The Project Pad

Man that looks great . So difficult welding all those in the car . Props for taking that on.

A common thing to run into is when you are closing up the last bit of the hole on a tube that’s welded on both sides , there are no more gaps for the remaining gases to escape ( besides the one you are welding) so the escaping gas blows away your shield gas. Similar to if you were back purging and didn’t have a vent hole .
What people do usually in this case is preemptively drill a hole with a diameter of 1/8” or so which would be covered by the tube being welded over it, so that the tubes are all vented together - if that makes any sense .
But as you mentioned it could be any number of things . Inside not being clean , lack of shield gas , or possibly too much purge could draw in oxygen . If using tig I don’t know what type of size of cup you use but I like to use one that has the diffuser in it , that way you can turn shield gas way up if needed but without a ton of turbulence or velocity .

Thank you and thanks for sharing your knowledge. The whole cage will be mig welded with .035 wire, 75/25 mix and the nozzle on the end of the gun is a 1/2 opening. I thought of putting a vacuum at a joint/opening away from the joint I was welding to pull any gas away, but also thought that might creat another problem and like you said thing start to seal up. I like the 1/8 hole Idea. What if the hole was drilled a little farther away from the joint so that as the joint is completely filled there is still a place for gas to escape and then fill hole and smooth out? It’s only an 1/8 hole, but what kind of effect would it have on the cages structural integrity with 1/8 holes in multiple places? Everything effects everything. One thing at time. I’ll lay some welds down and see what happens with having the regulator at right setting.

Thanks for your time and input!
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You can always seal the 1/8" vent holes later, that's no bother. The filler metal will of course be stronger than the base metal.

The bit about cleaning is huge... prep is 80% of the job when welding, unless you screw up or miss something. Then it's 100%.

I'll try to run your issues by a couple of the welders at work before I go home for days off and see if any of them can lend some experience/insight (though I think the boys here have it surrounded as well as getting your regulator dialed as the major points).

Otherwise not a lot to add, aside from the project is really progressing nicely.

Thanks for that! Been practicing and I’m gonna have to say it was operator error. Welds look like ass, but their’s no porosity or undercut.
“Everybody’s got a plan until you get punched in the face!”
Mike Tyson
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As an inspector said to me at work one day, "ugly isn't a discontinuity." Keep at it and one day you'll turn that hamburger into neatly stacked dimes!

Ok, so yeah, I got discouraged. Thought my tube welding practice would pay off. Not so much, ehh. But I’m gonna keep on keep’n on because I’ve seen worse. Yup, you won’t be seeing any close up shots of my welds. Today I got the fire wall tubes welded on to the front down tubes, did some rust prevention in areas that will be hard to get to when finished. Bought a porta-power that’s not good or better but the BEST to push things back into place. I cleaned up all porosity issues, welded everything on top of the cage completely, so no need to drop the cage down but holding off on welding the main hoop base plates just in case. And those holes in the dash are speed holes that need to be closed up. A few pics for your viewing discomfort. Thanks for looking.✌️

Added some gusseting to the knee bar. The cage warped a little, it teeter totters on the drives side A pillar and passenger side main hoop tubes. Depending on which way I manipulated the cage the opposite corners would be high. I decided to put a good tack weld at the passenger side A pillar tube and utilize the OE seat belt attaching point and ratchet strap that corner of the cage down. Worked out great! The door sill tubes are tacked in place, I’ll will pre-fit the door tubes in place to make sure everything is going to fit where it should. Thanks for looking.

They gave it to me….

BOOM!!! I want to thank the seller and his son for their patience while I figured out what I needed to make them work. New lug nuts and hub centric rings 73.00-57.10 Maxxim “Winner” by Konig,
15”x6.5, weigh 16.5 pounds and are all straight.
Thanks for looking! ✌️

Coming along nicely!


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At a sloths pace but thanks!!

Still at it. Roll cage is welded to the car, need to make a few welds at the door tubes, installed the C pillar down tubes and diagonal tubes to rear shock towers.

Teaching myself how tig on this Dinosaur. 1st round not so hot.

2nd round I changed to a smaller tungsten and turned down the gas. Lil better.

Wow! Used to that machine, but only for stick welding. I honestly didn't know they made a Tig attachment for it.

How thick is that material? It's easier to learn on slightly thicker material, only because it won't blow out from under you. Watch and read what ever you can. That's mainly how I learned.

DE80q wrote:Wow! Used to that machine, but only for stick welding. I honestly didn't know they made a Tig attachment for it.

How thick is that material? It's easier to learn on slightly thicker material, only because it won't blow out from under you. Watch and read what ever you can. That's mainly how I learned.

Material is pretty thin. Maybe 2 to 3x the thickness of the sheet metal on cars?? I was under a little bit of a time constraint so I found what was close and got after it. I have video but having trouble uploading it to the forum. Pic below is what I’m working on. It’s a roller for a conveyor system. I mig welded 4 internal parts with a 2” diameter hole that gets a pipe with bearings mig welded to them. I tig welded the center radius seam, someone else previously tig welded the long horizontal seam. Thanks for looking and the tips!

Working on the seating arrangements as well.

3rd round we came out punching. It’s a 10 round fight and there is still work to be done!
Thanks for looking.

Vids:

https://youtube.com/shorts/30uPRKN7H54?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/ggtrsiZTnAs?feature=share

https://youtube.com/shorts/7xdvS4inGtA?feature=share

Always Be Comfortable
Seat time is important. Weather you’re under the hood or behind the wheel, Always Be Comfortable. Bent some tubes up, notched them out to fit the 1”x2”x??? bar, made a seat bracket template and got after it.
Thanks for looking.

It’s not welded to the cage or the car yet. Gotta figure that process out. I only have 4 holes drilled and tapped, so I need to drill and tape more holes for fine adjustment.

It might be an optical illusion but you look to be way too far back. With on hand at 12:00 on the wheel there should be a slight bend in your elbow. It looks like you're reaching for the wheel and might not be able to reach the shifter. Unless you plan to pour a fairly thick insert in that seat shell. Just a thought.

MikeB25 wrote:It might be an optical illusion but you look to be way too far back. With on hand at 12:00 on the wheel there should be a slight bend in your elbow. It looks like you're reaching for the wheel and might not be able to reach the shifter. Unless you plan to pour a fairly thick insert in that seat shell. Just a thought.

Shalom
“ I only have 4 holes drilled and tapped, so I need to drill and tape more holes for fine adjustment.” Or I incorporate the seat slider I bought but people say they can have play in them and the rule book is vague. It doesn’t say you can or can’t. But is it safer with or with out it?

Latest and greatest on the tig welding. Took DE80q’s advice and practiced on some thicker material. 1/4” plate lap joints, the foot pedal was floored, need to figure out the technique for feeding the filler rod.
Thanks fo looking

Drilled and tapped some holes. I think I missed one??