Repairing Rust

[Jason]

Crash Course in Seam Welding.

 

All you need to know to start welding :)

 

I decided to write this because of the lack of good, detailed documents on line on how to weld. The only experience was about 1 day of stick welding. Which no one taught me how to use. This time I got some help by a professional boiler maker. So I'm passing it on to help 1st time welders. The first part will go through removing rust out of panels and prepping it for welding. This should get you to the stage were you can fill over the panels with bog.

 

Things you will need.

 

• MIG welder

• Welding mask if you don't want eye sunburn. Yes it hurts.

• Tin snips.

• Sheet metal. I used a microwave shell, good for strength, not so good for shaping. Door skins are great, go down to you wreckers and cut one up with some snips.

• Vice grips. Spend the money, cheap ones are crap and will break

• Pliers

• Hammer

• Block of wood

• Angle grind

o Grinding Wheels

o Cut off wheels

 

 

Removing the Rust

 

 

• Cut it out. Use a fine cut off wheel. For areas were the body will lose strength. Leave some in, and cut it out once you have welded another piece in. This will stop ‘soggy' and warped finishes.

 

You have to get it ALL

 

• Once you have got it all out, try to grind it to a flat line, this makes it easier when making your replacement panels.

 

 

Notice relatively straight line and lack of focusing skills

[Jason]

Making the Replacement Sheets.

 

For flat panels, like under the car and straights. The microwave sheets come in handy.

 

• Measure the area to replace, then add a couple of cm.

• Cut a sheet of metal to apox. the same dimension.

• Now as good as you can, hold the sheet up to the space on the body and trace around it.

• Get your grinding wheel and start to get close to the out lined shape. But don't take it all off, you cart ungrind it back on.

• Test fit it. If it doesn't fit in, grind a little more off.

• Repeat until it fits snugly into the designated area.

 

This is MUCH easier using thinner material such as the door skin. You can precisely cut it with you snips. So instead of using the grinder.

 

My 1st one took me ½ hr to get right. That's using microwave metal. I kept practicing until I got down to 5mins.

 

So now do this for every hole you have! Should be fun…

 

 

 

You might be wondering about how to do those bits were there's a lot of body creases :)

 

Divide the working area up so you only dealing with 1 flat at a time, even though the body has a gentle curve that can be fixed with body filler later.

 

INSERT PIC HERE

Edited June 21, 2005 by Jason

[Jason]

Welding

 

I was lucky enough to be able to borrow a really cool automatic/electronic welding mask. They are worth it, if you can hire or get one for fairly cheap get it. There as clear as sunglasses until you strike an ark.

 

Before you get you welder make sure you have

 

• Angle grinder with grinding wheels and cutting wheels

• Hammer.

• Pliers

• Snips (Thin sheet metal only – shaping)

• Vice grips – MUST. Or a friend who's going hold it in place.

 

Make sure you have every thing you need readily available to you. If you're hiring one you will want every last second with it.

 

Make sure you work area is clean and the areas to be welder are not blocked by crap. Stuff will set on fire, like sound proofing, previous seam seals and that furry shit on the rear quarters. So a fire extinguisher/garden blower to put it out is always handy. Water is not such a great idea… You are using a high powered tool.

 

 

OK get your piece of practice metal and make sure it doesn't have anything on its surface. Otherwise your ark might not start and you getting a dirty weld.

 

Since your probably doing this for corolla metal (although its probably all the same), - the speed I used was about 8 with low voltage. See what you're comfortable with. I found it was easy to start with a high voltage ark until I got used to welding, then switched to low voltage. It gave a cleaner stronger weld with lower voltage.

 

Any way, hold the torch (gun) with 2 hands. It gives you better control. With one hand on the grip and trigger, and the other on the ‘spout' like this.

Edited June 21, 2005 by Jason

[Jason]

The hand on the spout will guide the torch.

 

You want about 3-5mm of wire out from the nozzle/shield at any time, once the ark starts keep it at the same distance.

