Torch Position
Equipment
Purchasing TIG Equipment
Selecting TIG Rod
Stiffness versus Diameter
Heat-Affected Zone
Projects and Applications
Project: Making a Taillight Bracket
Application: Tubing Intersections
Application: Stainless-Steel Gas Tanks
Project: Making a Stainless Exhaust System
Application: Exhaust System
Project: Repairing Aluminum Cylinder Heads
Application: TIG Welding Titanium
Application: TIG Welding Magnesium
Chapter 5: Stick Welding
Electrodes
Equipment
Purchasing Stick Power
Filler Metals
Learning Stick Welding
Chapter 6: MIG Welding
Process Variations
Cored Wires
Gun Position
What Melts a MIG Wire?
Wire Stickout Effect on Penetration
Equipment
Standard Power Systems
Purchasing a MIG System
Wire and Gas Selection
Projects and Applications
Application: Creating an Automatic Gate Latch
Project: Welding a Hydroformed Frame
Project: Fabricating a Seat Support
Project: Repairing a Decorative Bench
Project: Mending a Weather Vane
Application: Subframe Connector
Application: NASCAR Stock Car Chassis
Application: Street Rod Roll Bar
Project: Modifying an Exercise Machine
Project: Adding a Pull-Up Device to an Exercise Machine
Project: Building a Trailer Hitch
Application: Spot Welds
Application: Triumph TR3 Floorpan Installation
Application: Street Rod and Race Car Tubing
Application: TCI MIG Welds
Application: Rear Quarter Panel Replacement
Chapter 7: Advanced Materials and Metallurgical Processes
High-Strength Steels
Alloys in Steel
Metallurgical Property Tests
Weld Defects
Project: Arc Straightening for Roll Bar Installation
Further Reading
Source Guide
DEDICATION
To my wife Christine, who tolerated the time required and supported the writing of this book.
I owe a great deal to former colleague and friend Bob Bitzky, who was manager of welding training for ESAB. Bob provided invaluable information and made a number of welds to help demonstrate the benefits of modern welding and cutting systems.
This book is intended for those with an interest in welding or the automotive hobby who may have some welding skills or want to acquire them. It covers modern welding equipment and procedures such as pulsed arc MIG (metal inert gas) and pulsed arc TIG (tungsten inert gas) welding. It will also be of value to anyone who has purchased a MIG welder and wants to understand how its performance and capability compare with other welding processes. It will be useful for someone considering welding as a profession because it covers the basic welding processes used in industry.
This book presents advanced welding topics for fabricating street rods and race cars as well as making a number of common repairs. It covers the welding of carbon steel, chrome-moly steel, aluminum, and stainless steel. An overview of TIG welding titanium and magnesium is included. There are suggestions regarding the proper filler metal choices, why they are selected, and welding techniques to use. Each welding process section includes automotive projects and applications that relate to the process. Details of equipment features are also discussed.
Information for All Skill Levels
This book is not just for the skilled weldor, but an emphasis is placed on advanced techniques for MIG, TIG, oxyacetylene, and stick. With this book, you can learn how to weld various joints, advanced techniques, and processes. It is an excellent source for beginners who want to learn welding and have their work look and perform like a professional’s. Some skilled weldors don’t believe they need any more than their manual ability. Exceptional manual skills are great to have, and some weldors are on par with the best artists. However, understanding some of the reasons for certain weld problems and why defects occur is also needed. Some welding science is covered, which helps you resolve welding problems.
Modern Arc Welders
Recent advances in welding machines make it easier to produce quality welds. Welding is an art as well as a science and requires skill. However, depositing a stack-of-dimes weld is much easier with the new microprocessor-inverter–based TIG welders; you just preset two current levels: low and high. After the welding current has been on the high setting for a few seconds, filler metal is easier to add. When the current switches to the low setting, moving the torch forward avoids burn-through. Then you set the pulse rate and it switches between the two levels automatically. The current rise and fall times are very quick, providing a very stable arc. When TIG welding with AC power, there is no longer a need for continuous high frequency.
This book about advanced welding is not just for the skilled weldor. Understanding why welds behave as they do, and some welding science, assists in solving welding problems. Recent advances in welding machines make it easier to produce quality welds. Setting the welding machine to achieve optimum performance has been made much easier with the new microprocessor-inverter-based TIG and MIG welders. (Figure adapted from ESAB’s Oxyacetylene Handbook with sketch by Walter Hood)
By simply setting the correct plate thickness, the microprocessors in MIG welders automatically set all of the proper parameters. For MIG welding automotive sheet metal, the short-circuiting mode is used to avoid excess heat. In the past, you had to manually adjust