Is it possible to make electrodes for welding with your own hands?

Is it possible to make electrodes for welding with your own hands?
I don’t know why someone might need to make electrodes with their own hands, but such questions still occasionally arise among inquiring minds. Perhaps someone wants to organize their own electrode production business, or perhaps they just want to try something new for themselves.

Be that as it may, it is not possible to make a normal electrode for welding at home. If everything were so simple, then no one would buy electrodes, but could easily cook with a nail or fittings.

The fact is that electrode coating contains special components that are difficult to find in a regular hardware store. It is the coating of the electrode that is responsible for protecting the weld, as well as for its low quality.

DIY electrodes for aluminum

Are you interested in what aluminum electrodes exist for electric arc welding and shielding gases? Let's talk about industrial and homemade rods!

What electrodes are used to weld aluminum?

Melt coated rods:

• OZANA-1 and OZANA-2;
• OZA-1 - OZA-2;
• UANA;
• Capilla ALU 60/12 Si;
• Aluminil Si 12;
• EAL 4047;
• ALUMIN-351N;
• ZELLER 480;
• OZR - OZR-2 is best used for cutting metal.

1) OZANA-1, OZA-1, ESAB 96.10 are used for surfacing and welding of pure aluminum alloys with preheating of the metal. The process occurs on a direct current of reverse polarity. The seam is corrosion resistant.

2) OZANA-2, OZA-2, ESAB 96.50 weld silicon alloys (silumin), AL4, AL9, AL11, suitable for casting. Direct current of reverse polarity. The rods need to be calcined, and the metal needs to be heated.

3) UANA (salt coating) for aluminum casting alloys AD00, AD0, AD1, AD, AMts.

UANA operating modes

4) Capilla ALU 60/12 Si special coating for joining aluminum-silicon alloys (Al-Si, Al-Mg-Si, Al-Si-Mg-Cu). Price 2,350 rubles per 2 kg package, rod diameter 2.5 mm.

Capilla ALU 60/12 Si

5) Electrodes for aluminum Aluminil Si 12 with a special white coating for joining parts where color matching is required.

They repair pipes, windows, furniture, and car parts. Cast alloys with Si content up to 12% - AlSi 12 (Cu), AlSi 10 Mg (Cu), AlSi 6 Cu 4.

Metal thicker than 15 mm is heated before welding from 150 °C to 250 °C.

Characteristics of Aluminil Si 12

6) EAL 4047 for joining aluminum alloys:

• Al Si 12 (aluminium-silicon);
• Al Si 12 (Cu);
• Al Si 10 Mg (aluminium-magnesium-silicon);
• Al Si 10 Mg (Cu);
• Al Si 6 Cu 4.

EAL 4047

7) ALUMIN-351N for the restoration of turbines, drifts, covers, pistons, pipes with a thickness of more than 2 mm. Weldable materials:

• Al Si 5 Mg (3.2341);
• Al Si 10 Mg (3.2381);
• Al Si 10 Mg (Cu) (3.2381);
• Al Si 12 (3.2581);
• Al Si 12 (Cu) (3.2583);
• Al Si 11;
• Al Si 9 Mg;
• Al Si 9 Cu 3;
• Al Si 7 Mg;
• Al Si 6 Cu 4.

ALUMIN-351N

ZELLER 480 with improved coating for electric arc welding and surfacing of aluminum, silumin, duralumin. Used to eliminate casting defects and repair engine blocks, crankcases, etc.

9) OZR-1 and OZR-2 for cutting at high speeds with the rod tilted in the opposite direction. The electrode movements are reciprocating: top-down or forward-backward. Calcination of products for 1 hour, at a temperature of 170 degrees.

Aluminum electrodes quickly absorb moisture; it is better to store them in dry places.

Tungsten electrodes for aluminum welding (non-consumable):

• WP with green tip;
• WZ-8 with white markings;
• WL-15 (golden color);
• WL-20 (blue marking),

grades and sharpening of tungsten electrodes and welding of aluminum with argon.

For semi-automatic machines, wire MAL 4047, ER 4043, ER 5183, ER 5356 is used.

