16 or 20 gauge - thin metals - the pulse really comes into its own because you can get a burst of welding amperage, then the amperage drops for however long you set it.
That allows the metal to cool down a bit so you're not constantly dumping 100 amps on really thin metal and warping the heck out of it. You're just going to hit it and get away, hit it and get away.
Kevin Caron uses pulse on metal up to about 1/8" because pulse creates a better looking weld, a more consistent weld, and more consistent beads to create a prettier weld.
Kevin Caron appreciates you watching. Before you head to www.kevincaron.com/ to see more free how-to videos and Kevin Caron's amazing artwork, please reach up and hit that notification bell so you know when the newest videos come out.
Well, you might want to stick around for another moment to let Kevin Caron mess with your head ....
Artist Kevin Caron has been sculpting full time since 2006. See - and hear - his amazing metal and large format 3D-printed sculptures, which are found in public and private places coast-to-coast and online at www.kevincaron.com/.
"Inspired sculpture for public & private places."
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All Comments (15)
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Good refresher. Had my machine for a year now and it's like I completely forgot everything about the pulse settinga.
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Kevin, you are one of the best explainers and teachers out there on this space! Thank you for making and taking the time to do these videos!
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Kevin would love to see you do a complete walk thru and test of all the features of this machine. It is a heck of a deal.
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Y'all are blessing to us all. Thank you so much for everything you do.
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thanks for the tips Kevin...Now to figure out a brand to buy
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I found pulse to be excellent on old metals...i have just shaved a firewall for a 29 willys whippet and pulse made the whole process so much easier.. and a stronghands hole fill tool helped a lot..
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Hi, Kevin. Please do a video on scarfing/gouging with oxygen/acetylene. I've been using an angle grinder and cutting tips to harvest steel from a large pile of various used-to-be stuff, but it's time consuming and leaves a lot of trash scrap. Thanks.
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Thank you for the informative video! What pulse setting do you use for 1/8 inch aluminum?
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Thank you for your videos. I am fairly new to welding and am trying to decide what tig welder to get, the AHP 203Xi or the Primeweld 225X do you have an option of what is a better unit?
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I'm a FOG, my 201's got all the knobs all the time. I like that better, less confusing.
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Hi Kevin. What is your opinion of tig brazing specifically for for automotive sheet metal. I understand it's not meant for structural welds such as a frame but it's seems ideal for panel repair. I guess pulse would be best but my welder doesn't have it.
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How low can it go? The pulse to .1?
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I always thought the pulse duration was how long the pulse would be at full power. Your explanation makes me think my understanding is wrong????
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Mr Caron. Is your shop air conditioned?
