Welding/Fab General Discussion

Hello everyone I am hoping to build a rolling gantry crane for my shop soon. I plan to make the crane 10 feet wide and 10 feet tall. I need a 3000 lb capacity for the crane. The legs are no problem but I don't know how to calculate the size of I beam to use. And what dose mass distribution do for this application? Example a beam that has a web of .5" by 4" and flanges that are .5 by 3" has the same mass per foot of a beam that has a web .25" by 8" and flanges that are .25" by 6". Because the crane will roll I understand that torsion will be exerted on the bream so its not just about the strength in one direction. And obviously it needs to be build over the breaking point …

well the first day went well, a few broken pieces.... previous welds were not that good, ours weren't perfect either...swinging around in that bucket,.. it was tough but we made them stick. I have a few vids and pics coming , but here is a few for now , the first is Sri Lanka the piece that started the whole thing,.....it went near the top, I don't know if it was summer or winter when they figured that out, I must have had the zoom on with the- to the ground pics, because it was pretty high, I loved every minute, even though I'm an old geezer, my helper thought I was going to fall out because I was standing on the edge of the bucket to make the weld,

Mike Rowe, (dirty jobs guy) has a website " Mike Rowe Works", in his site is a wealth of job tips , especially the section on welding. Worth a look.

As the torch is a somewhat ubiquitous portable light source in the medieval time period, and I know I have seen torches made of metal, I was curious if any of you have ever forged one, or if anyone happens to have information on how they were made. I made a torch once, wrapping cotton around a long piece of wood, stapling it in place, and soaking in kerosene. It worked pretty well, though it only burned for about half an hour. Also it was not very re-usable. So in the construction of metal torches, how is the part to be burned held in? Is there sometimes a container for holding extra fluid to be wicked up into the flame? I have some black iron pipe, which I was think…

Soooo tomorrow I have to go up in a 160' man lift or crane or what ever to weld SRI Lanka back on the Uni Sphere from the 64-65 worlds fair, ( i'm sure you have heard of it ) I need expertise from all you welding types out there, if the parts are 309 stainless will the 316 welding wire be better for the job ? I don't know what kind of welding machine I can get in the crane lift or if I have to get a two hundred foot ext. cord . They have to drain the fountain, I think they are doing that tonight, ( $17,000 a day for the crane, so my guess is they want it done rather quickly ) . I have anything I need at my disposal with a phone call, so what do you think ?. Don't worry…

I have been using the same setting , gas , technique as far as I can tell. I am welding mild steel to mild steel. about 3/8" thick flat plate. I not had any trouble with the welds. Now on this plate it makes a bead but does not penetrate the flat plate I am welding on to. I have ground the surface , and it is smooth and shiny. Could the grinding disc I used have loaded the surface with aluminum or stainless or something else, or am I just missing something here? It is two flat 3/8" plates , one on top of he other and I am welding he 90 degree angle where they meet. thanks for any help on this.

Greetings All, I'm looking to go back to school for a Welding Certificate at the local trade school. Below are the classes offered in the program. I would like to get your thoughts on the programs classes offered. I have no welding experience and will be taking a blacksmith courses nest spring from a local organization. Thanks for your help. WLDT 1410 Oxy-Acetylene Welding, Cutting & Brazing, Carbon Arc & Plasma 4 WLDT 1420 Intro to SMAW, Metallurgy & Welding Theory E6013 & E6010 4 WLDT 1430 Intro to Blueprint & Measuring Devices 4 WLDT 1440 Intro to Welding Certification & SMAW E7018 4 WLDT 1510 GMAW, Short Arc 4 WLDT 1520 Int…

Jewelry shop had a cast bracelet break twice. He couldn't weld it with his lazer welder for some reason, nor could it be torch welded. I dug out a .045 tungsten setup and headed over there without. It was a bit of a drive, so I sharpened the 3/32 tungsten I had in the torch to a long fine point. I put some scrap on a bit of polished copper and played around for a bit. I started at 20 amps, and blew it away. Then 5 amps, too cold, 10 worked but was hard. I finaly set the machine at 13 amps and put the work just touching the copper plate. Ran a couple small beads, then the jewler hand forged the joint, and ground it to shape, etc. I was very happy to make it work. I…

this bucket was screwed up pretty bad and welding outside, long sleeve shirt, 100+ degrees, was a challenge to say the least, especially being an old geezer. New skid plates and blades

So I got hired on two weeks ago and got handed mission impossible- get this job done in 2 weeks. Open truss bridge 106 feet, four sections- 2 right and 2 left. The biggest problem with this project is that there is no shop foreman, and I was not hired to be a shop foreman. I do want to get the job done and hopefully the shop will make money on it, that will keep me working longer. I am the only person in the shop that has the skills to do this work- I know how to fit up and weld the component's, I know what it takes to pass inspection. The 3 other guys can cut and punch holes and grind, so I am left to do the skilled labor. Well here are a couple of pictures of what we a…

Hey guys, I run an AC only 220 amp Hobart welder. Currently I am working on making some propane burners for some forges, I am using 3/32" 6013 rods for welding up the tube on the burner. I am getting good deposit, good penetration, but When i leak test for gas I always find a pin hole or two and I have to go back and touch up the holes. was wondering if there is a rod thats better suited to the task of making gas tight welds! Thanks for any suggestions!:P

I recently was given a 25lb spool of hardface wire. It has a little rust. Is it junk or can it be salvaged. I've only used the stick rods so I'm curious how well it works on a mig.

