Out standing ! Thanks for the education. Fantastic metal smithing !
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Out standing ! Thanks for the education. Fantastic metal smithing !
I really am wondering how that ton of bare steel isn't developing surface rust? Did you treat it with something, or is your shop climate controlled to near zero humidity?
It's got some starting where I've leaned on it, but typically in the summer the AC is on just a couple degrees cooler than outside, enough to keep the humidity under control.....
That makes it more pleasant working too.
Yes, much!
Doesn't look like much progress but got more grinding done on the quarter panel seams, a little over 6' of weld length done. Here's where the stainless rated cutoff wheels work so well. When I was using the cheap discs (the brown cloud makers) this much weld would have taken well over two discs to grind. One stainless rated disc did this amount, and diameter went from 3" to 2-1/2, so still have quite a bit left in it..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture940.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture941.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture943.jpg
new disc
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture944.jpg
after tonight's grinding
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture945.jpg
So despite how appealing those cheap cutoff wheels may be to those on a tight budget, cheap ain't always cheap. The stainless rated wheels are the only ones I buy anymore, money ahead.
Here's the weld grinding process...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2WHT_zMOE8
Thanks for that link! It'd be cool to have a metal work sticky on thiss forum with all of your great links! I used a regular cheap o cut off wheel to cut off a stud on a freightliner last night. I barely got through it enough to break it off with a hammer because the wheel went away so fast!
Got my parts store getting me some Found them on ebay at $2.00 each
A slight diversion from the norm, but thought this may help pass on some insight in some shrinking.
Have been swamped at the day job and a couple of rentals in need of repairs, so not much time in the shop. I did have some kitchen issues to resolve and thought that it was the perfect place for some metal shaping. :LOL:
Here's the background, kitchen layout was less than ideal, I guess they were fine until the knobs were installed....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture948.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture949.jpg
Removing the knob, we have much more access to the adjacent drawer. I had looked for similar knobs in recessed form, and could not find much available, or that would match and use existing hole. Placing the knob on top of the drawer face, it looks like a recessed offset would resolve the issue..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture950.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture951.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture952.jpg
Cut out some blanks and used a sharpie and the lathe to mark a good circle for trimming.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture955.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture956.jpg
The snips work much better with less distortion when the trimmed amount is limited to 1/4 width, so a couple trims and then we can trim to the line..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture959.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture961.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture963.jpg
Reinstalled onto the lathe-sharpie tool, the outer diameter is marked on both sides. This diameter provides a good flat for the knob.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture969.jpg
I haven't had much time in the shop to make new tools, and one of Captain Kirk's version of tucking forks is on the list. So I resorted to the vise grip tucking pliers. These tend to be more effective using heat on the tucks, so off I go..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture973.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture975.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture977.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture979.jpg
Repeated shrinking effort and checked knob offset...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture984.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture985.jpg
Measured off about half the distance and added another bend line to bring the diameter in a bit...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture995.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture987.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture988.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture989.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture990.jpg
Finished and media blasted...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture997.jpg
Drawer face hole opened considerably and as the recessed "cup" protrudes through the back side, a stepped washer was made for the inside of the drawer.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture999.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1000.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1001.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1002.jpg
This looks like it will work!
Very clever!:D
I found this thread a while back. It has been a major inspiration for the work on my 1955 Ranch Wagon. The Ranch Wagon is Ford's version of the Nomad and mine has all the same issues. I have replaced the floor and tunnel from under the rear seat forward and the inner and outer rockers. I am working on the right side quarter panels and have the front mostly done. I used your technique for fitting and was able to TIG fuse weld much of the right front horizontal seam. The rest was migged per your technique. I made the copper backup with the magnet on it. Mine work will never equal yours, but with your help, this project is coming out better than the previous ones. Just wanted to say thank you.
DJ, well here's some more inspiration for you. (not my work) Was a local car here until the guy passed away, I believe his daughter in FL now has it.
Glad to hear the pointers are helping out!
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...c/MVC-014S.jpg
Still practicing at the Tig fusion welding, did another "test" piece last night to try and work out some bugs.
