The Welding Thread

[BUDNUNTA]

I've had the oil in the strut tube cook out on me before

[pantelones]

I've had the oil in the strut tube cook out on me before

Either that (oil contamination from the weld penetration), or you may have had a gas problem. I was taking a welding test a few weeks ago, and had the gas cut out on the second half of a fillet. It looked like Styrofoam, or something out of this world... So, wind blowing the argon away, or poor flow/torch-angle can cause little pockets like that.




I got to play with a positioner and pulse the other day :D

20150831_121704 by Los Pantelones!, on Flickr

[marshallnoise]

Good lord those look nice.

[pantelones]

Good lord those look nice.

Thanks! I thought so too..

Believe it or not, I got kicked off welding these because I was slightly undercutting the points on the hex... And not because they would ever break, but if they did that's were the crack would start. (nut and puck are both threaded...) I think he thought they were cold because of the color, but in reality I use an auto darkening hood and the gas was flowing 100% from start to finish. He swears by the gold lens, and was lifting almost immediately so the weld would grey.

The guy is really particular and is a little hard to work with, but the shop and discounts are worth it... $30 compared to $110 for the same bottle of argon

[IronFreak]

Gold is your money shot, I'd question his knowledge on that......

[gkurey]

Any of you guys have experience welding Magnesium? I recently modified a pick up tube for an e34 oil pan I'm working on and I had to weld some...filler is $$$$$$$$$$ but other than that, welds a lot like aluminum, maybe even less fussy. I would say it was the first 'exotic' material I've dealt with.

[Eric]

E34 oil pans are mag?


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[gkurey]

E34 oil pans are mag?


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No, the pick up tube was though.

[Eric]

That's interesting, I wonder what the mystery filler was......I'm also wondering if you shouldn't do a cover pass with at none-mystery filler metal haha!

Skip to about the 8:30 point, jody talks about using er309L when you don't know what kind of metal you are using.

[mrsleeve]

Thanks! I thought so too..

Believe it or not, I got kicked off welding these because I was slightly undercutting the points on the hex... And not because they would ever break, but if they did that's were the crack would start. (nut and puck are both threaded...) I think he thought they were cold because of the color, but in reality

While from my knowledge yes if there was a crack to start it MIGHT start in a undercutting area...... the chances of that are very very minimal...... What are these for, if they are threaded together, then the weld is mostly for place keeping, and keeping the assembly as a whole, the thread interface is whats going to take 99% of the stress loading. Your going to to have to put a TON of torque on those to cause a crack even in a undercut area, they are likely to cause the stud to fail 1st before your weldment does

[pantelones]

Gold is your money shot, I'd question his knowledge on that......

I know the benefits... I'll probably use it for aluminum, but I like the auto-darkening hood for DC. I'm waiting to finish my exhaust before I stay after hours and practice aluminum.

While from my knowledge yes if there was a crack to start it MIGHT start in a undercutting area...... the chances of that are very very minimal...... What are these for, if they are threaded together, then the weld is mostly for place keeping, and keeping the assembly as a whole, the thread interface is whats going to take 99% of the stress loading. Your going to to have to put a TON of torque on those to cause a crack even in a undercut area, they are likely to cause the stud to fail 1st before your weldment does

Both have a 3/4" fine thread (TPI - ?), and will never see enough load to break, he just wants the corners built up more because they are getting zinc platted, and it would look better. I can't argue, nor care because it sounds like I can do other welding on the project, and maybe do it from my shop at home...

[IronFreak]

When I said gold, I was referring to the color of the weld, not the lens. I have been stashing for an auto dark, for precision stuff it's the way to go.

[marshallnoise]

My e30 project is dead, but I still have need of a welder with the e34 I bought. I need to do some seat repairs and decided that it was time to stop effing around and get a cheap, but decent MIG setup.

After doing plenty of research, I bought the Eastwood MIG 135 welder that is basically a clone of the Lincoln SP-135 Plus. For as little welding as I ever intend on doing, this should serve my house well for many, many years. Theoretically, all parts and consumables are whatever the standard is in the industry.

Paid $302 shipped for it and comes with regulator, .023 wire, tips and all that jazz. Just need a cart and some gas.

My first project will be repairing my e34's seat. Someone managed to rip off the arms of the power sport seat that help it raise and lower. When I am done, I will post pics.

[Eric]

round 2 on the struts, this time with chopping the tops off, removing the first try + an inch or so of tube, welding them back together, then grinding that down so the GC supplied support rings can slide on the tube. Also added M3 sway bar attachment tabs.

Untitled by ericandshovin, on Flickr

Untitled by ericandshovin, on Flickr


quick and dirty paint job...
Untitled by ericandshovin, on Flickr

Untitled by ericandshovin, on Flickr

Untitled by ericandshovin, on Flickr

[IronFreak]

I'll have to get some closer pictures of the welds but this is how my trunk is coming along.