The price for the rods described above is decent and homemade “kulibins” make homemade electrodes for aluminum welding. At home, making rods with your own hands is not difficult. The recipe is simple:

• take aluminum wire 3-4 mm, cut into pieces 300-350 mm, sand;
• grind the chalk, combine with liquid glass (silicate glue), mix to a paste;
• Apply the mixture to the prepared pieces with a layer of 2 mm and dry.

The wire is immersed vertically in the coating solution, leaving a clean end 30 mm long. Homemade rods are hung to dry.

How to weld aluminum with an electrode

Aluminum alloys have different weldability due to the presence of alloying elements of different concentrations in them. The table will help you identify easy and difficult to weld groups of materials.

When the metal thickness is more than 5 mm, welding of aluminum with an electrode is performed with cutting of the edges.

The V-shaped groove is made with a bevel of 45-60 degrees, and the technological gap between the workpieces is 1-2.

5 mm, based on the thickness of the elements being welded.

Products subjected to welding need to be dried (insurance against weld porosity), and the electrodes need to be calcined according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

The prepared edges are degreased with acetone or solvent.

Electric welding of aluminum with an electrode is performed at a right angle (without tilting the rod), with a short arc.

For thick metal, the joint is heated to a temperature of 150-200 degrees.

The technology is performed by an inverter using direct current of reverse polarity (positive pole on the electrode, negative on the part).

Required welding accessories:

• power source for manual arc welding;
• metal brush for cleaning the oxide film;
• hammer for removing slag crust;
• welding brush;
• electrodes;
• leggings.

If anyone does not have any of the equipment described, then hurry to the store to buy it.

Process description

Let's take, for example, a material with a thickness of 10 mm. We cut the edges at an angle of 45 degrees. Use a gas burner to dry and heat the edges of the parts, having previously degreased them.

We heat the product with gas to 200 degrees

Using clamping devices, install the plates with a gap of 1 mm and remove the oxide film with a brush.

An abrasive tool cannot be used; abrasive particles will enter the viscous layer of the aluminum alloy and cause weld defects.

After stripping, we perform welding with a dry electrode with a diameter of 3 mm. After each pass, remove the slag with a hammer. Slag connections are not allowed.

If the technological recommendations are followed, a strong connection is obtained.

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PS We got acquainted with the brands of aluminum electrodes and connection technology.

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Source: https://steelfactoryrus.com/samodelnye-elektrody-po-alyuminiyu-svoimi-rukami/

Contactor from a welding transformer

Such equipment can be turned into a full-fledged resistance welding tool. The only drawback is the inability to control the current strength.

Drawing development

The correct choice of circuit helps to produce a working welding machine. Preference is given to simple drawings that include a minimum number of parts and blocks. Such options do not allow you to create an overly powerful device, but the device is sufficient to perform minor repairs on a car, garden equipment, and fences.

List of parts and consumables

To convert a welding transformer into resistance welding equipment, you will need the following elements and materials:

• a transformer that converts electrical energy;
• thick cable;
• copper electrodes;
• bolts;
• tips;
• breaker;
• wooden blocks, plywood to create the body.

The process of creating a device

The homemade device is assembled as follows:

1. The welding transformer is installed in a housing made of metal sheets. The electrical board is assembled on a textolite sheet more than 1 cm thick. The part is fixed in the body of the welding machine.
2. A welding wire is bolted to the busbar and secondary winding. The remaining end of the cable is connected to the electrode.
3. The power wire is connected to the contact block located on the electrical board.

Spot Welding Operation

A master using a contact transformer apparatus must stand on a rubber mat and use protective gloves and goggles. The grounding cable is connected to the part to which another workpiece will be welded. After this, press the power key, compare the elements to be connected, and clamp with the electrode of the welding gun.

5 seconds after the start of the impact, the rod is transferred to the next point.

DIY electrodes for welding aluminum

Aluminum electrodes for welding are metal rods coated with coating. The coating protects the metal from oxidation and improves the quality of the weld. They are practically not used in large workshops and factories, since their efficiency is not enough to perform large volumes of work. But such electrodes are widely used by home craftsmen.