To review my previous attempt:
Quote:
Some practice at fusion welding using the Tig while at Gatormeet, here's the front showing some slight undercutting..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture892.jpg
The rear side shows some good weld penetration in some areas and needs more practice in others..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture891.jpg
Just to show that slight undercutting on fusion welding was not an issue in the joint's strength, the seam was clamped in the apron brake and bent to 135 degrees, with no detriment to the weld..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture895.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture901.jpg
When using the Tig torch on that pass, I had set the amperage, mashed the pedal, and used the speed of the pass to control the heat. The slight undercut in the center is likely due to the fact that I made a straight run from one end to the other. I wanted to try this again, giving the torch a circular motion to see if it helped. Here's our sample pieces..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1003.jpg
For tacking purposes, I set the electrode depth so it was just sticking out past the cup. The electrode is fairly easy to position using this method, drag it side to side and it will find the exact joint between the two pieces. Then rotate the torch backwards just enough for the cup to pick up the electrode off the metal, and give the pedal a quick push. These "tacks" were about 1/2 second in duration, amps set at 82. This shows the front:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1004.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1005.jpg
And the rear side weld penetration:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1006.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1007.jpg
For the weld pass, the sample is raised above the "table" to simulate welding the panels on a car in free air...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1008.jpg
In order to maintain consistency for the test, the cup is modified so as to use it as a "glide" (think plasma cutter guide) and the electrode is now moved just inside the low point on the cup. This should hold our electrode height exactly the same, to limit one of the walking, talking, chewing gum factors.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1009.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1011.jpg
This was welded using a circular motion with the torch while making the pass:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1012.jpg
Rear shows some undercutting
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1013.jpg
Planishing to bring the weld proud down flush with the front surface
Front:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1015.jpg
Rear:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1014.jpg
Now to test the weld to see how structurally sound it is with the undercut....
Here's the front side with the weld pass...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1017.jpg
This is the rear side with the undercut..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1019.jpg
This was bent approx. 150 to 160 degrees and the weld held..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1020.jpg
I definitely need more practice to build up my "comfort level" with using this process, but sure beats all that grinding!
Robert, what size electrode are you using?
Jack.
Great work as usual!!! I just brought home my 54 Chevy COE and this winter I will be doing soem major rust reapir to it. I definitely will be going back over your thread to keep getting the pointers and great tools you use.
Your drawer knob fix is awesome! Great work!
looks pretty slick to me! :)
Thanks Robert, It's time for me to again to try my hand at tig welding sheet metal butt welds.:)
Jack.
Be sure to post up your results, maybe we can compare notes and get rid of some of the learning curve ;)
Robert I have to say THANKS your post 245 I got a box (50) of those discs They make short work of cutting down the welds. Thanks again
Glad to hear it Charlie, I'd say that box will last quite a while!
Just to catch up on the "kitchen repairs" :LOL:
......... here are the drawers re-installed. Even though the black paint matches the appliances, it does attract your attention like a nose wart. Oh well, the drawer is able to open about twice as much as before now that it doesn't hit the knob.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1053.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1054.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1055.jpg
And while all the Hot Rod Black was being sprayed, my buddy Dan was doing some mechanical work on a 59(?) Vette that needed some under hood help..
Epoxy....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1049.jpg
Hot Rod black....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1050.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1062.jpg
Great work! Your knob repair still impresses me. The biggest problem I have with trying to make new sheet metal pieces is thinking it out before trying to ruin the material. :LOL:
Any excuse to play in the shop! :LOL:
Got some more done on the wagon last night. I had picked up a few cans of Dykem real cheap at the local Habitat store, so I thought I'd give that a try for guide coating. It seemed to work well, and the translucent properties of the Dykem showed up darker in the low areas after sanding/highlighting (especially after more than one coat) to better show the lows.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1063.jpg
Used the AFS sander and some 400 grit to highlight the defects...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1065.jpg
High's and lows
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1064.jpg
Here's the tools used this evening, including the creeper ;)
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1067.jpg
Got a couple hours of metal bumping left to do, will post results next time around...
Very nice. I have some plans for some serious sheet metal projects this winter so I will probably be asking you some stuff when I get around to it. As usual, great work.
Ryan, be glad to answer any questions I can..
My inventory had run out on kick panel retainers for Trifive Chevys. I've been getting a few requests for them so I made up 14 sets last night, ready to go.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16..._203240375.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16..._203339886.jpg
Very nice. I need to get some dyechem.
