Snowstorm and Crappy Welding

Had a bit of a blizzard blow through here on Tuesday. Not a lot of snow and the wind was strong enough to blow most of it off the roads and fields into the fence lines, ditches and bush so it won't do us any good. Comfortable enough working in the shop doing some more ugly welding on the floor of the 53 Merc. I can make it work with the arc welder at 50 amps but its not real pretty. The floor mats will cover it up eventually so its ok.
And no, that shiny 53 in the thumbnail is not mine.
Snowing and Welding

Looks good Rusty. It takes patience for sure. I replaced the floor pans in my 79 Power Wagon a couple years ago and whew! I have a wire welder and the welding was still tough. Your stick welds don’t look bad for what you are doing. Sheet metal screws were my friend, LOTS of them, every inch and a half or closer. Then I removed them after the welding was done. You’ll get her done. One thing I noticed in your video is how low the sun is in the sky in your neck of the woods compared to where I live, about a thousand miles to the southeast.

(quoted from post at 21:00:46 02/02/18) I noticed in your video is how low the sun is in the sky in your neck of the woods compared to where I live, about a thousand miles to the southeast.

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Hadn't really thought about it but I guess the sun here would look low compared to somebody living way south. Its improving though. I can see a big difference in daylight hours compared to December.

What size rod are you using? You should be using the smallest you can get for that. 3/32 or even 1/16" if you can find it.

I find I can burn holes thru sheetmetal really well with my MIG welder with .030" wire. I'd have to buy new liner, contact tips, maybe change gasses to run .023 wire. I bought 5 pounds of 1/16th inch 6013 rod had can actually weld thin sheet metal better with that than my MIG. I welded up some .040" thk sheet on a cart for a garden tractor couple years ago. Only thing I noticed is the rods were only 10 inches long, small wire equals lots of changing of rods while welding.

Rusty ...... as long as those floor boards keep you inside the car, that's all a guy needs. Your place looks like heaven on earth !!!

(quoted from post at 07:34:19 02/03/18) Rusty ...... as long as those floor boards keep you inside the car, that's all a guy needs. Your place looks like heaven on earth !!!

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Hey , thanks, I'm kind of stuck on this place too, even with the occasional cold day. And Jon F, I'm using the same old 1/8 size rods I've always used for everything but was wondering if thinner rods might be better for sheet metal. I think I'll try and get the thinner rods and see if they work better on sheet metal.

I've been using 3/32 6013 to weld on the fenders on the Oliver 500. I lay a piece of rake tine on them and weld on the tine so it melts in to the crack. They're pretty hard when it comes to grinding them down,but it can be done.

I think I would have gas welded it. There is a guy in Southern CA who does all sorts of amazing body work, often building rare replacement parts from scratch who has developed all sorts of special tips. He was featured in one of the machinist's magazines about 8 years ago.

(quoted from post at 08:16:07 02/03/18) I think I would have gas welded it. There is a guy in Southern CA who does all sorts of amazing body work, often building rare replacement parts from scratch who has developed all sorts of special tips. He was featured in one of the machinist's magazines about 8 years ago.

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I know everyone advises using a wire feed mig but I'm just getting by with what I have at present. Maybe one day I'll upgrade to something more modern and versatile than the 45 year old 180 amp Smith Roles welder.

Looks like you are getting it with the arc welder. I don't know where your from but you sound like a Canadian or someone in the movie Fargo. lol

Good video......I've noticed thru your posts, never seen any smoke coming out of the fireplace on your house. Do you just use propane to heat?

Wire is easier if yo u get a machine that
does solid wire with gas, not a lot of
advantage to flux core. But the main reason
stick is hard for most is they, like you,
get stuck on one size and type rod. If you
use the right type and size rod for the job
stick is nearly as easy as wire.

(quoted from post at 08:58:25 02/03/18) Looks like you are getting it with the arc welder. I don't know where your from but you sound like a Canadian or someone in the movie Fargo. lol

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That brick chimney is just a memento of the old days of coal and wood, later oil, furnace. Natural gas has been the source of heat here since about 1988. I've got an old oil furnace in the shop where I work on the cars. I don't use it a lot. If I get the indoor temp up near freezing in the shop I'm comfortable enough.

Rusty, when I read the heading to your post I read it as Snowstorm and Crappy Weding, not welding. Big difference.

(quoted from post at 17:58:24 02/03/18) Rusty, when I read the heading to your post I read it as Snowstorm and Crappy Weding, not welding. Big difference.

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Ha! Leroy, your eyes must be about as good as mine because that is the kind of mistake I make sometimes.

When I was in high school a friend had a dad that did body work. His dad agreed to give my friend his old Chevy pickup if he would take the
time to learn body work and fix up the pickup. The catch was he had to do all of the sheet metal repair by braising in the panels. His dad wanted
him to learn that skill before any welding. It turned out to be a really beautiful Chevy and was even painted black - no body work detected
anywhere and he had LOTS of rust to fix.

I have redone my show cars with a cheap 110 MIG welder. It works perfectly for that thin metal. My folks gave it to me back when they were the
must have and I had never heard of TIG (it might not have been available on the market - I don't recall). I don't use that MIG very often but I did
fire it up just last night to weld together the cracked spare tire hanger on the 35 Chevy. It was smooth as silk. Unfortunately I don't usually weld
on metal thin enough for it to get good penetration. Mostly it's welding on busted implements and things. My Lincoln tombstone gets used
constantly in that case.

I'd have to say that I could do without it if it weren't for my old cars. If you are going to make a habit of these Mercs it would be worth it. If it's
only the one because of its sentimental value you are better off doing what you know.

(quoted from post at 20:18:12 02/03/18)
I have redone my show cars with a cheap 110 MIG welder. It works perfectly for that thin metal.
I'd have to say that I could do without it if it weren't for my old cars. If you are going to make a habit of these Mercs it would be worth it. If it's
only the one because of its sentimental value you are better off doing what you know.

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I think the Mercs have gone beyond a habit to a full on addiction with me. This 53 is kind of a "fixer-upper" to play with while I have the 52 to drive. If I ever finish the welding on the 53, I'll start on the 52, which is basically held together with sheet metal screws. Thanks for the feedback on your experience with the welders. It all helps.