Over the years, Carl Heideman and his crew have taught hundreds of people to weld at his hands-on workshops at Eclectic Motorworks. We asked him to share with us his recommended best practices for executing clean, perfect welds every time. The welds in this story were performed by 15-year-old Jack Heideman.
We’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly, …
Good article. The ‘you can’t see, you can’t weld’ part though probably should have said you can’t “learn” to weld. My next door neighbor is a professional fabricator. I’ve seen him lay down a stack of dimes by staring at it for a few seconds, turning his head away, and pulling the trigger. No helmet involved. LOL.
Yeah, I try to do those things. I think one other part is "how often do you do it?" Like many thing, if you only do it once a month or every couple months, it takes a while to get it all back "into the groove" of doing it right. I built the roll cage in my rally car (for the most part) and it's pretty noticeable as to which welds were done early in the cage built and which were later in the build (they're all sufficiently strong welds, but later ones are much, much prettier).
Next time I need to make sure to do the early welds in places that people can't see as well, rather than in the most visible places lol.
I'm a big fan of weld.com's YouTube channel. They have a ton of instructional videos on how to be better welder that feel like you're sitting in a class at the vocational school. I highly recommend it if you're like me in that you are an ok entry level welder and want to step up your knowledge and understanding.
In reply to gearheadmb :
weldingtipsandtricks.com is my favorite, but weld.com is a not-distant second.
In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :
Thanks for the link (and the thermal insulation you left outside my condo door (in Toledo) about 100 years ago)!
randy
In reply to Randy_Forbes :
LOL I saw your name as latest poster on this and thought "isn't that the guy in Toledo with an AH3000?"
I need to know more about the GT40 in the picture.
Great article, have to start with the basics.
And if your one of the ppl. who doesn't work year round (myself) and is getting back to it as the weather breaks. Few items I encountered over the last few weeks:
Clean and check that Mask. Clean the glass and give the sweat band its tri-annual washing. Hit that Test Button before your start and check those batteries - of course. But remember the Grind / Weld Mode Switch. Or, after your start your first bead and go half blind cause you left your helmet in Grind Mode last year. Wild guess who did that one...
This one important if other ppl. use your equipment.
Check those consumables. Read the Label on the Wire and check your Gas. That tank of C25 you know is full, runs out after the first 3 minutes. Your son has no idea how the tank is empty but that hole in his floor is no longer an issue.
@slowbird https://drivetribe.com/p/a-legendary-gt40-replica-best-of-OIkPWaieRYGkPeJ5WHmSVA
It's a replica, but I, for one, don't care.
Tips on setting the heat and speed would also be helpful. Sometimes I find it hard to get just right.
Recently I've been doing some stuff requiring funky positioning with not great lighting, and I'm really thinking about trying to rig up some sort of pen light that clips directly on the torch behind the nozzle. If anyone has done that, or has any ideas, I'm all ears...
OnTheChip said:Tips on setting the heat and speed would also be helpful. Sometimes I find it hard to get just right.
I like to work backwards from that, assuming you're talking about MIG. It is all about heat management of the materials you are welding to. The goal of welding is to make a puddle of metal that "wicks" into the two pieces you're trying to weld together, and add to that puddle. So you need enough speed to keep the puddle going, but not so much speed that you're just laying a bead on TOP of the metal instead of INTO the metal. Current follows from that... obviously if you're burning through, you're putting too much heat into the metal, so you either need to tone down the heat, or you need to pay attention and only weld for 2-5 seconds at a time, let the heat dissipate, weld a little more, etc. Butt welding stainless will really teach you this as stainless transfers heat very poorly, so all the heat you are putting into the weld will just sort of stay there until you burn through, but you still need a good amount of heat in order to get decent penetration.
It'd be nice if there were an easy rote checklist, but given all the different metal thicknesses, it becomes more of a feel thing that you just have to learn. Especially if you are welding, say, a thin triangle onto a plate. The thin triangle will need a certain amount of heat, but as you get close to the point, you're just going to blow it away unless you pause and give it a moment.
In reply to NorseDave :
I've tried several aux lightings...
Current works well. 3 HF headlamps, screwed to helmet.
Upgrade will be the switch to the 18650 battery...same run time, much lighter.
Also, don't underestimate the scatter from old lens / shield, worse with the uv light from welding. Splurge for new ones often.
To anyone over 40 you, may need glasses if welding close up, I was surprised how much better I could when I could see.
I've spent a little time welding... Here's a few tips I've got for anyone starting out.
