Project The Austin 2dr 1100 story - Part IV - Now in sharleys hands

[Tickman]

It appears to be sitting on the panel.

Can you tweak your settings to either bump up the power or trim down the wire feed?

 

 

That is my best guess from here.

[SiC]

Had the machine set to 0.9mm material. I think it's 1mm all round.

[Geep]

Looks too cold to me. I didn't know until seeing the welding thread that you had a fancy machine rather than the normal type of welding machine most have/use. You need to up the power setting on that whatever that option is on yours. 

[SiC]

This is after grinding off some material.

[Geep]

More power, wire speed adjusts with settings on that, doesn't it? It's still too cold, ground or not. Are you using both hands to weld, one holding torch and the other guiding tip? That helps and watch the weld pool, should overlap each time with the dot welding. 

[SiC]

Tried putting some beads down on top. Up the material thickness a tad. I expect this to put more power down?

Top

Bottom

[Geep]

Better, would say a little less wire speed then it's just practise to get consistency. Treat each weld dot as if it's a tack then move and do another a bit further away then go back and overlap the next one you do and so on. Sometimes you can keep going for a short run by doing a weld dot, wait to cool then another as you see the glow subside of the first one, overlapping it slightly, then wait and another rather than going back to it. More crucial on large flat panel of doing one then moving on rather than doing a few in succession.. 

[vulgalour]

Second pass looks loads better.  For a very first attempt ever, this is looking pretty good.

[Rusty_Rocket]

Second pass looks loads better.  For a very first attempt ever, this is looking pretty good.

 

This ^

For a first go with old rusty metal, you're doing very well.  A lot harder on the car, isn't it!  Just remember, the more you put on, the more you have to grind off (the most laborious task of the whole operation, imo)

[SiC]

I've got bloody pigeons nesting in my sills again.

 

After a bit of grinding to take the top off (actually got fed up of grinding)

 

The other side has a beam across, so not easy to see. Trying to stick my camera and torch into an appropriate angle shows this.

 

 

 

Looks like it has mostly got through. Even if not brilliantly. This wasn't a proper butt weld either as the piece was only partially flat. Some was a lip over.

 

This bit looks like it's incredibly thin and no doubt I'm about to blow holes in here. I'm also on my back for added fun.

[Guest Hooli]

Enjoy the splatter as it goes in your ears/burns into your scalp. It's lovely*

[SiC]

That picture of post grind didn't come out too well as it looked there were holes. Here is another.

[SiC]

Enjoy the splatter as it goes in your ears/burns into your scalp. It's lovely*

I've got my welding hood on which had stopped it! Been wearing it while grinding too.

 

Grinding is definitely the worst bit. I need some grinding discs too as it's wearing out my flap discs really quickly. Doesn't help I've put loads of material down either.

[Guest Hooli]

I forgot you had a hood. The one car I welded up I did using a handheld mask which really wasn't ideal.

[SiC]

Luckily kit has moved on a fair bit in recent years.

 

Let's see how many holes I blow into this bit...

[richardthestag]

forget grinding disks, 1980s technology

 

move your ass on down to the local screwfix and get some of these.

 

https://www.screwfix.com/c/tools/flap-discs/cat8570013

 

remove guard from grinder, add visor to face guard and dont be too aggressive as these fuckers will eat through the steel you have welded

[SiC]

Post grind of that bit. Red is a reflection of my suit.

 

Other side

 

Another angle

[SiC]

forget grinding disks, 1980s technology

 

move your ass on down to the local screwfix and get some of these.

 

https://www.screwfix.com/c/tools/flap-discs/cat8570013

 

remove guard from grinder, add visor to face guard and dont be too aggressive as these fuckers will eat through the steel you have welded

I'm using those at the moment. Well Toolstation equivalent.

 

I thought grinding discs were more aggressive?

[richardthestag]

oh and I know folk who have been welding for decades and cannot lay down a seam on old to new steel

 

so dont fret

 

tag weld at 3inch intervals and then when done bridge at 1.5inch intervals and when cool seam between the tags but leave it to cool while you go. 

 

then flap disc the arse out of it.

[vulgalour]

I wish my first attempts had gone this well.  In fact, I wish some of my current attempts went this well.

 

Grinding discs are a chore once you've discovered flapdisks.  You can get a lot of life out a flapdisk too because as it wears down it effectively behaves like finer grade paper which can be useful if you don't want to take so much off.  They don't grab, they don't skip, and they don't make anywhere near as much hot sparky mess.  You'll generally spend less time to get through the same amount of metal with them too, which seems counterintuitive given that they're just flaps of sandpaper rather than a hard abrasive disc.  I cannot recommend flapwheels highly enough and owe a beverage to whoever it was that recommended them to me in the first place.

[richardthestag]

I'm using those at the moment. Well Toolstation equivalent.

 

I thought grinding discs were more aggressive?

 

no! grinding disks depend on where the edge touches the surface.

 

flap discs are way more flexible and clean faster and more effectively. you can see thin steel start to glow if you go mad with a flapdisc 

[Guest Hooli]

I'm changing my earlier comment too. That's much better than my first attempts.

[Geep]

That's looking better SIC. The more you do, the easier it gets as you get more used to the machine and welding in general. 

[louiepj]

All my welding looks similar too this when welding onto old/rusty metal and I am sure I have level 2 nvq or City and guilds certificates somewhere from a course I had to do in welding and fabrication.

I find this helps my welds look good:

[junkyarddog]

 

remove guard from grinder,

Ignore this piece of advice.

 

Never ever use a grinder without it's guard.

 

Even a flap disc will inflict a serious injury.

 

I'm not a huge one for health and safety bollocks,but an angle grinder is a dangerous tool.

[vulgalour]

Agreed.  Guard doesn't get in the way for 99% of jobs and the 1% it does is usually in a place that's covered up with trim anyway so doesn't matter.

[SiC]

The new grinder has a much smaller guard and so doesn't get in the way so much. As someone who is accident prone and has been to A&E far too many times, I'm super cautious working on and around cars. Especially as this is a hobby and my day job requires me to see a computer screen while using my fingers to type. I can't risk hurting myself while doing my hobbies as if I get hurt badly, I'll be out of a job.

 

There has been a few times where I've needed to remove the guard though to get it into tight places. Doing so I wear my MIG welding gauntlets incase something flicks off. I did get something fly into my chest the other day with the guard off. I think it was a chunk of metal coming loose. Didn't half hurt!

[SiC]

Got that metal plate in now. I know I'm slow but I hoped to have got more done than that! But then it's my first go doing this and it was a bit of an awkward piece to get in.

 

I remembered one of the things Davenumbers said on the welding thread was that when his welding started going crap, he found it was time to change the tip. Not sure if it's just practice or changing the tip and shroud, but between the first weld and the runs after, I changed those bits. I think when I started out, I had the nozzle a bit too close to the work piece.

 

Will need to think about getting more gas soon. Nearly through half the bottle already! Admittedly not helped by me having the regulator too high to start with. Plenty of wire left on that 5kg reel though...

[purplebargeken]

It takes time to fine tune the process, once you have it spot on it will all flow much more smoothly. 

[vulgalour]

Slow is good.  Welding is not a job to be rushed and your results are really good as a newbie welding outdoors.  I cannot overstate how satisfying it is to see you sticking new metal in, especially so since you've not exactly gone for the easiest first patch what with the need to weld upside down and around that bracket and to thin metal.  You're doing better than maybe you realise.