Got the frame cut!

Well I got the crossmembers all cut and moved, and the frame (front) is cut off. I have the back half just about ready to cut apart, and then I can put the two together. I just got a stick welder last weekend, so I need to practice for a while, then I can weld the crossmembers first, and work on welding the frame back together.
http://www.mustangmods.com/ims/u/936/4586/96978.jpg

http://www.mustangmods.com/ims/u/936/4586/96977.jpg

Don't think it was easy but I got the frame down off the jacks, and turned across the lift by myself before cutting the rear clip off. I looked like a monkey humping a football for a while, but I got it moved.

CHAZ

Alright, you took the plunge.:D :D :D :D Now you can start seeing how this jigsaw puzzle will go back together. You may already know this, so forgive me if I mention it, but grind all of the joints where you are going to weld clean and shiny first so you get a good weld. Also, clamp the parts being welded to some structure like a piece of steel tubing to keep it in line after you weld it. Otherwise it will pull more than you can imagine.

I don't know your welding experience, and I am not a great welder, but when I was using my Lincoln welder I found some rods at Sears that they called "contact rods." I think they are powdered or something, because even I got pretty good results and flow. We have talked about these on here before, and some of the experienced welders had a numerical part number for these. Maybe these would help you.

Go to it man.:D :D :D

Don

Good for you man, take your time and measure more than 5 times, it will be sweet, good luck

If you have a cherry picker engine hoist, it will reallly help you to move these very heavy pieces around. Ever since I tore my bicep exactlly one year ago lifting a corner of my '39 cab, I am extremely careful and use mechanical advantage where ever I can.

Plus, those are some really substantial pieces you have in the pictures.

I'm presently looking for a new girlfriend. I don't care if she has money or is even pretty, just so she is super strong.:LOL: :LOL: :LOL: :LOL: :LOL:


Don

If you have a simple 220 volt stick welder (A.C.) that does not have reverse polarity, then your best bet is a 1/8" diameter 6013 rod. You get a little better penetration with a 6011 rod, but it is a bit harder to weld with also. (I do all my chassis work with 6013). If it is a more expensive reverse polarity welding (D.C.) machine (which I doubt), then use a 7018 rod. I find that welding on anything up to 1/4" thick, that I get best weld when set at 115 Amps. If I'm welding 1/2" then I set it up for 130 Amps. If it is an A.C. welder, then forget about doing vertical welds----rotate the stuff you are welding untill it is in a horizontal position for welding.

hoof,
i have a 50# can of 6010 i think its either 1/8 or 3/32. ill give it to you iif you can use it... i bought a mig and hate to through it out...

Harmon

p.s. if you need someone to teach you i can give you a crash course (i weld for a living)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CHEVYBOY

hoof,
i have a 50# can of 6010 i think its either 1/8 or 3/32. ill give it to you iif you can use it... i bought a mig and hate to through it out...

Harmon

p.s. if you need someone to teach you i can give you a crash course (i weld for a living)

---

You are OK Harmon. Super nice offers on both counts.:toocool: :toocool:



Don

Don,
thanks, hey if a fellow rodder needs a hand then so be it

Thanks again,
Harmon

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CHEVYBOY

Don,
thanks, hey if a fellow rodder needs a hand then so be it

Thanks again,
Harmon

---

I agree,but 98 percent of people would try to sell it to him.80 percent will take it for free and sell it at full cost:whacked:

Sage Advise---Keep your rods dry!!! I know that sounds a bit personal, but the flux coating on stick electrodes are a real bear to soak up moisture out of the air. They won't look any different, but they will stick, and sputter, and give you grief when you are trying to use them. Most professional welding shops that use stick welders store the rods in a low heated environment that ensures that they stay dry untill ready to use. Many old welding rods that have been stored in a garage in high humidity can be given a new lease on life by heating them under a very low heat overnight in an oven---NOT THE ONE YOUR WIFE COOKS IN!!!

