Another hobby. Welding.

Hi,

I've covered TIG welding aluminium in another thread but do you fancy having a go at welding. I mean basic simple welding anyone can learn very quickly with a little practice.

In the garden and around the home welding can be very useful and needn't cost a fortune. Tiny modern welders are excellent for welding steel like repairs and framework or even heavier welding jobs like metal railings.

I have a 75kg Oxford oil cooled industrial arc (stick) welder which will weld all day and all night without cutting out but it's so heavy it can only be used in the workshop and I've had to upgrade the supply to cope with its power but at the other end I also have one of these;



It plugs into a standard 13A socket and is good to go; it can be carried and used anywhere there's a 13A supply socket; it's a bare machine so a cheap welding mask is needed also electrodes (Rods) and heavy rigger type gloves; eye protection is paramount; I have an auto darkening welding helmet but having been taught using a hand shield I find the hand shield more convenient for quick small welding jobs.

E6013 electrodes are very common indeed and general strength although many types of electrodes are available but E6013's a pack of 2.5mm lasts a long time.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/impax-e6013-2-5-welding-electrodes-2-5mm-x-350mm-2-5kg/17503


Very heavy duty hand rail brackets; 3/4" round steel bar bought at a scrapyard; a number of these were made using a home made welding jig at very little cost.


A missing wheel tooth on the Howard Bulldog rotavator.


No problem just weld a new tooth on; the tooth is 1" x 1" x 1/8" angle iron and this was welded using the new very cheap mini welder I bought; it took a few minutes to adjust the mini welder for the first time but it did a decent job and plenty of weld was added making it stronger than the original weld.


Welding the tooth was done in the rear garden; the rotavator was carried up and assembled as a kit after it's restoration; it would be impossible and dangerous to attempt to get the rotavator down the steep garden path and steps to the workshop and I didn't want to use a puller again to remove the very tight wheel so I bought this mini welder and now I can weld anywhere on the property; the welding mask is basic but the one I use a great deal.


There are so many uses a welder can be put to such as making steel garden railings; I needed four of these so as seen they were welded on a very simple wooden jig; the box section steel was bought in 7.5m long lengths delivered to my workshop

20 x 20 x 2.5mm x 7.5-7.6m Steel Square Box Section - Mild Steel Grade S235 - F H Brundle


I don't know what it would have cost to have new railings made to my specification but I'm sure a great deal of money was saved; this is part of a bigger project.

Here's the new railings installed ready for painting and scaffolding tube adding as top handrail not seen. The side hung workshop doors were another project. The heavy steel was bought from a scrapyard ; bought by weight and was cheap. The decking was extended allowing window cleaning and gutter cleaning to be carried out as well as maintenance.


2" square support posts with brackets welded and fettled using angle grinder. All new steel was supplied by Brundles in one order which was a lot cheaper than I expected.

Although not true gardening but I'm explaining some of the many benefits of having a cheap welder and being able to weld; I have lots of steel section including lots of steel offcuts stored under the bungalow. I don't need to think about welding having been able to weld for over 60 years but many use welding to make artistic garden sculptures. It's an whole new interesting world to explore.

I can gas; arc and Tig weld but I've never tried mig welding which is very popular these days.



After tacking I don't stitch as shown I simply run a continuous bead; 1/8" thick steel is ideal to practice on; thinner and it results in holes.

Bespoke metal items can be welded at home allowing any size to be made; paying for anything special made is always expensive; I've helped neighbours out too; much to their delight; once the welder is bought then it costs very little indeed but please be very careful regarding safety and your surrounding; sparks fly and can ignite things nearby.

I've posted about welding before but not in depth; I thought it worth mentioning again to encourage anyone to have a go at welding; it's addictive though.

Just passing a bit of time because at -3C I'd rather be here keeping warm.

Kind regards, Col.

 

Hi @Retired.
Like you I have had a go at Welding. I bought a Cebora Mig Welder.
Just learned it from the internet, plus a chap nearby once helped me for about 20 minutes.
I made all kinds of things, especially for our small garden.
I'm a retired small time Landscape Gardener, so no welding knowledge etc.
I designed and made this Planter/Trough a few years back -- fortunately I got it galvanised, so it is still good.
The panel in the background I made too.
Cheers -- John
.

 

The problem for many people with a good sized garden is no electricity available at the far end, not sure a 200 yd extension lead is particularly manageable.
Anything done more than 50 ft from the house is hand tools only in my garden; so hand drill, hacksaw, bush saw, screwdriver etc and fasten together with nails, screws or nuts and bolts.

 

There are cordless drills, screwdrivers and chainsaws @NigelJ, but I've not come across cordless welding gear .

 

Comes down to cost benefit analysis if you only use something once a quarter then it's probably not worth it, especially when you have a perfectly good cordless hand tool that will do the job and is easily fuelled with a cup of hot tea.

 

It's when you get old and worn out you come to appreciate a cordless battery tool, I used a bow saw for years for large pruning cuts a lopping branches, but I must admit the smaller cordless chainsaws do a pretty effective job.
I always thought I didn't need one, until I got one.

 

Hi,

Top marks John @Cordy; your planter is beautiful and clearly demonstrates what can be achieved from scratch with a bit of YouTube help. I'm impressed and you can weld with a mig which I've never tried. Very well done and an inspiration to others.

