Orbital welding machine - GIF

[ToolTalkBot]

Orbital welding machine.




Previously:

Accidentally welding your head in between a railing - GIF
Arc welding slow motion - GIF
Basket welding - GIFs
Bowling ball welding table - video
Cold welding GIF

[nova_robotics]

Is that a fibre laser?

[Floradawg]

Is that a fibre laser?

I think it's a laser. No smoke or fumes.

[NeiljohnUK]

I think it's a laser. No smoke or fumes.

Looks like a simplified cloned Swagelok weld jig and head, even uses the same style earth contact (round part on a stalk on top clamp), probably Ar/H2 purged so no fume when opened (already dissipated as the end purge part of the process is ~30 seconds long). Yes I've some experience in high purity modified TIG orbital welding. Just a small modified job (more ports added in the same space) that I finished a day before retirement.

[Saltfever]

Speaking of Swagelok. I needed them to modify a special valve for me. They said to send a drawing of the idea so they could quote. The next year I saw my idea in their catalog as Pat.Pend. That was around the mid 80's and I forgot about it till your post, Neil!

In those days my employer and I shared IP. It wasn't worth it to pursue.

[NeiljohnUK]

As with many companies they'll take a customer requested design and add it to their catalogue, but then they have others copying their products too. Some of the ripped off stuff from 'apparently' Western sounding companies is Chinese made, and pretty poor quality, others such as Ham-Let are much better, in part because of customers like me pointing out simple improvements like deburring machined parts to remove the razor sharp edges is acted upon.

I spent a number of years using Swagelok orbital welders, and developed my own extra support jigs for use with their 'micro' weld-head as it won't clamp and stabilise tubing reliably compared the their normal weld-heads, I know several who've had issues with those heads who've copied my design, even the Swagelok trainer wanted one!