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My limited experience suggests that you should cut the exhaust flange between the runners (3 cuts) to keep from breaking the log.

 

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Dave, looking at your tungsten....get that thing back up in the cup a bit. Without a ton of gas and a monster diffusing cup, that thing needs to protrude onlu about 1/8" at the most. it looks like it is ground sharp on a rough stone with way too much spin. keep the grind marks to a minimum and keep them in a much straighter, axial direction. it will help a lot to steady the arc.

 

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Just noticed you said the sharpener gets you 15°. does it have a 20 or 30? the 15 can have the tendency to erode really fast at settings above aprox. 60 amps. 15 is really sharp. super steady arc, good for precision, light work.

 

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For anything that requires more than about 60 amps, then yes, the 20 will probably work better.