Hello,Calling all and any experienced pipie welders.I am a boilermaker by trade and have welded plenty of boiler tubes.However we always tig weld the root pass.I find myself in the awkward position of having to adapt to welding a root pass with 6010.Any tips,suggestions would be appreciated.I have a good opportunity here and I don't want to blow it.I have been practicing on 6" sch40.I learned a lot from my first coupon, such as the importance of the fit-up especialy the amount of land. Ihave been leaving a 1/16 gap but a friend told me to slam the joint together and bury the rod.Any sugestions would be greatly apreciated.I really need this job.Thanks

Hi. One of my friends is downsizing, and he gave me a press frame. I can make a hydraulic jack press with this frame. He welded it out of 3/16" structural steel with a 120V flux core wire welder, and the welds do not look good. I have found that even lousy looking MIG welds can be surprisingly strong, however, and he assured me that he has used it a lot and it is safe. My plan is to grind the bad looking welds out and re-weld them with a stick welder. Unfortunately, I am not very good at welding (no good practice or training) and it might be better to leave well enough alone. I have stayed away from structural or vehicle welding, and have only had one mission crit…

For 18 years i was a certified nuclear pipe welder. and dressed " welder " starched khaki shirts, a black T, and the loudest, burn the eyes with color and design welding hats i could get. Till now we only had two choices of welding cap, a hard visor cap like the baseball kind and the soft cloth kind. the soft one has its best moments in winter as a skull cap, worn with a "hoody" sweatshirt. That was the preferred wear under the hardhat.the soft bill was more comfortable. In summer the baseball kind was better because when worn wet it cooled better by being less in contact with the head. Now in Old Navy there is a hard bill "military " looking hat in canvas that is better …

So I have recently become the happy owner of an o/a set up. Love it. I am doing quite good with my welds and am in process of making an anvil stand. Anyways yesterday I was toying with different flames thinking I could really get a good puddle with any of them but I found one that didn't work for me. It was a neutral flame just very rich in both so I can only surmise it was to hot. Instead of a nice molten puddle I could push around I got puddles that were boiling and ugly. So clearly that did work wont try it again but what happened did I boil the metal? and is that bad? I had no chance of welding with it as stuff was just happening to fast and I couldn't co…

What's a good stick rod to fill a crater in the bottom of a 50LB LG anvil dovetail that's pretty machinable ? Thanks........mb

Are all welding rods the same? For the sake of discussion, let us take 6013 rod. If you pruchase it from Lincoln, Miller, Hobart, Wal-mart, Lowes, Home Depot, or Harbor Freight are you getting the same rod or just a rod that meets the minimum specs for the 6013 label. The real question is, do they act different when each is run on the same welder, at the same settings, on the same metal? Could the weldor tell the difference and pick out which brand was which?

Will a 110a mig be sufficient enough to weld some 4x2x4" 4140 to a railroad track? I only need it strong enough to stay in place while its being hammered upon at least until I can manage to buy a real anvil. I'm guessing I'd have to make quite a few passes if this will work. Any input would be appreciated!

A job came in today, from the carsmasher ; gouge off the old forks on the "carriage" from their old fixed fork, lift.and weld new ones on. The pieces of forks are, the unbroken one has 36" of 6" x 3" 80" long, the broken one has a 36" long piece. We wont even bring up the subject of the "scrap", with the truck driver that comes to get the repaired piece. what does he know about A.S.O.?

I would like some input on the hanrob 2000 handheld torch, i was thinking of adding it to my shop, at 360 dollars is it worth it, can any members give me some pros and cons. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks Sean.

Okay all, First off, I do not have experience with welders so I am looking for suggestions for a good one. I am looking to buy one that I can use and not outgrow but I am not looking to make this a business either. I am building a shop at my bother's house. He has welding experience but not a pro either. We are planning a 220 run into the shop. I am looking to be able to put together tooling for my LG and such. What would you suggest that I should be looking at. I will start looking for a used one and go from there. Thanks for the pointers in advance. Brian Pierson

Hi all, I picked up a second hand one of these tonight (Lincoln invertec 160vt), but does not have a user manual with it. Does anyone have one as pdf file that I could get? Tried the lincoln website europe and us but they only have the promotional brochure!! http://www.lincolnelectriceurope.com/splash.asp This is the site I was on. Any help greatly appreciated. Mick

I started in the metal trades over 30 years ago and am fairly competent in several welding processes but I just can't get the hang of TIG. Sometimes, the bead looks OK but for the most part, I can make a prettier weld with an OA torch - and I'm not boasting but my stick or MIG results are usually better than average. Case in point, my youngest son brought home a stainless box last week for me to patch. This was a deep fryer tank from the burger joint where he works; the material was 18 gauge SS and one corner had split lengthwise about 4 inches (probably from the thermal cycling). I have a nice Miller Synchrowave 250 with foot pedal, which is supposed to be the cat's…

Hey all, i am looking for suggestions here. I bought some 1/2" plate that i need to weld together to get the size i need, buying a whole sheet was cost prohibitive. I have mig, stick and tig capability, but not for 1/2" plate. My synchrowave 200 can put out the juice with stick leads. I wanted to maybe use my millermatic 180 (good for 5/16, and just run multiple beads. I don't like stick welding much. I got some less than helpful, condescending responses from a welding forum! I know my machines aren't rated for this thickness, just wondering what you have done. I plan on beveling, preheating and welding both sides with multiple passes. It will be used for an anv…