No more arc welding

[Barryh]

You'll be surprised what he will be able to accomplish with the torch. We will see the true meaning of Artist!

For anyone who has never welded with a torch, it is time for you to try it out. The goggles are lighter, so you can see better. The flame is alive. The metal melts slowly at first, and once you have that puddle you push it along with the flame. Pushing liquid metal with a flame! What's cooler than that? If the puddle gets too small, you can add some filler by melting a rod into the puddle as you go. It is a two handed operation; one hand moving the torch in a rolling or circlular pattern and the other hand dipping the rod into the flame and puddle. What is really cool is a welding a nice clean joint where you don't need any filler at all. You just melt the two together. If any of you get the chance, pick up some 1/8 steel sheets and just play around with it. It really is fun. And it is so much more quiet than arc welding and no splatter or slag. Man, I gotta do some flame welding after I get that backhoe done.

I can still remember doing a lot of it in high school, it was a lot of fun like watching red lava flow, and the key word here is quiet along with relaxing. The only noisy part is the the quick pop of the ignition....

 

[BobRip]

The articles that I read seemed concerned about the leads and not just the transformers. They said stay at least two feet (that is the distance to pace maker) away from the leads. I think you can easily put enough distance from the transformers to the pace maker, but the leads need to be pretty close. I talked to J & S welding today (they sell the Henrob) and the owner has a friend who continues to arc weld with a pacemaker. My decision is made and I think the Henrob may be better in at least some respects than the MIG. I will not be getting rid of the MIG yet, though.

Any opinions on storing the cylinders in the attached garage?

 

[Gravy]

The arc itself is probably a dandy source of electromagnetic radiation/radio frequency interference. I seem to recall reading a reference to "spark transmitter radio".

There are tiny OA torches made specifically for welding thin materials. Here's an example from McMaster: Part# 7932A12.

Oops- gotta get back to work...

Gravy

 

[bryan r hively]

gas welding is by no means a replacement for arc welding. im a iron worker from youngstown ohio and i have a few years experince with both proceses. your normal evey day welding is usally done with 7018 in either 1/8 inch or 3/32 rod and one square inch of 7018 will hold 70,000 lbs. i really dont think you'll come remotley close with gas welding. gas welding is great for brazzing and soldering, works rather well for brazzing cast iron. i would suggest hirring your welding out or maybe find a vocational student that would do it for the experince.

bryan r hively
journeyman iron worker

 

[BobRip]

gas welding is by no means a replacement for arc welding. im a iron worker from youngstown ohio and i have a few years experince with both proceses. your normal evey day welding is usally done with 7018 in either 1/8 inch or 3/32 rod and one square inch of 7018 will hold 70,000 lbs. i really dont think you'll come remotley close with gas welding. gas welding is great for brazzing and soldering, works rather well for brazzing cast iron. i would suggest hirring your welding out or maybe find a vocational student that would do it for the experince.

bryan r hively
journeyman iron worker

Bryan, thanks for the comments. I don't plan to do massive amount of welding, but we will just have to see. I played with the Henrob today and make some terrible welds, some bad welds, and some not too terrible welds. I was able to weld 1/4 inch scrap pieces together. I need a lot of practice, but I will keep trying.

Could you be a little more specific about the limits of gas welding? I understand that it is slower, but I don't know the other limits.

 

[BobRip]

I did a little practice welding with the Henrob 2000 today. I like it in that you can control the material feed separately from heating at the weld sight. With MIG you have to stop and make an adjustment. I am having trouble keeping from leaving holes in the weld where the torch pushes the material away from the heating sight. Does anyone have suggestions? I have attached a couple of pictures.

I clamped one piece in the vice and tried to break the weld with a hammer and was unsuccessful.

 

[cqaigy2]

I did a little practice welding with the Henrob 2000 today. I like it in that you can control the material feed separately from heating at the weld sight. With MIG you have to stop and make an adjustment. I am having trouble keeping from leaving holes in the weld where the torch pushes the material away from the heating sight. Does anyone have suggestions? I have attached a couple of pictures.

I clamped one piece in the vice and tried to break the weld with a hammer and was unsuccessful.

First off that's not too bad for your first try at a vertical weld with you new gear. You may want to rig up some kinda table for practice instead of using the side of your house like that.

