Tool Forum

[bigbadbob]

The single biggest thing I see newbie welders do is move too fast. Slow down!

I have the opposite problem!!! I hang around too long!!
But am learning to speed up a tad.
TIGed some 1/2 flat bar yesterday, came out perfect!!!:msp_rolleyes:
No grinding required after the weld, and I dont mind it being seem by others!!!

 

[promac850]

I have the opposite problem!!! I hang around too long!!
But am learning to speed up a tad.

Guilty... guilty... guilty... been there done that...

Practice, practice, practice. That's what my instructors said. That's basically the only way you're gonna become a good welder... short of being given a gift to be able to weld perfectly , starting right out of the womb, lol.

 

[bigbadbob]

Guilty... guilty... guilty... been there done that...

Practice, practice, practice. That's what my instructors said. That's basically the only way you're gonna become a good welder... short of being given a gift to be able to weld perfectly , starting right out of the womb, lol.

I had a stick for 25yrs.
Had a nephew come stay at our home whilst he took welding at the local college, so I bought a hobart 180 and had him give me tips and lessons, lots of little tricks he showed me, and I dont forget, a welder set correct sounds like frying bacon!!!!

 

[promac850]

I had a stick for 25yrs.
Had a nephew come stay at our home whilst he took welding at the local college, so I bought a hobart 180 and had him give me tips and lessons, lots of little tricks he showed me, and I dont forget, a welder set correct sounds like frying bacon!!!!

Yep!!! Shoot for that frying bacon noise!!

I found it never fails... if you have that sound, you're making some good welds.

 

[Brmorgan]

I have always liked to learn how to weld.As I think I mentioned before I worked construction for about three years where they were working with structural steel.There were millwrights and welders on the site,some of the fellas did the fabricating and tacked it together and another guy came along and filled everything in.It was all stick welding and this one guy could burn rod all day long every day. My birth father was a welder,apparently high pressure type stuff,whatever that is.
Lawrence

Heh, well buddy, I'm in that neighborhood right now! Went through over two boxes of rod today welding the infeed deck down to the posts! A LOT of overhead today... Not fun, my arm is dead from holding the stinger over my so much. Got plenty of hot stuff down my neck etc. too! Not as bad as Monday though, got a hot spark from the torch right in the middle of the bottom lip, so I have a lil blister there right now. Hurts more than my finger, no joke.

But, I also got to do my share of my favorite too, horizontal T welds. Crank 'er up nice and hot and watch the rod disappear! I can make a good flat T weld about 95% of the time now, don't screw the bead up very often anymore, usually when there's a bunch of rust or dirt on the piece only. And I can fill a gap about 3/16" in a single pass in 5/16" thick steel now without burning holes through. This has been a challenge for me, but I kinda have to learn quick for this project! Just about every joint will have one or two gaps that big.

A couple that turned out pretty decent:

In this one I was welding between the flanges of an I-beam, so I was unable to make the complete pass in one direction properly. So I went from each corner to the center, and you can see the weld puddle where I met in the middle near the right. I usually hold a second or two longer where I join the welds to let it deposit a bit more material, to avoid a hollowed out spot from the puddle. Could have left this one another second I guess, though it's not bad.

I've found stick welding to be a lot like painting, in a way. You kind of have to point the rod and push and pull the molten metal around a bit to make a proper weld. Like for a T weld, I'll hold the rod high on the vertical piece for slightly longer than I leave it down on the flat piece at about 45° in both directions; this allows some of the vertical piece to melt and flow downwards to fill in the joint, and the downward angle of the rod helps push it there and keep the bottom piece hot enough for the weld to pool into.

Today was interesting, my stinger kept getting hot, such that I could barely hold it on long welds. It wasn't arcing out inside, checked for that. But it is getting worn out, I can hardly get it to clamp down tight on a 1/8" rod anymore. Gonna look for a new one tomorrow.

 

[promac850]

Nice work!! Very good welds.

Get a new rod holder and you should be set... them things are toast after being used so much.

