both mig and tig will charge your helmet. my miller has a solar charged battery, but the damn thing just went out. i thoughr it would be an easy swap, but miller soldered in the battery in my style helmet. the style of battery was a PAIN to find locally, so the soldering was the easiest part of the fix.

i'll bite on the questions.... how cleanly do welds need to be finished to be considered "good"? i know some guys can make them dissapear and i used to grind and sand until they did, but i always ended up with the paper thin metal. now, if i try to just get them smooth and there are imperfections, they stay to retain the metal thickness.

case in point; i welded up the joints between the trunk filler panel and quarters today. this was a pretty big seam with both pieces radiused/rolling into the joint even though the flanges were tight(hard to explain but some may understand). my normal series of tacks left me with a weld that was proud in the center but just slightly recessed on the outsides since i was concerned about already putting in more heat than normal due to the amount needing filled. once finished about 50% of the weld is clean and finished, but its not as clean as i would like.

what else can be done now? what else could i have done while welding? i dont want a second pass as i know it will clean up with a skim coat of filler. would the pros be concerned at this point? do your welds always finish perfect or is good acceptable? how often can you make a repair invisible?

That's been my issue as well. In the pic I posted, I could make the weld disappear. I just don't want to thin the parent metal. Glaze will easily cover the small depression. Is this considered acceptable practice? In my mind, I would prefer that to aluminum foil in areas. Any comments?

You don't ever want to leave the part or panel structurally unsound. That's form over function, and doesn't belong on an automobile. As soon as my grinder/sander hits parent metal beside the weld, I quit grinding or sanding. If there is some slight low spot/crater from welding, I leave it for filler, weld again to fill the crater, or paint it. It all depends on the location, material, and function.

jp

That's exactly what my opinion is. I am even unwilling in some cases to come back and add more weld to some low spots because I don't want to add more heat. I have been considering using some silicon bronze filler wire to fix these little imperfections. Uses a little less heat and finishes more easily. Although I would never use it for structural work. Thanks for confirming my thoughts John.

I have been watching www.weldingtipsandtricks.com

You can find him on youtube too

There is alot of videos of how to weld different kind of stuff

Guy really knows what hes talking about.

,Juhani

i posted this in my build thread, but figured i would ask here as well....

i picked up my new door shells and am acutally impressed with the rear fit of the drivers side so far (still a lot to go). the gap is really consistent and the profile matches the quarter well. i was prepared to weld an 1/8th" round rod to the edge of the door to assist in working the gap, but found that i only need to take off a little in one area (.030 over about 4"). so, would you prefer to weld a rod the entire length of the door, or just remove some material? doing so will likely split the skin, but i can either mig or tig it back closed and then file to fit.

which would you prefer?

i do have to weld a rod to the bottom. the gap is a little too wide (~.320), although very consistent since its within .015 front to back.

also, what do you guys do to build an edge up to get panels to flow better across the gap (height not width)? would you rather build with a weld bead of tacks, weld a rod or do the work with filler?

So..........this is my first attempt at welding sheetmetal. Hopefully the pro's will provide some constructive criticism that myself and others can learn from.

I'm practicing on 18 ga using a Lincoln 135sp with .023 wire and C25. I suspended the pieces off the table and gapped slightly with the magnets. Tacked extreme left then right, blotted with a damp towel, hammered them down a little, then repeated the procedure the center, then split the gaps 2 tacks at a time.

After a little hammering the piece is relatively flat at this stage. I'm thinking (guessing) :rolleyes: there is too much wire on top and not enough penetration but the heat looks close.

Rookie work bench
http://sieg.smugmug.com/Cars/Welding...20_xzDyD-L.jpg

Top
http://sieg.smugmug.com/Cars/Welding...68_zz5bh-L.jpg

Back
http://sieg.smugmug.com/Cars/Welding...35_nojBw-L.jpg

Input is much appreciated. :cheers:

You need a little more heat, the bead is just setting on the metal. Not enough penetration on the back side. DeWayne

Yep -- lacking a little heat... shorten your stick out... and hold for just a teenie tiny bit longer... for the penetration.