Welding Help

[sniffles]

hey sweav have you started cutting and welding? im pretty excited too. just gotta get my tube notcher and start welding. i have some stuff cut already. oh and does anybody have any good tips for flux core welding on round tube? or any good general tips would help too..thanks

[moto1fast]

Sniffles, What thickness of tubing are you using? You need to practice on some scrape pieces first! It depends on your thickness as to what heat range and size wire to use! I think there are some instructions that came with your welder use them as a guide and adjust your heat range to get the weld you need! Have Fun!!!:wave:

[sniffles]

.065" thickness. some of the spool got tangled. is this a big deal? thanks

[jw36]

Sniffles, try tightening up the roll tension a bit so the roll doesn't spin free, but not too tight.

[Woodchuckscustoms.com]

hey sweav have you started cutting and welding? im pretty excited too. just gotta get my tube notcher and start welding. i have some stuff cut already. oh and does anybody have any good tips for flux core welding on round tube? or any good general tips would help too..thanks

Hey sniffles grind all your weld joints so that you have a valley to weld in and just make sure the weld area is clean, also try the anti-splatter spray that chit seems to work pretty good.:cheers:

[elvergon]

BI omg, are you using .065 wall thickness for a chassis? are you tiggin, miggin or arc welding?

Man unless you are the greatest welder in the world, I wouldn´t suggest using .065 to make a chassis.

I´ll just tell you something about my experience. I did 7/8 tube .125" wall and chassis would flex and that taking into account I took a 3 month long oxy-acetylene welding classes.

I mean, it´s your call, I just want you to be safe,...

[sniffles]

hey elevergon, ill be fine. my uncle is an extremely good welder incase i mess up with my frame he probably can fix it. and i am mig welding.

[bm1]

Chassis flex is not only determined by tube thickness, but by chassis design as well. If you have no strategic bracing, you will get lots of flex, even with square tubing.

[Terry Skinner]

[QUOTE=elvergon]

Man unless you are the greatest welder in the world, I wouldn´t suggest using .065 to make a chassis.

Come on now, don't scare the guy off. I have built aircraft frames from 0.035" tube 0.5" diameter. What really comes into this is that the diameter of the tube is what takes care of flex. (With in reason.) If you want less flex go to a larger diameter or add more tubes and gussets.
Flex is how far it will bend and return to original shape. (Sometimes good.)
Strength is how much it takes to break the frame. (Never good.)
As for the welding part, a tig or acetylene/oxygen welder would be at the top of my list. The problem with the mig welder using inner shield and no gas (usually an argon mix) there is a lot of inclusion. In other words bits of flux and burnt metal are included in the weld. Never get this type of weld to pass x-ray. By far the gas welding is the easiest to learn and will turn out a quality weld. HTH...........Terry

[sniffles]

thanks terry. im using 1 1/4" tubing. i think ill be just fine. thanks for your advice on tubing. i already have it so no point switching now.

[elvergon]

I had oxyacetilene classes, and practiced a lot on my backyard, and it would still flex. I attached one of my welds of my barstool. It´s the 7/8 pipe .125" attached to a 1/4 plate.

Yeah, sorry I didn´t told ya about the diameter of the tube. Here is a link so you can see more less what are the properties for the tubes you use.
http://www.engineersedge.com/section_properties_menu.shtml
You can compare that to the common 1x1x.125"

Hope that works for you...!
can´t wait to see you getting started

[sniffles]

alright cool what was the picture of? im slowly making progress ill be done probably by the end of january.

[elvergon]

Its kinda hard to describe, actually I wasn´t going to use bearing hangers. I was using sitting bearings (is that the way they´re called?) Heres a pic of what I was doing. Had to quit because the chassis was flexing and I ran out of funds =( that sucks.

Right now I´m doing a go kart which I will sell it to my dad. Hopefully if I can sell it, I could buy new steel for reasuming my offroad insane powered barstool (18 hp, 5 speed)

[RUBICON]

To Terry...Your reply was spoken with terms that expose your experience...at least to me..It brought back memories of times I cut out "tail rot" from Piper J3's and J4"s.....and gas welded very thin wall carbon steel tubing in its place...if anyone has ever looked at the engine mounting tubing and gas welded fitments on a Lycoming....you will see what real design is all about..they will withstand anything u give it ...but a shattered prop....i worked on one of those once...it was a pile of twisted tubing and canvas...looked like a broken kite.....come to think of it....it was little more than that when it ran....hah...and the inclusions....real welding terms....my dad was the lead engineer for NASA during the "GOOD TIMES" of the space program...and his specialty was development of hunderds of welding proceedures for every machine used in the program...from tig magnesium and titanium..to submerged arc for bulkhead "gore" sections...and electron beam...I used to see small weld samples embeded in plastic and polished for microscope and x-ray....the thinnest I have seen was heavy aluminum foil...ebeam welded...and the thickest was 30"...no filler....just pure...precise...penetration...no porosity..no inclusions.....as i wrote in a previous reply here.....his actual work is hanging in the National Air and Space Museum....and one is still on the moon...the the others burned up on re-entry....great stuff!!....thanks DAD!

