Welding Tips and Tricks

Does it make sense for a heat sink to do double-duty as a purge block? The shapes seem to be common - a chunk of material with relief behind the weld joint. If you've got the means, why not drill out a path for purge gas too?

I'm sure it's not a new idea, I've just not seen it done. Or are purge blocks too expensive to use as general-purpose heat sinks?

Yep last place I worked, everything was this and we had finished flanges etc that could t move. For jobs we ran a lot we designed and built all kinds of combo sinks/gas blocks.

This is one of the reasons I've become interested in machining, to make some for home amongst other personnel projects

I've made some irregular shapes for projects now they are double duty, general purpose pieces...work fine. I just clean them well.

PRLMotorsports has a package they sell for doing manifolds that doubles as a head flange heat sink/runner purge block, in addition to VBAND blocks that accomplish the same function.