Welding Tips and Tricks

Has anybody else had one of those days where you can't do a good bead to save your life or cut anything square or dip your tungsten all day and everything you touch falls apart in your hands? The universe was not my friend today

Yes!!

For me it's more a matter of not knowing how to weld in the first place!

Also, yesterday I reckon I forgot about 10 times to re-attach my earth as I moved the workpiece about. Bzzt. Psshh. Sigh.



Kym

Some days are just a struggle for no good or obvious reasons. Unless you take into account the moon phases.

MosquitoMoto wrote:For me it's more a matter of not knowing how to weld in the first place!

Also, yesterday I reckon I forgot about 10 times to re-attach my earth as I moved the workpiece about. Bzzt. Psshh. Sigh.



Kym

My hi-frequency always reminds me when I forget to ground. It's more startling than painful but it still pisses me off.

Well there must be more than one monkey, becasue he was on my ass all day long as well!

Only almost every time I fire the box up.

I quit counting the bad days and now count the good days. It's easier because there's less of them. I've always had a 3 mistake rule. 1 mistake was a whoops. 2 mistakes and something needs to change. 3rd mistake and I quit for the day. Now I quit at 2.

I now know why my level of paranoid feelings have gone off the chart, you're all bloody well watching me stuff up.
You've mentioned it ALL.
Main issue is that my welding is marginal at best and then I may not need to weld anything for weeks or months.
Back to step one every time for the first couple of practice welds, then achieve mediocrity till next time.
I know more seat time, but this is a hobby, not a living, if it was a living, I'd be skinny......

ex framie wrote:I now know why my level of paranoid feelings have gone off the chart, you're all bloody well watching me stuff up.
You've mentioned it ALL.
Main issue is that my welding is marginal at best and then I may not need to weld anything for weeks or months.
Back to step one every time for the first couple of practice welds, then achieve mediocrity till next time.
I know more seat time, but this is a hobby, not a living, if it was a living, I'd be skinny......

Framie -

Everyone's talking about your paranoia.



Kym

Among other things, I sometimes forget that I'm stick welding and think I'm migging. Then wonder why my arc length gets super long as my hands are braced on the bench instead of traveling in with the rod.

MosquitoMoto wrote:

ex framie wrote:I now know why my level of paranoid feelings have gone off the chart, you're all bloody well watching me stuff up.
You've mentioned it ALL.
Main issue is that my welding is marginal at best and then I may not need to weld anything for weeks or months.
Back to step one every time for the first couple of practice welds, then achieve mediocrity till next time.
I know more seat time, but this is a hobby, not a living, if it was a living, I'd be skinny......

Framie -

Everyone's talking about your paranoia.



Kym

Or not

I bought a piece of what I thought was stainless from my metal supplier. They sell metal drops for small projects and being that it was on the SS table, I just assumed it was SS. I cut it and formed it into a ring for a sleeve for a tube STILL not realizing it wasn't SS and even went as far as to weld it. It was 16ga. material so I set up the tig with a 1/16" gas lens and lit up on it and it would weld but the weld would snap as soon as it cooled. Turns out the piece was aluminum. I am either getting old or drinking too much or a combination of the 2. True story...don't tell anyone

I bought a bunch of 2.5" flat cold rolled steel of various thickness. Cut it up into 4.5" length's. Anytime I forget to weld or need to try something out, I can grab a couple of pieces and get a little practice before I commit to burning holes in something.


Great for dialing in vertical and overhead, especially different thickness.

I once plugged my leads into the high and low instead of one of low and ground....rod would immediately stick and catch fire just before i threw the welder across the garage, i managed to stop and walk around. felt pretty stupid when i walked back and saw what i had done

weldin mike 27 wrote:Among other things, I sometimes forget that I'm stick welding and think I'm migging. Then wonder why my arc length gets super long as my hands are braced on the bench instead of traveling in with the rod.

Yeah, that's one of my usual screw-ups too. I MIG so much more than I use stick, that when I see an arc, I expect to have wire feeding into it.

exnailpounder wrote:I bought a piece of what I thought was stainless from my metal supplier. They sell metal drops for small projects and being that it was on the SS table, I just assumed it was SS. I cut it and formed it into a ring for a sleeve for a tube STILL not realizing it wasn't SS and even went as far as to weld it. It was 16ga. material so I set up the tig with a 1/16" gas lens and lit up on it and it would weld but the weld would snap as soon as it cooled. Turns out the piece was aluminum. I am either getting old or drinking too much or a combination of the 2. True story...don't tell anyone

I guess as you were rolling it you must have thought what a good fabricator you were as that sst rolled so easy

Don't worry, no one knows...

LtBadd wrote:

exnailpounder wrote:I bought a piece of what I thought was stainless from my metal supplier. They sell metal drops for small projects and being that it was on the SS table, I just assumed it was SS. I cut it and formed it into a ring for a sleeve for a tube STILL not realizing it wasn't SS and even went as far as to weld it. It was 16ga. material so I set up the tig with a 1/16" gas lens and lit up on it and it would weld but the weld would snap as soon as it cooled. Turns out the piece was aluminum. I am either getting old or drinking too much or a combination of the 2. True story...don't tell anyone

I guess as you were rolling it you must have thought what a good fabricator you were as that sst rolled so easy

Don't worry, no one knows...

LOL...thanks for keeping it a secret..that would be very embarrassing if it ever got out. The very odd part is that I love analysing a problem and coming up with a solution but I took a piece of metal all the way through fabrication to discover it was something other than what I thought it was...I might be starting to slip

Super Glue a magnet to your bottle opener. Mystery metal problem solved!

Poland308 wrote:Super Glue a magnet to your bottle opener. Mystery metal problem solved!

Bingo! But I drink twist off cheap beer...now what

Use the other end.
And start with a few high class beers first

i hit the T-4 setting somehow.
does very weird things when your using the foot peddle.
craig