[elvergon]

Hey rubicon, that´s really, really interesting. Would you mind sharing some of NASA´s secrets?? ;)

Maybe some techniques, for stick, what works best. And all that stuff.

I was also pretty interested in the cheaters. But doesn´t it hurts your eyes? I mean putting glases in front of yours, concentrates light rays into your eyes, and here were talking of a lot of light. Well that´s just what I think. Did he ever get any eyes problems? If not, what can I do to make my cheaters? ;)

[bm1]

I've built several Mini-Cup cars using 1 1/4" .065 for the whole cage area and driver compartment. Some of these cars have been upside down in excess of 80mph and some have slammed the wall pretty hard, and never had a failure other than bending somewhat. If you make a "ladder" frame, then you will get plenty of flex to a certain point with mild steel tubing. It will flex so far and stay there(bend), on the other hand if you use 4130, it has a memory and will flex and return to normal....but.....it's pretty pricey. It's all how you brace and gusset.

[RUBICON]

I don't remember the diopter of the cheaters. I have several ( kinda like the drawer that Fred Sanford used to pull out and try several to see which worked)...as to focusing "MORE" light into your eyes...no...no more that your eye's lense when normal...plus you have the protection of the flash lense plus darkening lense...I use a Speedglass 9000XL with the oversized lense...and yellow side lenses so I have some side vision...I used to have my dads eye cream....He used it once in a while....I used it a couple of times to....I used to have single vision flash glasses but I outgrew them....I just remove my regular progressives and use the hood with cheaters....need good focus when welding 1/4" SS tubing.....awfully small puddle to see.....

[Terry Skinner]

[QUOTE=RUBICON]when welding 1/4" SS tubing.....awfully small puddle to see..........

Any good welding supply house will have all kinds of "cheaters". Take your hood in and they will show how they go in and you can try them out before purchasing. I use a different lens/hood for stick or mig welding than I use for Tig welding. For acetylene welding/cutting I use a tinted face shield. It keeps the heat off your face, especially during the summer. And yes I have fixed the tailpost on a couple T-craft and Cubs. In fact In Alaska they snag the tailwheel so often that we didn't put the fabric back on the tailpost and the last triangle of the frame. Good memories.......Terry

[Guy]

Hey Terry, you in Alaska?

[Terry Skinner]

Hey Terry, you in Alaska?

No. That was a time long ago in a galaxy far away.........
Before going to Boeing flight test I worked for Alaska Airlines. Big ones for money, little ones for fun. Now we are retired to 5 acres south of Seattle/Tacoma and play with what ever is fun. Right now I want 3 or 4 barstools ready for the Roy (town) parade over the 4th. One for each grandchild.<G> Right now I am giving a lot of thought to a wheelie bar that would balance the BSR. Using a dif. and individual brakes on the rear I should be able to steer with the brakes. Would that be cool or what??........Terry

[RUBICON]

visualize this...first the diff you mentioned with disk brakes on both axle shafts...handlebar master cylinders on bothe sides....install a rear crossmember close to axle so it will not drag the pavement......install a 12" long hinged wheelie bar...hinge the front of the seat pad.....now install a rigid link from the wheelie bar (wheel end) to the rear of the seat pad.....when the front wheels come up the link pushes the seat level and shifts weight off the center of gravity and onto the rear wheelie wheels....helps keep the front up and seat level so you dont slide off......kinda like Shriner stuff....also you could build a small trailer with a stool and handlebar in it for someone to tag along....see my "Illegal ride on Daytona Beach video"...it has my trailer and stool....

[RUBICON]

Was remembering riding "crop dusters"...what we called the local puddle jumpers in Texas....and after watching a mechanic open the port engine nacelle and spray 5 galons of solivent with a garden sprayer and wipe with 3 armloads of rags...take a crescent wrench and tighten fittings....he came on board and walked to the back in coveralls and put a case of Rotunda in the overhead...we flew the hop as I watched a very small line of oil from th eport engine over the wing all the way....while I estimated how deceiving that small stream was at the speed we were flying and concluded it was a major leak and was being blown thin in the airstream....after exiting I watched from the gate as he poured all the oil he brought in it....what we do for a livin'!