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Old 22nd November 2009, 07:52 PM
ACE HIGH ACE HIGH is offline
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Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Mangawhai New Zealand
Posts: 69
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Thanks Enoch and Johan.Johan will try the alloy rods.
Some more tips;
If you have an air compressor buy a needle scaler,looks like a pistol with about 12 x 3mm high tensile rods makes a hell of a noise and rattles away getting rid of slag real quick,a miracle in the corners of say angle iron at (90) degrees,will be real useful for MIG welding also as it gets into the corners for getting rid of rust ,great tool ,about $100 NZ.
And while you are at it get an air riveter,great tools,about $100 NZ for a Chinese one,I would pay extra for a name brand about $200 NZ.
And also a Bosch top of the line jigsaw with genuine Bosch blades,then you will never need a gas set again except for!;
next purchase! A LPG propane gas set around $500 NZ with a BBQ bottle $45 NZ (much cheaper if you allready have a gas set,just buy tips)from your local big box shop,you will never need to hire another bottle.
Now I know I have just spent a lot of your money for you,
BUT you never paid $2000 NZ to buy a quality MIG set,no need to shag around with bottles and hireage and cost of gas and you now have some good tools to really speed things along.
Arc welding these tubes will always be strong enough,your main problem will be blowing through,you will soon sense when this will happen,your auto helmet will allow you to stop/start and the weld will look a bit like a oxy/acetelene weld if its not one of your best efforts,so,grind/wire brush it and go over(vertical down again ) to tidy it up.
Always start the rod on the earth and immediately go straight to the work so you start up with a "hot rod",also learn the technique of "starting both ends and meeting in the middle',and avoiding burning out the ends when finishing(common MIG fault also.)
Now time to rattle the bags of popcorn!!! (Stir,stir)
MIGs main advantage is that unskilled workers could be employed to mass produce cheap high volume products that could be sold quickly before the shiny paint fell off and the warranty ran out.
The above comment IS NOT directed at those on this Forum or anywhere else who run quality reputable businesses,MIG is clearly the best system for you to use.
Try building a 30/40 foot yacht/launch out in the rain and wind with MIG,you will soon find that old fashioned arc welding is not so obsolete after all.
And for the member who is using the "globular transfer method at home",probably not a good idea to hold your breath using that technique as you may well implode and blow your brains out! Dont try that at home folks! David
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