dudes buying welders

[Gunter]

this is partly my own pet peeve,and partly a safety urging--
this week i am working on a TJ with a previously ripped off lower right control arm bracket on a d30. well the weld job failed on this one too.

if you are not of the metallurgical arts, and buy a welder, i cant urge you enough to please take a welding class. a proper welding class and you will be ahead of the game. i know a friend who lost a family member due to this sort of thing, please please be sure you know what you are doing. if you are unsure tack the parts in place and ask a more experienced welder / friend to burn it all in for ya.
and as for prep, buzz box or mig....you must grind the gunk off to clean metal on both surfaces. and weld as hot as you can with out burning through. learn to read your welds.

and all our differences aside, i dont want any of us to be injured or injure a family member with inadequate welds.

and for our more experienced welders, if a guy asks that is new to welding, be a stand up guy and help him out. it isnt always about money or parts. not that i have had any issues like that from here, so far all have been outstanding 'wheelers and good folks.
atriot:

 

[freerider15]

Blasphemy!

Iff'n you git a weldur ya don't neeed no fancy'pants class jes' BUZZ it thur right awn!

Practiz a fuw time n yull be az guud as gold to go!

 

[Hypoid]

It'll be OK! It just needs some more weld...

 

[Gunter]

OMG lmao

 

[NW-ZJ-SCOTT]

I'm in this catagory.. Never touched a welder.. Bought one and went to town..

It all Depends on the person. I've seen some ugly stuff from people that have owned and used a welder for 10 years..

 

[mako my day]

I enjoy strong boogie welds.

 

[Gunter]

very true i cant argue against that.

I'm in this catagory.. Never touched a welder.. Bought one and went to town..

It all Depends on the person. I've seen some ugly stuff from people that have owned and used a welder for 10 years..

 

[SolarBell]

I bought a 120V welder, took a one-day class, and have been practicing with it. I even cut my welds through with the bandsaw to see how my penetration is doing. Still not satisfied. (I realize a 120V isn't going to be amazing, but I want to see how good I can get it)

 

[xj-grin]

practice is important -- welding various scrap, and then cutting it to see what kind of penetration you get with what kind of heat/metal etc. is invaluable, and really the only way to learn to "read" what you're doing... my welds remain pretty ugly, but I've cut up enough of them to be fairly confident that I'm not just running a bead of steel caulk. Can't emphasize the importance of surface prep either...

 

[Gunter]

I bought a 120V welder, took a one-day class, and have been practicing with it. I even cut my welds through with the bandsaw to see how my penetration is doing. Still not satisfied. (I realize a 120V isn't going to be amazing, but I want to see how good I can get it)

a 120V with a quality extension cord/proper outlet (that wont choke down your current) will weld just about anything on a Jeep you will need. if you notice your arc starting good and dying back, your ciruit thta you plugged into is overloaded, or your extension cord is not up to the task. .023 wire is too small except perfect for autobody sheetmetal.
.030 is about right, i think .035 wire is too big for a 120V Mig.

 

[Gunter]

completely agree !!:us:

practice is important -- welding various scrap, and then cutting it to see what kind of penetration you get with what kind of heat/metal etc. is invaluable, and really the only way to learn to "read" what you're doing... my welds remain pretty ugly, but I've cut up enough of them to be fairly confident that I'm not just running a bead of steel caulk. Can't emphasize the importance of surface prep either...

 

[time2getdirty]

I can weld... its pretty fun.

 

[Gunter]

i know how to butt weld

 

[UnlimitedMatt]

I can't weld but I've seen it done.

 

[Gunter]

bwahahah you guys crack-eth me upeth

 

[Vanimal]

a 120V with a quality extension cord/proper outlet (that wont choke down your current) will weld just about anything on a Jeep you will need. if you notice your arc starting good and dying back, your ciruit thta you plugged into is overloaded, or your extension cord is not up to the task. .023 wire is too small except perfect for autobody sheetmetal.
.030 is about right, i think .035 wire is too big for a 120V Mig.

truth. i can only weld on a couple outlets in my shop. it makes a big difference.

 

[rockclimber]

I prefer Jb weld.

 

[Fred]

I have a hard time mixing it correctly.

 

[Gunter]

well i found some good stuff that might can help on youtube.
in my dreams my welds are like this man's!!

very awesome welds here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4RrDeUKcH4

 

[time2getdirty]

Those welds are pretty average. I will take some pictures tomorrow when I get my new tig running.