1. Select the Correct Process - Each of the processes have their own upsides and downsides. It's expensive and slow to Gas-Tungsten Arc Weld. Gas-Metal Arc Welders or wire-feeders are cheap, and usually they'll do about any material a TIG setup will, and they're simple to learn to use. Your inner-shielded wires or what I call 'trash wire' do not require a shielding gas. They're rough, usually burn through oil and dirt, but hold up fairly well if you take the time to actually clean off the oil and dirt. The mining and construction industries almost exclusively use outer-shielded wire or 'dual-shield'. These fillers will require the use of a shielding gas, but it's pretty hard to beat this stuff. Shielded Metal Arc Welding or stick welding is by far my favorite. None of the other processes are quite as flexible as this one. It teaches all of the core fundamentals needed, other than adding filler with your off-hand. If you're going to shoot just for tig welding, try an oxy-acetylene rig out. Never hurts to have it around to warm up cold stuff and to cut apart the stuff you need to re-do. Look into scarf tips if you need to delete welds. It's a lot easier than a grinder, and you could also learn how to braze! Plasma cutters are the bee's knees, but this setup is a lot cheaper, the consumables have a been around a lot longer, and it doesn't require electricity or an air compressor.
2. RESEARCH and PLAN - There's a million ways to Sunday to weld up pretty much any material that conducts electricity. Someone, somewhere has already done it, and now you're about to. Take a second and make sure you've got everything you need to do so correctly. Gas metal arc welding - typically your wire fed weld processes - can get extremely frustrating because of something simple you've probably overlooked or maybe a it's a worn out consumable. Probably why you got the machine for cheap off of marketplace, right? Try and be aware of all the variables that come into hand, and be safe. If you're at home, alone, don't put yourself in a position that you can't also get out of on your own. THINK about what you're going to do before you do it. Write it down if you're one of those visual guys like me. Google what you gotta, but build your own idea out of information you find. One grain of salt at a time. Just because it worked for them doesn't mean it'll be exactly the same for you.
3. PREP - Measure twice, cut three times, right? Whatever it is, clean it up before you weld it. Some people are picky about mill scale, that's the blueish-gray you see on any of your hot rolled steels. It can be ground off if you want, but let's try and get the boogers off first. This surely isn't code work. Use a rag or pressure wash off the dirt and grease. Try and get down to the mill scale, but also grind off any paints and rust in the weld area. Remember - things tend to heat up while you're melting them. Greases and some of your paints turn into liquid and spicey smoke pretty quick. You don't want that stuff adding itself to your weld puddle. Or dripping on your Sketchers. IDK. Strike an arc or two on some of the pieces you cut too short. You deserve the practice.
4. Get COMFORTABLE - Situate yourself in a position that isn't causing strain. Prop up on a chock block, use a roll of paper towels to rest your head on. Any of those 'pros' welding up headers or charge air coolers are always using something to rest their arms and hands on. The more support you have, the easier it is to maintain consistent arc length, travel angle, and in general concentrate on the actual weld. Not how your wrist is uncontrollably shaking. Practice a few runs before you strike an arc. Make sure you're able to maintain comfort throughout the pass. Ergonomics is a big word for me, but it sure helps at the end of the day.
5. Weld the dang thing - Don't be scared. Realistically, forward movement is better than no movement. If you don't do it, you ain't gonna learn and whatever it is isn't getting done. LET'S GO. Quit over-thinking it and shoot your shot. Here's where you find out you forgot to turn the shielding gas back on two inches into the weld. Grinding sucks, that's why you get better at welding. I also promise you that if it doesn't seem like it's welding right it probably isn't. You can't just bull-head through it. I mean you can, but you ain't learning anything unless you sit back and re-evaluate the situation. Did you get the machine back to the right polarity after you stick welded? Wait, I think it might be the 30 mph wind storm I'm standing in that's blowing away my shielding gas.
Oh, and one last thing. All of the processes prefer a push or pull travel angle. Usually 15* or so is the standard, but I'm not gonna stand there holding a protractor while you weld. Get square with weldment. Stick is usually the only process I'll catch myself 'dragging' if the work piece is flat. Otherwise, your wires usually prefer straight to a slight push. if you get too crazy either direction you'll get a piled up weld or the crazy berries will be shooting outta the puddle. Don't try to catch them. They're hot. They also like to burn right through the tongue of your Sketchers. Hopefully you thought about that and put on some sort of leather shoes, and those safety glasses you never wear. They actually block like 99% of the UV light coming off of the arc. That light from the arc bounces off of shiny surfaces in your garage and right back into your hood. No one wants sunburned eyes.
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