A carbon electrode is often used to weld aluminum. In this article we will tell you everything you need to know about aluminum rods and explain in detail how to make your own welding electrodes.

articles

Features of welding aluminum at home

Anyone who has welded aluminum at least once in their life knows that this is a very difficult task. There is an oxide film on the surface of the metal, which makes the welding process difficult. Do-it-yourself aluminum welding electrodes can solve this problem.

But before you start, you need to thoroughly clean the surface. Remove contaminants and carry out comprehensive preparation of the metal for welding. This will improve the quality of the seams and they will last longer.

Using spot welding on lithium batteries

Using a battery to weld a nickel plate to the battery is the easiest way. To assemble the mini-unit you will need a battery, a charging cable, a piece of single-core wire, and electrical tape. 2 electrodes are created from the core, the ends of which are stripped and secured. The distance between elements should be 3 mm.

A charging cable connected to the terminals of the lithium-ion battery is connected to the other ends of the electrodes. Place the nickel plate on the battery and press the energized electrodes against it. As a result of a short circuit, the metal melts.

Source

Electrodes for welding aluminum products at home

Electrodes for aluminum welding are metal rods that are coated with a specialized mixture. They are rarely used in large enterprises. With their help, aluminum is welded at home, in small workshops, and in fairly complex work outside production facilities. The use of such electrodes makes it possible to avoid the appearance of a film of oxides on the metal. It makes welding very difficult.

• Main features of aluminum electrode welding
• How to weld aluminum with an electrode
• The most common types of electrodes
• Making electrodes at home

Main features of aluminum electrode welding

It has long been known that welding aluminum parts is very difficult. Scientists explain this by the presence of a poorly fused film of oxides on them. In order for welding to be of the highest quality, it is necessary to thoroughly clean the surface to be joined from dirt and oxide films.

To effectively clean the aluminum surface , before welding, any organic solvent or alkali bath is often used. Treatment in an alkali bath is considered the most effective method for cleaning aluminum products. Making such a solution with your own hands is quite simple.

For an alkaline bath you need:

• no more than a liter of water;
• 50 grams of sodium carbonate;
• 30 grams of liquid glass;
• 50 grams of trisodium phosphate.

The solution, which was obtained by mixing these components, must be heated to 70 degrees. After this, it is worth placing metal products in it.

After cleaning and degreasing the products, you must proceed to the next stage. It consists of removing the oxide film . If this condition is not met, it will be very difficult to weld such parts, and their connection will be unreliable and of poor quality. To remove the oxide film with your own hands, you can use files, metal brushes or a grinder. After this process, the surface of the welded products is additionally coated with a solvent.

After completing all work on preparing the aluminum, it is necessary to begin welding the products. An inverter and the use of specialized electrodes for welding aluminum are most suitable for this purpose. To ensure a good burning arc and an excellent welding seam, the electrodes should be heated in an oven at a temperature of at least 210 degrees. The average warm-up time should be about 3 hours.

To weld aluminum, it is worth using a reliable direct current source with reverse polarity. When using special electrodes for welding aluminum, it is necessary to select the correct current strength. Experts recommend that its strength be about 28 amperes per millimeter of electrode diameter.

It is worth considering one more point that allows you to achieve high-quality and reliable welding seams. It consists in the fact that before welding the product is heated using a gas burner. The maximum temperature to which aluminum products should be heated depends very much on their size. The higher this indicator, the higher the temperature it is necessary to heat aluminum products.

The quality of the welded seam of aluminum products also depends on their cooling rate. The connection will work better if you cool it slowly. Such technical methods make it possible to perfectly alloy aluminum when welding at low currents, to avoid deformation of the welded products and the appearance of crystallization formations on the seams.

Welding of aluminum parts is carried out in this order:

1. Before starting cooking, if you need to weld products of large thickness, the joint should be heated with a gas burner.
2. The seam made must be thoroughly cleaned of slag.
3. Treat the cleaned seam with water at a temperature of at least 50 degrees.
4. After complete cooling, the welding seam is cleaned of remaining slag with a metal brush. When this is not done, the remaining slag on the weld can cause it to fail quickly.

Assembling a device from a microwave oven

The device manufactured in this way allows welding with alternating current with unregulated force.

List of required tools

To create a homemade device from a microwave oven, you will need the following equipment:

• Screwdriver Set;
• sandpaper;
• copper rods;
• hammer;
• chisel;
• knife.