The voltage drop at 200 yards would be noticable indeed @NigelJ but it wouldn't stop me if I wanted to weld at such a distance a can of petrol and small generator would be the way I'd go but it depends if you want to weld and what you intend to weld. There are usually ways around problems; I dislike power cables outside but sometimes are needed; I've used a very heavy electric jackhammer at the extreme top of my 120' garden to break through a stone ledge in order to install fence posts; I cut the chisel in half and welded in an extension because I wanted to go 3' deep.

It's surprising as you'll know what can be done with basic hand tools; an hacksaw is hard work if used a lot and I've done my share over the years; a 2lb hammer can solve a few problems. Drilling even small holes in steel with an hand drill is a challenge and even if using breast drill; the old timers had it tough but their tools lasted generations. Joiners always had a brace in their tool bag but now power tools have made life so much easier; I have an industrial floor standing drill press with a back gear dropping revs right down to 60rpm for heavy drilling in steel. Playing around drilling holes then cutting set screws/ bolts to length adding washers and nuts was what I did for many years; forget about this using a welder; welding is fast and stronger;



Thanks @Plantminded I have a Makita 18V cordless drill which I use a great deal and this one battery is also used on my leaf blower and hedge trimmer; it was a revelation to use the Makita hedge trimmer for the first time replacing the heavy petrol Spear & Jackson I'd used for years. I'm not a fan of batteries at all but confess my cordless tools are brilliant.

Being a mechanical engineer I'm familar with all kinds of tools and also very heavy machinery; I'm more at home engineering than I am with gardening but any skill can be learned if needed.

Here's my Oxford oil cooled welder on the wheeled trolley I made; I run it from a 32A C type breaker and it can also be run from 415V 3 phase.

Oxford welder. Assorted welding magnets are useful.


Home made 4" belt sander used for woodworking; I made it from offcuts and it accepts 36" abrasive belts. This is my slow speed belt sander.



Home made 2" belt grinder for sharpening tools and general metal grinding; I have a good assortment of 36" abrasive belts from Ceramic to Zirconium; belts are changed in seconds and if I have problems buying 2" wide belts at 36" I buy 4" wide and cut them in half. This is high speed and to change belt I press down hard on the belt top; it's spring loaded and my design.




Home made saw bench; I made this quite a few years ago being welded construction as are the two belt machines. It's 4hp single phase; rise and fall with a 12" dia. carbide blade; it's fitted with Poly-V twin drive belts; it would take a much larger blade but it cuts 4" deep and if I flip over it will cut 8" deep which is plenty for my needs; it took time and effort to design and make this but it's paid for itself many times over; very recently when I replaced the front porch. I worked 24 years at an electric motor manufacturing company and over the years picked up lots about motor design and how to correctly connect them to the supply; this too like the Oxford welder is powered from a C type 32A breaker. It's not a saw for a novice because it can prove highly dangerous given its power and the way it rapidly comes up to full speed.

I fully agree @NigelJ I often pick up a hand tool even though I can just press a button to start a machine up. In 1976 when we married we had very little spare money but I installed a fully fitted home made kitchen using what in the day was called Contiplas boards; we were so skint; on wage day I'd visit a shop called "Odd Jobs" and buy one 8' length of 2" x 1" planed softwood and did this each week until I had enough to make the framework but didn't use it immediately; we then saved for many weeks until we had enough money to buy sheets of Contiplas at different widths for shelves and doors; a single speed B&D electric drill; 80p tenon saw and sharpening triangular file were bought at Dewsbury market and I had blisters on my right hand from cutting the Contiplas using the tenon saw; after each cut the cheap saw needed resharpening but we ended up with a lovely modern looking fully fitted kitchen. Hand tools predate electric tools by centuries; power machinery has been in use before electricity too; water wheels powered lots of machinery. My parents miners cottage didn't have electricity installed until I was five years old; I know what real poverty is.

Since marrying my workshop has evolved; I like buying scrap heavy cast iron machinery and fully restoring it then putting it to work. Now people see what I have and explain why they haven't got the same. My late Bron and I had only one weeks holiday away from home on our first wedding anniversary; we never smoked; touched alcohol or socialized; instead we spent our hard earned money improving our lifestyle and home; we worked long and hard to achieve what I now have sadly without Bron by my side.

I've been into welding for a lifetime and still enjoy welding; lots of my welding involves thicker steel but with lots of practice thin steel sheet can be welded; I've welded car silencers at a very low welding angle but it can be done. An arc (stick) welder will do most welding jobs at home; I bet you @Cordy enjoyed learning how to weld and was proud of your first welding project carried out successfully.

I'm constantly learning new skills; I'm finding violin playing to be very difficult indeed but I'm making progress and I'm also learning to use pedals; I can turn my violin into a number of types of organ sounds; my new toy "Boss Loop Station RC-2" pedal has arrived so I'm keen to try it out

Kind regards, Col.

 

Hi,

I take welding for granted because I've been doing it for so long but I never ever take safety for granted and I should have stressed this sooner; I don't want any member or anyone to get hurt because I've encouraged them to start welding; all types of welding has dangers; some not obvious;



How you clean metal if needed can kill you and even sweating can also kill you; the above video gives excellent advice; I post my hobbies showing what I do but do things I'm trained to do which could injure others so please use your own judgement and above all be safe.

Kind regards, Col.