Question for those that do their own bodywork/welding

James

James

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Hi everybody,

I've recently (over the last 6 months) been teaching myself to weld, starting with an old stick welder and practicing on my crab and blackcod traps that need repair, and have moved on to a nicer Lincoln Mig and 18-20 gauge sheet metal. I've become comfortable, and have stripped my interior and am planning on ordering 4 new floor pans very soon.

This is probably a stupid question, but how do you guys keep from electrocuting yourself while crawling around in weird spots to make a weld? There is one spot on the firewall, right behind the exhaust manifold that I will patch, that looks particularly tricky.
 
From my limited welding experience I think the secondary voltage (welding electrode / material) is much lower than the voltage inside the welder itself and the there's more risk when the welder is on but you're not welding (open circuit). That said, I use a piece of wood to lay on when I'm in weird stops...

Dan
 
Personally, I worry more about burning myself than being shocked, never heard of someone getting shocked by their welder- I'm sure it can be done but if I haven't done it in all the years I've been burning through sheet metal I'm pretty sure you're safe :)
 
Don't touch the tip (where the wire comes out) and keep your fingers off the trigger while getting in position.
 
welding tips

When welding you generate heat – that heat will shrink the metal, so my tip is to do small 1-inch seam welds in different places around the steel you are putting in, even better is to use an airline and blow air over the weld to cool down as you go.
If I was to put in new floors – I would not seam weld it but plug weld it- you can buy a set of hand joggles that have a punch in it and that will enable you to punch lots of holes in the new section and then zap the holes with the mig (this sort of replicated the spot welds) – BUT you need to try a bit on the bench – if you don’t have it set right, and if you don’t zap it for a sufficient time the weld will not hold.
I use clecos to hold the panel in place and then just zap the small holes that the clecos leave.
You can get them off ebay…. Here is a picture of a Jaguar XK150 boot floor I have put in - showing the clecos and clamps
IMG_5097_zpshhjxmwkv.jpg

IMG_5094_zpsmv0xbv8h.jpg

You need to ensure that you get a good sung fit first and that you must spray a weld through zinc primer on the lapped joints that will be coved by the new steel, this will help reduce any rust starting… also you need to when spraying the car – ensure you use seam sealer on all the joints. – a good tip for applying the seam sealer is applying it using a Scoth pad – I could go on and on….

some pictures of plug welds on my VW camper
IMG_1377_zpsfbejga6o.jpg

Hope it helps
 
Marc, thank you so much for this info. I had not seen these cleco clamps before, but will order some.

Seems like I don't have to worry too much about shocking myself. Great.

James
 
You need a closed loop to get nailed. I worry more bout the location of the grounding clamp relative to me as I always know where the tip is.

Always been more about the welder settings for me, you and your Lincoln will get to know each other. Also have a spray bottle of cold water, the heat is conducted farther than you may think...ask me how I know.
 
bavbob said:
You need a closed loop to get nailed. I worry more bout the location of the grounding clamp relative to me as I always know where the tip is.

Always been more about the welder settings for me, you and your Lincoln will get to know each other. Also have a spray bottle of cold water, the heat is conducted farther than you may think...ask me how I know.
Click to expand...

I was surprised at the heat conduction myself while welding together a rebar trellis at my dad's house the other day. The bushes started steaming. Luckily its March and not September. Steam is better than smoke.

Thus far I have learned:

Leather gloves are good
Sandals and boardshorts are bad
Rebar is forgiving; 20 ga sheet metal not so much
Welding in the rain: exciting
Quit forgetting to turn on the gas
I have more rust than initially thought, but less bondo than expected
Blocking in your dad's fully functioning e9 with your currently torn apart e9 so he can't get out of the garage is good motivation to work on your project.
 
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