Conversion of microwave parts

After removing the transformer from the furnace, perform the following steps:

1. Remove the secondary winding using a hacksaw or chisel. Dismantling is carried out carefully, trying not to damage the underlying layer. It is advisable to fill the space between the windings with corrugated cardboard.
2. Remove the metal shunts that limit the current.
3. A secondary winding is formed. At this stage, you will need a KG 1x35 wire. It can withstand prolonged exposure to high voltage and current up to 1200 A. The outer rubber insulation is removed from the cable.
4. The core is covered with tape, which facilitates the sliding of the wire during winding. The cable is laid in 3 tight turns. For winding, the use of stranded soft wire is allowed. The total diameter of the cores must be at least 1 cm.

After the alteration, the transformer must have an open circuit voltage of no more than 3V and a current of at least 800 A.

Homemade device diagram

Creating an electrical circuit for a welding machine is not difficult. The electrode is connected with a soft cable to the secondary winding of the transformer. The circuit includes thyristors and rectifier bridges. One end of the pressure gun is connected to the secondary winding, the other is securely fixed to the device.

Types of electrodes for aluminum and rules for quality welding

Aluminum electrodes, which are metal rods coated with a special coating, are very rarely used in large-scale production. With their help, metal is welded at home, in small enterprises, or when performing complex installation work outside the walls of the production workshop. When using such electrodes, it is possible to get rid of the oxide film on the surface of aluminum, which greatly complicates welding work performed on parts made of this metal.

Swedish Elga electrodes for welding aluminum and its alloys

Features of welding work with aluminum parts

All welding specialists know that welding aluminum is not easy. This is explained by the presence of a refractory oxide film on the surface of parts made of this metal. The most important tasks that must be solved in order for welding to be performed efficiently are thorough cleaning of the surfaces of the workpieces to be joined from contamination and removal of the oxide film from them.

To effectively clean and degrease the surfaces of aluminum parts before you begin welding work, you can use an organic solvent (acetone, RS-1, RS-2, white spirit) or an alkaline bath (leave the workpieces in it for several minutes - do not more than 5). Soaking in an alkaline bath is a more effective way to clean aluminum parts. It is not difficult to prepare a solution for it even at home with your own hands. For this you will need:

• 1 liter of water;
• 50 g sodium carbonate;
• 50 g technical trisodium phosphate;
• 30 g of liquid glass.

An example of cleaning an aluminum part in an alkaline solution

The solution prepared by thoroughly mixing these components must be heated to 65 degrees Celsius. Only after this can aluminum workpieces be placed in it.

After cleaning aluminum parts and degreasing them, another important task must be solved - removing the refractory oxide film.

If this is not done, it will be very difficult to cook such workpieces, and the resulting connection will be of low quality and low reliability.

Device design and necessary parts

Any contact type welding unit consists of 2 units:

• power supply (transformer);
• clamping pliers.

The correct ratio of windings allows you to generate a current that is strong enough to melt the metal. The design of the pliers includes graphite or copper contacts installed on different levers that fix the mechanism.

The following types of clamps exist:

1. Mechanical. Includes a powerful spring and lever. The welder's muscle force is used to compress metals. Clamps of this type are installed in household devices used for simple operations.
2. Pneumatic. Installed in portable hand-held devices. Adjustable by changing the pressure in the air channel. The disadvantage is considered to be low productivity and the inability to adjust operating parameters during welding.
3. Hydraulic. The clamps also have a low operating speed, but their range of settings is wider than the previous type.
4. Electromagnetic. They are distinguished by the highest productivity and are installed in both manual and stationary units. Electromagnetic clamps allow you to adjust the compression force of parts during welding. This reduces the likelihood of lack of fusion and metal leaks.

Sometimes the design is complicated by adding liquid cooling systems, control of current parameters, and automatic movement of electrodes.

When assembling a homemade spot welding machine, the master will need the following parts and materials:

• a modified transformer from an old microwave oven or car battery;
• thick copper wire or cable harness of small cross-section;
• levers used to assemble clamps;
• base for installing unit blocks;
• clamps;
• wires;
• insulating materials;
• copper electrodes necessary for welding;
• control key.

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