Keeping you RODS DRY. I used to use an old refrigerator wire it so the light stays on and turn off or remove the compressor. Works great and its cheap.:LOL:

Yeah, its an AC only machine. Lincoln 225ac. After buying the wire and breaker and receptacle to run 220 in the garage it is a wonder I could afford that! I got a box of 1/8 6013 rods when I bought the welder. Just a lucky guess because I certainly didn't know what I needed. I am going to try and get some help to learn to weld decent with it, and I already figured I better flip the frame so I am always welding on a flat (down) surface.
CHAZ

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by brianrupnow

Sage Advise---Keep your rods dry!!! I know that sounds a bit personal, but the flux coating on stick electrodes are a real bear to soak up moisture out of the air. They won't look any different, but they will stick, and sputter, and give you grief when you are trying to use them. Most professional welding shops that use stick welders store the rods in a low heated environment that ensures that they stay dry untill ready to use. Many old welding rods that have been stored in a garage in high humidity can be given a new lease on life by heating them under a very low heat overnight in an oven---NOT THE ONE YOUR WIFE COOKS IN!!!

---

Good tip there!:)I guess I mean tipS, NOT YOUR WIFES OVEN,thats a good tip too:LOL:

She doesn't seem to mind the powder coating in there!
CHAZ

Watch out for what you put into an oven that you also use for cooking. The guys aren't being funny, they are serious, some of that stuff can potentially contaminate your food and not be too good for you.

I also have one of the red Lincoln 220 welders that I never get to use since we got a Mig, but I loved that thing. I have built umteen brackets, made a few trailer hitches, even used it to cut some metals before I got my torches. At one time these were state of the art, and every shop and farm had one or a similar unit.

We were just talking about this subject last night, how technology keeps marching on. I remember the day I saved up and bought my new Lincoln. I was on cloud 9. Then we would have died for a Mig, finally bit the bullet and bought a nice Miller unit. Now we are seriously getting close to buying a Tig because we want the flexibility they offer, especially on thin metals.

And yet the old Lincoln is still a fine way to join two pieces of metal together, and used in skilled hands can produce really good, pretty welds. We rodders just keep wanting newer and more efficient equipment.

Oh, Hoof............pick up a couple of scrap pieces of steel, or use some old parts off of the truck, and practice welding these first. It will give you some idea of the amps, etc that work the best. On something like the frame, you may want to spot weld these and then pay or get someone who really knows how to do it to finish weld them. Just a suggestion. Harmon is making you a nice offer of some free education, you would do well to take him up on it.


Don

good advice guys,
only one thing welding flat is great, but to get the strongest weld they weld up hill. i find up hill and over head are easier.. the 7018 rods i have are in a rod oven..

on the low heat comment. the ovens we use at home and at work are at 350f , so they are perfect for cooking lunch in:LOL: :LOL:

i work at power plants and oil refinerys and they xray all our weld so the pressure is on:D :D

my dad has a tig and thats the ticket. but if your good you can make a stick weld look as good as a tig.. ive seen guys at work weld tincans together..

Harmon

When I built my '27 frame I spot welded it and took it to a professional welder. He was referred to me because he teaches welding at a school. I told him I wanted it Migged (that was the high tech 17 years ago) He laughed at me and said he was going to arc weld it. I told him I wanted the welds to be pretty, and he said I would be happy. When I picked up the frame they welds looked like a welding machine had done them. The man was a super good welder, and he was right, I was thrilled. Beads looked like the nickel rows you hear about.


Don

I would have rather seen you make your cut at a 45 degree angle to give more area to your weld.Do you intend to box the spliced area? The last p/u I did,I simply flipped the piece I took out over, overlapped the bottom,and fitted in at the top. i prefer to arc weld this kind of work, dc reverse,90 amps,7018 rod. Hank

I am overlapping the 2 halves 8", and I am going to box and weld the inside, as well as weld fish plates front and back. I am going to use 6" plate across the 8" gap diagonally to give me more area to weld to.
CHAZ

The frame is 1/8", should I use the same for my boxing plates and fish plates, or should I get 1/4 inch?

Use the 1/8th inch. Going to a thicker material just increases the probability of cold welds on the thick stuff or burning through the thinner while trying to get enough heat into the thicker.
Mark

Sounds like overkill to me. Why not butt weld the flanges,cut the overlap to a point on the out side,fully weld the inside and outside and then box with the 1/8 in plate. hank

Overkill is kinda what I am shooting for! I have always heard "if you can't weld good weld a lot." If I were more confident in my ability to weld I would engineer a correct kick up, but I am trying to do this all myself, and that is how I feel most comfortable doing it.
CHAZ