Rusted from the inside out - Subaru

More of an art than a science - discuss metalworking and welding here.



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PostPosted: Tue Mar 05, 2019 4:00 pm
Doright wrote:Hows the Practicing going?


I finally got my dagger tools torch kit on Saturday. I'm actually pretty pissed with them and how long it took them to get it to me. I placed the order like 2 Tuesdays ago. I got a confirmation email right away. Then nothing. I thought I'd be practicing my welding 2 wknds ago... I followed up with Craig on Monday and he said they were waiting on torch handles from their supplier. Well, why would you have it listed for sale then without notifying the customer? I emailed him Wednesday morning stressing that if I don't get it by the wknd, I won't get to use it until 2 weeks later. He let me know that I'd get it by sat if it went out on thursday. I contemplated returning it when USPS showed they were still waiting to receive the package on Friday. The kit arrived at like 6 pm sat... About 7 hours after I left my apt to go to my garage (2 hrs north) .
I Decided to keep it because I don't feel like going through the hassle of returning it and piecing everything together on my own.
I spent $400 on it with shipping. That's a good bit of cash to have to wait around on the vendor. Slow service like this irks me.

I spent my wknd making a cutout in the side of a log and beating on metal that I strapped to it in order to form that patch that I was stuck on 2 wknds ago. I should have snapped some pics. It developed two huge wrinkles/tucks that I decided to try and planish on a dolly that I locked into my vise. I know when u get a open ended tuck in a piece of metal, your suppose to lock it in by tapping the open end of the tuck. Then planish it from the inside out. In my case, the tuck/wrinkle was in the middle of the metal. So I didn't know where to planish. So I just hammered away.
I fitted the piece onto the car. It was WAY off. So I decided I'd abandon trying to make a compound curved piece and make the patch with 2 pieces metal instead. Sunday Dinner time quickly approached so I had to call it quits. ... It was pretty fun experimenting with the sheet metal but I didn't accomplish much. All wknd spent on a couple square inch patch and it's still not done.
I'll feel better when I've got some patches welded in. Actually on the car permanently in place. I know I'm literally months from that. But I'm looking forward to learning the skill of welding. Hopefully it's not super frustrating.



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PostPosted: Wed Mar 06, 2019 10:45 am
Learning to Gas weld is super frustrating! in the begining But persistence pays off in the long run. Just be prepared to make a lot of scrap before you are able to make nice welds.
Don't be discouraged by failure or ugly welds.
Don't expect it to come easily most pick it up with about 40 hours of practice.
It took me every bit of 40 hrs a solid week 8 hr a day practicing every day before I was able to make a quality welds in Lap joints, Butt joints and T joints with flat stock before I started Tube joints for my aircraft certification.

Sorry you had a Bad experience with the drop shipper far to many on the internet.
Its not always their fault but their supplier.

Making compound shapes in sheet metal is advanced stuff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QK-vdlTvBHI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7T2rWu9NZk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_cont ... GQ7JKpMIs0

Wray is a True Master watch all the parts to those vids
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.



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PostPosted: Thu Mar 07, 2019 5:45 pm
Unfortunately I only have the weekends to practice welding. Do you have any videos that you recommend I check out for setting up the flame of the torch? From talking with craig and from a couple videos you sent, I understand that you should make it hot enough to create a puddle in 2-3 seconds. Any slower and you will want to make it hotter. And vice versa. But knowing how small to make the core blue flame will be nice.

Dagger Tools seems like a very legit organization that does more than sell tools. They have weekend welding classes for newbs like me to get our feet in. If I was smart, I'd probably go to one before doing it on my own. The kit is nice since it takes the homework out of piecing together a whole kit. Other than Tinmantech's meco kit, and the miller/smith kit, I haven't found another such kit. But I was let down when it took almost 2 weeks for the kit to come in. In that time, I may have been able to piece one together on my own for less $. Rant done.

The first vid you linked to was for creating the complex geometry I was going for and was the inspiration for my log... but without more info on how he got it into the general form in the first place, I was left experimenting on my own. I think i missed part of the necessary technique which was to go around and bring the tuck in towards the middle where you would eventually have it smoothed out. This stuff is really neat IMHO, but since I'm just making patches for holes and not trying to make something that looks good, I need to focus on keeping it simple and functional.

When you were practicing welding, did you have your laptop handy for going back to videos every now and then in order to observe technique?



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PostPosted: Fri Mar 08, 2019 12:24 am
[quote="AgentH"] Do you have any videos that you recommend I check out for setting up the flame of the torch?

I already posted it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0uHBCkics8
Pay attention at 19 min into video on to learn how to adjust a Neutral flame and Carbonizing flame. Mainly pay attention to the Neutral flame for now.
This and its follow up video are excellent Gas welding training videos.
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.



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Posts: 6217
Joined: Tue Sep 16, 2008 1:17 pm
Location: Pahrump NV.
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 08, 2019 12:28 am
AgentH wrote:The first vid you linked to was for creating the complex geometry I was going for and was the inspiration for my log... but without more info on how he got it into the general form in the first place, I was left experimenting on my own. I think i missed part of the necessary technique which was to go around and bring the tuck in towards the middle where you would eventually have it smoothed out. This stuff is really neat IMHO, but since I'm just making patches for holes and not trying to make something that looks good, I need to focus on keeping it simple and functional.


As I said before Reverse curves or compound curves is pretty complex stuff for the beginner.
Practice the easy stuff first. I also suggested buying Patch panels or parts from a rust free wreck out of wrecking yard.
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.



Top Contributor
Posts: 6217
Joined: Tue Sep 16, 2008 1:17 pm
Location: Pahrump NV.
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 08, 2019 12:36 am
AgentH wrote:When you were practicing welding, did you have your laptop handy for going back to videos every now and then in order to observe technique?

:rotfl: No Lap tops weren't really around yet when I learned gas welding :rotfl:

No I got to learn by watching dear old dad who taught me the basics and I got official training in A&P school basically watching the same training video I posted a link too except I watched it in a class room before going out to the Welding shop to practice.
That was a very very long time ago.

Small Aircraft Like Piper Cubs have a Steel Tube frame welded by Gas welding covered with Fabric, Cotton Back in the day but They Use Dacron or Ceconite now.
Any way to become an A&P you have to be certified to repair the Tube frames this means I had to learn how to repair them to be an A&P mechanic so I learned and became certified.
Gas welding Thinner materials like auto body skins just required more practice to master it no problem.
Dennis B.
A&P Mechanic, FCC General radio Telephone Operator
Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.
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