I hated how many of the ones at the local CC were toasted because of careless students/amateur welders so the thing wouldn't hold an electrode solidly... it was a PITA, lol. Most didn't have the 'teeth' anymore, some were just plain worn out and used to death.

Didn't matter anyways, didn't do much stick welding.

 

[Metals406]

Heh, well buddy, I'm in that neighborhood right now! Went through over two boxes of rod today welding the infeed deck down to the posts! A LOT of overhead today... Not fun, my arm is dead from holding the stinger over my so much. Got plenty of hot stuff down my neck etc. too! Not as bad as Monday though, got a hot spark from the torch right in the middle of the bottom lip, so I have a lil blister there right now. Hurts more than my finger, no joke.

But, I also got to do my share of my favorite too, horizontal T welds. Crank 'er up nice and hot and watch the rod disappear! I can make a good flat T weld about 95% of the time now, don't screw the bead up very often anymore, usually when there's a bunch of rust or dirt on the piece only. And I can fill a gap about 3/16" in a single pass in 5/16" thick steel now without burning holes through. This has been a challenge for me, but I kinda have to learn quick for this project! Just about every joint will have one or two gaps that big.

A couple that turned out pretty decent:

In this one I was welding between the flanges of an I-beam, so I was unable to make the complete pass in one direction properly. So I went from each corner to the center, and you can see the weld puddle where I met in the middle near the right. I usually hold a second or two longer where I join the welds to let it deposit a bit more material, to avoid a hollowed out spot from the puddle. Could have left this one another second I guess, though it's not bad.

I've found stick welding to be a lot like painting, in a way. You kind of have to point the rod and push and pull the molten metal around a bit to make a proper weld. Like for a T weld, I'll hold the rod high on the vertical piece for slightly longer than I leave it down on the flat piece at about 45° in both directions; this allows some of the vertical piece to melt and flow downwards to fill in the joint, and the downward angle of the rod helps push it there and keep the bottom piece hot enough for the weld to pool into.

Today was interesting, my stinger kept getting hot, such that I could barely hold it on long welds. It wasn't arcing out inside, checked for that. But it is getting worn out, I can hardly get it to clamp down tight on a 1/8" rod anymore. Gonna look for a new one tomorrow.

Brad, it's neat how you compared it to painting. I always compare it to using a caulking gun.

It's cool that you're getting the hang of it, and using different techniques to overcome problems. On the upward pause you're talking about, the actual goal isn't to melt parent material into the puddle -- but to deposit rod once the arc has dug in.

That may be what you're seeing, I don't know without being there and watching you.

On the crater filling. . . Run up about 1/2" onto the other bead, and "backstep" into your new bead -- slowly lengthen the arc until it stops arcing. Give it a try, and see how it works for ya.

For out-of-position welding, especially overhead, invest in some leathers/textiles. They make shrouds that protect your neck and head, as well as your arms and shoulders. . . It'll be worth the money. Also, be sure you're wearing your safety glasses under your hood, as sparks and boogers can still make there way in, as your lip will attest.

These BSX work pretty good: Welding Clothing - BSX Stryker FR Welding Jackets, Black w/Red Flames from

I also use these on my left hand (I'm right handed), when I'm in higher amperage welding or long welding durations. Welding Apparel and Accessories - BSX Aluminized Back Pads

Here's some neck protection and beanies: The New Mad Hatter - Custom Fabric Welding hats/beanies

Then, of course, you could always spring for a high-dollar welding hood!

:hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange:

 

[WesternSaw]

Hot weather and welding

I remember those guy's on the job site doing overhead welding with all their protective gear on in the summer,man were they hot.I also remember grinding metal when a Makita 7 inch angle grinder and disc made it's way across my thigh.Wow that was sore.
Lawrence

 

[heimannm]

I don't think I have posted there here before. I have a few old McCulloch saws and from time to time the spark plug wire will become damaged. In theory, you simply "unscrew" the wire and install a new one. In practice, they always seem to be firmly glued in place and twist off flush with the body of the coil.

