Welding Tips and Tricks

These c-channel pieces get cut down to the top of the 1/2 inch bar stock, so there is a j-bevel at the top of these welds. I think maybe I need to open it up more to get deeper in there. This welded in piece gets drilled and bolted through.

I just wanted to throw in the tig finger shot. Jodi should invent tig finger suspenders to keep it from sliding down.

Made a cart for my tig welder and water cooler from 3/4" gas pipe. I had no idea when I started that this thing was gonna set me back more than $160.

Lots of welding this weekend, the seat time is really paying off.

First, a friend bought a used race bike which had more battle scars than disclosed. One of them being broken mounts for the right footpeg bracket. Tacked, gouged the cracks and filled it for him. He also asked to build up the faces as they seemed to be bent back and made the lever touch the swingarm. Finished product after he machined and tapped them:
Another friend came by with a wheel, also with damage that was not disclosed by the seller (quite the scumbag pattern in the used market...). It started leaking on the racetrack, he stripped the tire, and saw the crack that seemed to have had a ground down MIG weld laid on it from one side. I told him to clean out the crack before bringing it, he said chunks of weld started falling out as he did.
Did an initial pass with 5356, tons of crud came out, some more cleaning and heating. Then a few cover passes with 4043. I cleaned out the inside for him for the tire but left the outside untouched per his request, so if he sells it, the repair is in full view.
Then finally on to my own stuff. I have been building a home powerlifting gym in my basement and haven't found a power cage to buy that was remotely what I wanted, and the ones that come close are 4 grand or more. So, off to build my own. Cost me 500 bucks in steel and 100 in grade 8 fasteners. I thought I'd be done in 2 days but wasn't even close. Ran into several procedural issues but now that I know what to do, the other half should go smoother.

Aluminum gates ready for blast and powder coat. Pretty high end gates to hide garbage dumpsters......

that gate should be hiding a Ferrari not trash cans! WTF
craig

motox wrote:that gate should be hiding a Ferrari not trash cans! WTF
craig

Maybe the guy's dumpsters are right next to his front porche...

Steve S

In my best Thurston Howell the thirds accent "It is for a Country Clubs refuse receptacles my good man"

My original estimate for building my squat cage was adorable in retrospect but the delays are all my fault for wanting to go nuts with it (big bulletproof design, every beam being a bolt on, and using only TIG). The TIG practice is really paying off, I'm feeling more comfortable with every weld and I think the results show it.

Your welds look very good.

Thank you!

I'm with Raymond...that is fast becoming a cage to admire.



Kym

Thanks Kym! I'm currently planning to paint the uprights which will receive the safety pins black and the rest red but part of me wants to polish up the metal and leave it bare to see the welds better. Definitely my best work yet. I've made welds this good before but it would be the exception. Every weld on this cage is nice, so I'm heading down the path of "practice until you can't get it wrong", which feels great!

BigD wrote:Thanks Kym! I'm currently planning to paint the uprights which will receive the safety pins black and the rest red but part of me wants to polish up the metal and leave it bare to see the welds better. Definitely my best work yet. I've made welds this good before but it would be the exception. Every weld on this cage is nice, so I'm heading down the path of "practice until you can't get it wrong", which feels great!

Mask your welds before you paint. You can probably find pinstriping at any auto paint store that will be perfect for that job. Then you can clear coat the welds afterward. That would look cool as heck.

I welded up a race bike stand awhile ago and for once in my life I was actually happy with the welds.

So I just gave the whole thing a thorough cleaning and then sprayed it in heavy duty clear coat - you can see the welds as they were finished, complete with a touch of rainbow oxidation here and there. It's funny, people love it and it's clear to see (pun intended) that it's a hand crafted stand, whereas if I'd sprayed it black or red it would just look like every other stand.

I say if you are happy with your work - and you certainly should be happy with that cage, it's beautiful - show it off.



Kym

MosquitoMoto wrote:I welded up a race bike stand awhile ago and for once in my life I was actually happy with the welds.

So I just gave the whole thing a thorough cleaning and then sprayed it in heavy duty clear coat - you can see the welds as they were finished, complete with a touch of rainbow oxidation here and there. It's funny, people love it and it's clear to see (pun intended) that it's a hand crafted stand, whereas if I'd sprayed it black or red it would just look like every other stand.

I say if you are happy with your work - and you certainly should be happy with that cage, it's beautiful - show it off.



Kym

There is a guy who is a metal artist who sells out of a shop where I sell and he doesn't use any paint on his metal, he finishes a project, sets it outside in the rain or hoses it down, lets it flash rust and then clear coats over the rust. I have to say it does look very cool.

BigD wrote:Thank you!

Approaching weld porn quality!

exnailpounder wrote:There is a guy who is a metal artist who sells out of a shop where I sell and he doesn't use any paint on his metal, he finishes a project, sets it outside in the rain or hoses it down, lets it flash rust and then clear coats over the rust. I have to say it does look very cool.

There's a faster and more controllable way you might share with him...
Mix equal parts plain household bleach and white vinegar, and spray it lightly on the metal. It will rust very rapidly; simply rinse it thoroughly when it's reached the desired patina.

(The substance that does the work is hypochlorous acid. It produces very little fume.)

Steve S

Thanks Steve! I might just have to keep that little secret for myself!
How the hell do you know all this stuff???!!!

It probably started as a recipe for salad dressing...



Kym

MosquitoMoto wrote:It probably started as a recipe for salad dressing...



Kym

Lol

If it will do that to steel imagine what your insides look like.

Poland308 wrote:If it will do that to steel imagine what your insides look like.

No worse than moonshine I bet

MosquitoMoto wrote:It probably started as a recipe for salad dressing...



Kym

:lol:WELDERS salad dressing!

That might not be a bad combo. White lightning and coleslaw. Till about morning.

exnailpounder wrote:Thanks Steve! I might just have to keep that little secret for myself!
How the hell do you know all this stuff???!!!

As a kid, I read books like "A Boy and His Battery", and "How to Build Your Own Telescope", and every other science book I could get my hand on. I had a county Library card at age 5.

I had full lending privileges at the county library, where the school didn't trust me with more than two books at a time...

Steve S.