 

Now squeeze the trigger and bring the torch to the piece and strike an ark. Don't pull away other wise it will spit and ‘flutter'. Just slowly go across the work piece to get the hang of drawing lines. Doesn't matter if you burn holes, you can fix that.

 

If you have to keep pushing the gun closer to the work piece, you speed is to slow.

 

 

Try some spot welding. Hold the gun nozzle on the work piece and pull the trigger. Just make sure it doesn't melt through. Once it's cooled it should look like a piece of old gum on the street :D . So it _shouldn't_ look like a ball, but a puddle and should be about 5mm across.

 

Keep practicing this until your confident.

 

My lousy spot welds with way to much spatter. :)

Edited June 21, 2005 by Jason

[Teddy]

Note to self : Burns don't like skin.

 

Burning = painfull.

Hot metal = painfull.

 

Looks good jason :)

[Jason]

Now onto your car.

 

 

1. Get your replacement piece and your vice grips and attach it to your car so its firm. It only has to be flush were the first few spot welds are going, to keep it in place.

 

2. Once it's aligned, spot weld the replacement sheet on the body, moving the grips so it has full contact. Make sure you don't hold the weld for to long other wise you will get a hole.

 

3. Once it's attached with the spot welds, take off the vice grip. Now you can start welding the piece on properly. Make a nice flowing weld around the piece until it's firmly attached. To test it, wobble it, the rest of the body follow and the welds should not crack.

 

4 . Now grind it off

 

Now go repeat step 3 and 4. So you weld the panel up twice. This is to ensure you penetrated the panels and its not just surface weld.

 

 

 

So go and recreate those basturd wheel aches :)

Edited June 21, 2005 by Jason

[Jason]

TIPS!

 

 

So what happens when you get a hole

 

1. You swear

 

2. Slowly tack weld across the hole once your done one weld section, wait 10secs for the piece to cool (other wise you going to make the hole bigger) then continue with another tack weld.

 

Slowly fill in the gap, hey I did a whole seam like this. So it can be done.

 

3. Once it looks done, get the grinder out and make it flat

 

If you have any holes again from grinder just keep repeating this until its filled.

 

 

Clean Welds

 

If you want a cleaner weld, cut the tip off the wire after each weld. This makes a very clean initial contact

 

Have a wire brush handy. I had a drill one, if you're using a gasless one, they build up a f@$k loads of flux on the surface which ‘clogs' the welds and it will spit. Also you get very dirty welds. Clean the surface regularly.

 

When welding areas that can't been seen, cut the replacement sheet bigger and simply place them over the hole. Its just so much easier.

 

Have a hammer ready incase you have to do one around a corner. To weld patches around corners. First firmly attached a flat side on. Then bash the panel until it's touching the body's surface, keep dong this for all edges.

 

 

Rust Proofing

 

I used heavy duty tectl 506 IIRC. If your going to weld over an area which you can't get after you have finished. Fill the area with the stuff. Then let it dry. It will catch on fire easier if you don't let it dry. Once it has dried out (2, 3 hrs) don't let the piece get to hot, or it will catch on fire.

 

 

Have fun :D

 

Jason.

 

I hope i haven't made too many spelling mistakes :)

 

This is what mine looks like.

Edited June 21, 2005 by Jason

[styler]

hey mad idea to do a welding post, i have tried to learn about welding but there isnt too much on the net, i did have one good mig site though. id like to learn mig cos arc/stick welding doesnt work too well on thin metal and its hard for 1st timers.

[Jason]

Its getting stipped back any way :) well at least in those parts there. Nikkos that bad hey?

Edited June 21, 2005 by Jason

[demuire]

Wow those welds look alright hey! Mine are ugly. Once in awhile I get a good weld, the rest of the time it's just all over the shop.

[mikeys toy[RL]]

if i could add this without offending anyone;

when grinding, make sure you do not heat up the metal too much, i.e. discolorization, this means you will warp the metal