Welding Wire Reduces Wire Shavings for More Cost-Efficient Welding

AlcoTec Wire Corporation (Traverse City, MI), an ESAB company, features its patent-pending 5XXX Series NT aluminum welding wire that applies the newest innovation in wire manufacturing technology to significantly reduce or virtually eliminate wire shavings. NT technology produces a clean, high-quality aluminum welding wire that will not clog torch liners and offers better feedability for more cost-efficient welding.

Wire shavings are generated as a result of equipment and wire characteristics. Microfines or scales attach themselves to the walls of the torch liner causing surface abrasion of the wire during manufacturing, which produces wire shavings.

Abrasions from wire-to-wire touching during spooling operations that flake off while welding also contribute to shavings. Shavings are usually collected in the liner, but can also accumulate on drive rolls and contact tips. Clogged liners often result in increased tip and liner replacement, downtime, and rework.

Here is an inside look at the precision manufacturing processes behind AlcoTec aluminum welding wire that makes it the most trusted name in aluminum welding wire.

AlcoTec’s NT wire process uses patent-pending manufacturing technology to eliminate the microfines and surface abrasion generated during wire drawing. This new technology minimizes or eliminates the shaving problem, thus greatly improving wire feedability and arc stability to produce a clean, high quality aluminum welding wire that will not clog torch liners. This results in less wear and tear on contact tips and liners that don’t have to be replaced as often or as a result of wire shaving.

In addition to reduced contact tip and liner replacement costs, NT wire also reduces downtime, ultimately extending the life of the welding torch.

As the world’s largest single-source manufacturer of premium aluminum welding wire, AlcoTec offers a wide range of aluminum wire and rods for GMAW, GTAW, brazing and metallizing. www.alcotec.com