I thought it would be handy to find a hollow drill bit that I could use to clean out the old wires, but looking around I couldn't find anything. Talking with one of our tooling suppliers he suggested I make my own from a piece of tubing. A trip to the hardware store yielded no tubiing, but a spring pin or two with the correce O.D. I ground the end flat, then used a countesink bit to give it a little edge.

I decided to run it counter clockwise since all of the cutting edges were 90° anyway, and after a few second the old plug wire came right out.

Mark

 

[ttyR2]

I'm going to break down and buy one of the Mityvac pressure/vac tester kits. If you look here Amazon.com: mityvac mv8500 is the $89 MV8500 the best one? Looking for input from folks who have actually used them.

Unrelated,
You can clean up or re-create the grooves in an electrode holder with a round file so the.

 

[WesternSaw]

Hi Mark H.

Great to have you on here!Amazing what people can do when they put their mind to it.Great job!
Lawrence

 

[Philbert]

I'm going to break down and buy one of the Mityvac pressure/vac tester kits. If you look here Amazon.com: mityvac mv8500 is the $89 MV8500 the best one? Looking for input from folks who have actually used them.

Make sure that you get the one that does both pressure and vacuum. I want to say that I paid less - more like $59. Came in a kit. Seemed to be different prices, even on Amazon.

Philbert

 

[Philbert]

[Make sure that you get the one that does both pressure and vacuum. I want to say that I paid less - more like $59. Came in a kit. Seemed to be different prices, even on Amazon.

Mityvac MITMV8500 Silverline Elite Automotive Vacuum Pump Kit
Sold by: ToolTopia
Condition: new
Quantity: 1
$46.53 each
Item subtotal: $46.53

This was about a year ago.

Philbert

 

[WesternSaw]

Philbert

Thanks for the information.I may be looking for one in the future as well.
Lawrence

 

[Philbert]

Thanks for the information.I may be looking for one in the future as well.

If you go to the MityVac web page ( Mityvac ) you can learn about the pumps. Some are metal, some are plastic, some do just vacuum, etc. Also lists parts if you need to rebuild one.

The price differences seem to be related to the number of adaptor pieces sold with the kits and who is selling them.

Philbert

 

[WesternSaw]

Mighty Vac-Philbert

Happened to be cruising through one of the major tool shops near me and checked out the silver line Mighty Vac.It has a ton of accessories and I think it does both things you mentioned.It was priced at $89.00 Canadian.They occasionally put them on sale.
Lawrence

 

[WesternSaw]

New Tools

Today I had a few minutes to spare near Lee Valley Tools.I knew I would be close by so I brought along an old gift card I had received from one of my sisters for helping her out around her place.I picked up a 2 lb. dead blow hammer made of Urethane I think it is.Also a cut off guide for a circular saw and some hand drill masonry bits that they had bought up from a manufacture it was in France by M.O.B. on close out.Anyone know anything about M.O.B. in France?They also had some real nice masonry picks and stuff like that from the same manufacturer.
Lawrence

 

[Philbert]

Today I had a few minutes to spare near Lee Valley Tools.

Lee valley has a great catalog. Never been to one of their stores. Leonard Lee is very creative in his selection and design of tools. A few times I thought that I had discovered a unique tool and found it later in the catalog (maybe he is spying on my workshop?).

Philbert

 

[WesternSaw]

Lee Valley

Philbert.They even have a branch that makes some surgical equipment, like those spreaders for open heart surgery.I'm not sure if they have any stores in the U.S.A. but I do know they have mail order in the U.S.
It's a totally different way of retailing for sure.Once in the store you can browse around and look at the various displays and browse the catalogs or on the in store computer.You take one of the clipboards they have with an order form, mark down what you would like to purchase,take a number, they call it and a salesperson fills your order.Some people don't like the concept but I like it.
Lawrence

 

[Philbert]

I really like his sharpening book. I like his gardening catalog too.

One of my favorite stories is him bringing the stainless steel Microplane wood rasp up from his shop and his wife appropriating it to zest lemons. It is now a standard item in upscale kitchen stores.

Philbert