Anyway, what size tip did you use and how much pressure?

 

[MossRoad]

I did a little practice welding with the Henrob 2000 today. I like it in that you can control the material feed separately from heating at the weld sight. With MIG you have to stop and make an adjustment. I am having trouble keeping from leaving holes in the weld where the torch pushes the material away from the heating sight. Does anyone have suggestions? I have attached a couple of pictures.

I clamped one piece in the vice and tried to break the weld with a hammer and was unsuccessful.

You can change the angle of the flame, lower the pressure of the gas so it doesn't blow too hard, use a filler rod to block the flame, etc...

Have you picked up a book on flame welding, yet?

 

[BobRip]

Cqaigy2, I used the number 2 tip. The pressure was 4 psi. That's what they recommend for all welding. I did not even burn the house. I had actually used the torch earlier and am getting a little better each time I try.

Moss, I do not have a book, just the manual from Henrob and also the Haines welding manual. I wonder if a book would work given the differences beween this torch and others, although your suggestions sounded appropriate. Actually J&S Enterprises recommends a book. I will call them tomorrow and see about ordering it. I have watched their CD several times. This helps, but not enough. Thanks for the suggestion. I now believe that this torch will do what I need to have done. I should probably use an entire tank of gas just to practice on. Today I also modified my 2 inch receiver on the back of the PT. I widened the slots for the chain connection points. That was easy to do, but not as neat as I would have liked. I find if I use a narrower oxygen tip than recommended, I can cut a narrower slot and get a better cut.

 

[MossRoad]

I was wondering, since you cannot use an arc welder anymore, can you still use electric power tools, like a saws all? What about an air compressor and air tools? Drill press, etc...? I do not have any air tools but an impact wrench, but I have seen some great cutting with an air die grinder and cut off wheels.

 

[BobRip]

I was wondering, since you cannot use an arc welder anymore, can you still use electric power tools, like a saws all? What about an air compressor and air tools? Drill press, etc...? I do not have any air tools but an impact wrench, but I have seen some great cutting with an air die grinder and cut off wheels.

The doctor did not mention any other tools. The tech rep said they were the most immune of all pace makers. Looking at some other literature, they gave various distances from equipment to pace maker. For example
Drill - six inches - Basically don't hold it against your chest while drilling
Electric motors - Two feet.

Most were under 3 feet. The welder is bad because you use it close to the chest and the currents are very high. They were particulalry concerned about currents over 100 amps, which I use routinely.

Air tools are no problem because of no magnetic fields.

Remember, this will not kill me, it just shuts down the pace maker temporarily and my heart still will receive signals from its regular system. Basically the pace maker monitors the regular heart signals and fills in as needed. Normally I dont need them. Worst case my heart will beat slower and I might feel something, perhaps a little light headed. My worse symptoms were while asleep and my heart rate would drop to the low 40s. Now the minimum is 70. I am being cautious because my doctor said so, and I don't want to worry my wife for a hobby. I am sure I would not enjoy the work if the wife were worried. You may be unhappy if your wife is happy, but you will be unhappy if your wife is unhappy. Sorry for so many words.

By the way, I walked 4 miles yesterday and 2 today. Very fast walks too.

 

[MossRoad]

I don't want to worry my wife for a hobby. I am sure I would not enjoy the work if the wife were worried. You may be unhappy if your wife is happy, but you will be unhappy if your wife is unhappy. Sorry for so many words.

By the way, I walked 4 miles yesterday and 2 today. Very fast walks too.

I have been with the same woman for 28 years... I completely understand.

I spent the day tilling gardens, hand sawing trees with a pole saw while standing on a ladder, and planting vegetables and flowers with one of my daughters. First physical work I've done in months. I was pooped. Weighed myself for the first time in months, too. 218! Wife and I are getting up early Tuesday to start excercise routine again. Maybe I'll fit into my ****** by this summer!

I was asking about the air tools, because there are many times that I cut with my torch pieces that I cannot cut with a saw. If I had an air grinder and cut off wheels, I could cut them much nicer than with my torch and not have to do so much grinding when I am done.

 

[toy]

Cqaigy2, I used the number 2 tip. The pressure was 4 psi. That's what they recommend for all welding. I did not even burn the house. I had actually used the torch earlier and am getting a little better each time I try.

