Proper Looking Tig Weld

4043 is aluminum. It doesn't work on SS at all.

Maybe you meant 308L which is the proper filler for that alloy.

Sounds like insufficient gas coverage. Are you using standard collet bodies or gas lens collet bodies? What is your gas flow rate? What is your amperage set to on the machine?

caffeine makes me dingy, yes it's 308L

standard I think, it's a weldcraft torch with a number 7 collet, the one that came with it

20 CFH

the econotig only has one setting on electrode negative, then it's just controlled with the pedal?

Your gas cup is a #7, which means 7/16" inside diamter.

20 should be sufficient, but try a slightly higher rate around 30 cfh to see if it makes a difference.

If your shop is at all drafty then you will need a heavier flow rate to fight that.

controlled with the pedal?

It depends on what revision your main board is. I had a first generation Econotig, bought within months of them hitting the market. When I bought it the dial on the machine was deactivated in TIG mode so the foot pedal was all the control you got.

2 years later it blew it's main board. It was replaced under warrantee with the new board which reactivated the dial in TIG mode allowing better amperage control.

If your's has the newer board then the dial works in TIG to set your max amps.

This gas flow rate stuff is interesting, but everyone seems to be using flow rates a lot higher than what I use. With a 3.2 mm tungsten I use a small cup (6) and for steel I use a flow of (3.5 liter/minute = 7.4160799 cubic foot/hour) and for Aliminium I use a flow rate of (5 liter/minute =

10.5943999 cubic foot/hour). If I'm welding very dirty Aluminium with a (7 cup) on round tubing I use a flow rate of (7 liter/minute = 14.8321598 cubic foot/hour). I very rarely change the tungsten size or cup on anything, any amps between 20 to 180. Maybe I'm just too lazy to bother.