To accidentally touch the hot tungsten electrode into the molten pool or hit it with filler rod. The arc goes wild, the tip balls up with weld metal, and the weld can pick up tungsten inclusions, which show as bright white spots on radiographs. The fix is to stop, grind out any contaminated weld and break off and regrind the tungsten to a clean point.
Dipped it again, give me a minute to regrind the tungsten before I touch that root.
Keep a few pre-ground tungstens in your pocket; swapping is faster than regrinding after every dip.
Also heard as
- dipped tungsten
- stick the tungsten
Related terms
GTAW
Gas tungsten arc welding: an arc from a non-consumable tungsten electrode under inert gas, known as TIG.
Cup
The ceramic or glass nozzle on a TIG torch that directs shielding gas; also a MIG gun nozzle.
RT
Radiographic testing: imaging a weld's interior with X-rays or gamma rays on film or a digital detector.
Discontinuity
Any break in the normal makeup of a weld, such as a pore or inclusion, that becomes a defect only when it exceeds code limits.