Moss, I do not have a book, just the manual from Henrob and also the Haines welding manual. I wonder if a book would work given the differences beween this torch and others, although your suggestions sounded appropriate. Actually J&S Enterprises recommends a book. I will call them tomorrow and see about ordering it. I have watched their CD several times. This helps, but not enough. Thanks for the suggestion. I now believe that this torch will do what I need to have done. I should probably use an entire tank of gas just to practice on. Today I also modified my 2 inch receiver on the back of the PT. I widened the slots for the chain connection points. That was easy to do, but not as neat as I would have liked. I find if I use a narrower oxygen tip than recommended, I can cut a narrower slot and get a better cut.

Talking about getting how to books, my son built me a computer and he installed linux on it and knowing that I am computer illiterate he bought me one of those books linux for dummies [ I thought it might help also] needless to say he called me and asked if the linuxfor dummies book helped me and my replie was no it wasn't dumb enough for me. However later I was in the book store and saw a book that might be right for me "Bird watching for dummies". joking aside I have several computer books but I know they won't help me if I don't read them and when I do try to read them my wife shakes me violently saying wake up you are snoring.

 

[BTDT]

gas welding is by no means a replacement for arc welding. im a iron worker from youngstown ohio and i have a few years experince with both proceses. your normal evey day welding is usally done with 7018 in either 1/8 inch or 3/32 rod and one square inch of 7018 will hold 70,000 lbs. i really dont think you'll come remotley close with gas welding. gas welding is great for brazzing and soldering, works rather well for brazzing cast iron. i would suggest hirring your welding out or maybe find a vocational student that would do it for the experince.

bryan r hively
journeyman iron worker

I think this is a good idea/option. I'm sure you can find a young gearheaded kid that would love to come learn on your machine. You could stand back and give instructions, let him do the work. Glad to hear your doing ok, and learning new skills at the same time.

 

[MossRoad]

You can change the angle of the flame, lower the pressure of the gas so it doesn't blow too hard, use a filler rod to block the flame, etc...

Have you picked up a book on flame welding, yet?

I forgot to mention that you can also change the distance of the flame from the work to increase or decrease the heat. That's the easiest.

 

[MossRoad]

Here's a link to an interesting website regarding welding and metal working. Lots of stuff about working aluminum with a torch.

TM Sheet Metal Forming Technologies : providing tools and supplies for smithing, aluminum gas, stainless steel, cast iron welding, instructional books, video tapes, and training.

 

[BobRip]

I think this is a good idea/option. I'm sure you can find a young gearheaded kid that would love to come learn on your machine. You could stand back and give instructions, let him do the work. Glad to hear your doing ok, and learning new skills at the same time.

Thanks for the suggestions, but if I can't do it myself, what's the point. This is a hobby, so I do not like to farm out anything. I have been looking for iron ore on my property to make my own steel . Just kidding.

I used to be an engineer, now I get to make stuff.

 

[cqaigy2]

Thanks for the suggestions, but if I can't do it myself, what's the point. This is a hobby, so I do not like to farm out anything. I have been looking for iron ore on my property to make my own steel . Just kidding.

I used to be an engineer, now I get to make stuff.

The best metal detector i've seen is my rough cut mower.

 

[Barryh]

Thanks for the suggestions, but if I can't do it myself, what's the point. This is a hobby, so I do not like to farm out anything. I have been looking for iron ore on my property to make my own steel . Just kidding.

I used to be an engineer, now I get to make stuff.

Bob, not sure if this is the kind of sheilding you would need, and I wouldn't take a chance on Arc welding with it. Just thought it might help protect you when your using power tools ect. Maybe you could make your self a stream lined vest for working out in the shop. May not be to comfortable, but it might give you some extra measure of protection. Just a thought

Magnetic Field Shielding Materials

 

[BobRip]

Bob, not sure if this is the kind of sheilding you would need, and I wouldn't take a chance on Arc welding with it. Just thought it might help protect you when your using power tools ect. Maybe you could make your self a stream lined vest for working out in the shop. May not be to comfortable, but it might give you some extra measure of protection. Just a thought

Magnetic Field Shielding Materials

Thanks Barry. I will give them a call and see if this has been used for Pace Makers. I could put this on the back and/or front of my leather welding vest.