Is it spelled DyKem?
machinists & sheet metal guys use it, also called layout fluid, helps to see scribe lines on bare metal (as shown on above metal parts). I must caution, it will be some pricey stuff to use as a guide coat if you are buying it retail. I got it from a "thrift" store, and it appears to be items from the local Navy base that were donated as they had expired shelf life. I paid less for it than what Walmart gets for their cheap spray paint, so to me it was worth trying. If you have to pay full price, it may not be as appealing.. ;)
Good to know!
Your passes doing a bit of fusing with the tig torch has got me inspired. I haven't fired mine up in a while and reminds me practice makes perfect. This Sunday I'm going to have to fire her up and play with some scrap.
Yeah, sometimes you have to step out of that comfort zone.... ;)
About a month ago I attempted some drip rail fab for a Jeep Cherokee... after making some new dies for the bead roller made some further refinements today.....
Quote:
Just a test today to see if I could bend up some Jeep Cherokee drip rail to match the small sample I was sent in the mail. This was done with 18ga crs using the bead roller, mag brake, and press brake. The layout details needs just a bit of tweaking, but I think it may just work...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture430.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture432.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture433.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...Picture434.jpg
Just as a follow up to this, the dies I used in the original attempt had about a .07 offset. I didn't want to alter their size as they get used once in a blue moon for sheet metal offset, like I did for the 55 Chevy truck windshield panel.. So I decided to make another set, and based on the dimensional difference between the good sample and the trial piece, it looked like I needed to add about .04 to the offset, or .110 total. So here are the new dies...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1088.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1089.jpg
I again used the "backstop" die, and had to go back and trim a bit more off the width of the lower die to get the drip rail height correct.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1076.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1077.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1078.jpg
Then the "backstop" die was radiused to use with the skateboard wheel in providing the radius for the front face...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1079.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1080.jpg
Then a few passes with the tipping die to fold up the front face...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1081.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1082.jpg
The ends wanted to fold much more than the rest of the trial piece, so rather than continually readjust the tension, I sacrificed the first inch or so and just cut it off in the band saw.
Here is the outer portion formed, the height is about perfect, this is using die width and back stop to regulate dimension...
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1083.jpg
The offset also turned out much better. The sharp bend on mine wasn't quite as tight together, but we'll see what the Jeep guys say to this version.....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1084.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1086.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1087.jpg
Great work on all of it!
As always, Thank You Robert. While I may not run out to the shop to try bending sheet metal like you.. You posts always expand my thinking of how to accomplish metal work...
What he said.
Thanks for the comments guys. I enjoy posting my "thinking out loud" that often occurs in the shop, at times it provides me another perspective in someone's comment that perhaps I overlooked. So it helps to expand my thinking as well. :D
The shop's new apprentice started last night, so hopefully we can post project updates a bit more frequently ;)
We did some more metal bumping on the roof repair. We had some high spots to address, so Kyle held the shot bag on the inside while I used the body hammer on the outside.
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1090.jpg
I used the blunted pick end of this hammer to address the narrow high spots. I've found it helps to more precisely locate your "strike area" by laying a guide finger next to it. Tap down the area, move to the next....
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1091.jpg
We did have a larger high spot that made use of the hammer face, and on the bottom side Kyle held the donut dolly in place. This made short work of bringing down the high spots..
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...icture1093.jpg
Note the "graduated" markings on the roof are also on the inside to keep inside guy and outside guy on the same page with hammer and dolly alignment.
Just a note on using a finger to locate areas needing attention, MOVE YOUR FINGER BEFORE STRIKING AREA WITH THE PICK!!!!!:LOL::LOL::LOL: Sometimes I get to concentrating so much on the area I'm working that the hand not holing the hammer gets in the way!!! Life is tough for us Norwegians!!!!:LOL::LOL::LOL:
:LOL::LOL:
Just to clarify, I was doing more of a precise bumping than hammer blows. Didn't want to add any dents. So the tip of the hammer was barely raised up past my finger...
I was told, long ago that, if I would put a piece of paper between my fingers and the metal I would feel more finer imperfections. It appeared to work, perhaps only because I wanted it too, don't know.