Weld Trailing Shields

What is a Weld Trailing Shield?

Trailing shield is a weld accessory used when welding exotic materials such as titanium, zirconium, nickel, cobalt alloys, stainless, duplex steels and other reactive metals.  They are designed for high quality gas coverage during welding to prevent oxidation.  Benefits of using trailing shields include, reduced gas consumption,  no re-work and no wasted material costs due to oxidation. Argweld Trailing shields provide  wide gas coverage. The purge gas is held over the weld for a longer period during welding, while the heated metal is cooling below the oxidation temperature.

Trailing Shields are available in following versions:

• Flat models for sheet or plate work are available. (In Stock)ID
• OD Weld Trailing Shields for use on pipe OD or vessels (Most Sizes in stock)
• ID Weld Trailing Shields for use on pipe ID or vessels.
• For automated welding machine torches.

Each profiled Argweld® Weld Trailing Shields® is manufactured to suit a specific diameter of pipe, tube, vessel or tank. They can be configured for either external or internal welding. The ‘curved format’ versions are for all radii of tubes pipes and vessels up to 2000 mm (80″) diameter and manufactured for use on outside OR the inside diameter / curvature.

The flat Argweld® Weld Trailing Shields® for plate, sheet and rectangular tanks and fabrications are available in:

• Small lightweight versions for manual welding torches.
• Larger, slightly heavier versions, for attaching to automatic/mechanised welding torches.

Both manual and machine mounted torches permit faster welding while maintaining a perfect gas shield.

For automatic welding systems, where the welding torch is being carried by a mechanism, the Trailing Shields® can be longer and wider to cater for the faster welding speeds of an automatic system. These are made to specification (made to order).

Non-stock curved versions are also manufactured to specification (made to order) to suit the appropriate radius and shape for inside welding.

Argweld® Weld Trailing Shields® are suitable for use on all brands of TIG/GTAW, MIG/GMAW** and Plasma/PAW manual or automatic welding torches.

Separate leak tight gas hose connections are provided with the Argweld® Weld Trailing Shields®, single ones for smaller sizes and double or triple ones for larger sizes. The insides of the Argweld® Weld Trailing Shields® are manufactured with several layers of mesh with different hole sizes so that the welding shield gas is dispersed widely, evenly and slowly over the surface being welded, to avoid turbulence and the creation of low pressure areas that would otherwise allow oxygen to enter from the outside.

Consumable side wall seals / gaskets manufactured from flexible silicone rubber are fitted to each Argweld® Weld Trailing Shield® and can easily be replaced when burnt or damaged. Silicone rubber is resistant to temperatures up to 200ºC (392ºF). However, it will burn and harden when welding slowly at high currents, so the side wall seals must be regarded as consumable. The replacement seals can be purchased in 1 meter lenghts.