Hope somebody can help,

I've never done any welding before but I'm going to try it on my car that has just failed its MOT, dont worry its not a ford, its a crappy old merc 190!

Has anybody got any tips?

This may sound stupid for someone thats about to atempt welding their car but when i cut the rusty bit out do I make the new bit sit inside the hole, i.e. fit flush then weld the seem and grind flat, or do you put the new patch over the top of the hole meaning that you have a patch of steel proud of the surface?

And if you were welding up holes in the inner wings would you do it from under the bonnet side or from inside the wheel arch?

Any help greatly appreciated

 

Always have a fire extinguisher at hand!

 

If you haven't already got a welder get a Mig with gas of around 100 amps (e.g. from Machine Mart). I try to 'joddle' the repair piece if I wish to be neat. The joddler puts a step in the repair piece for a flusher fit. Google for the tool.

I normally weld both joins as this ensures a strong repair. Unless you have some nasty lumps (and you will get some, everybody does ) don't bother grinding off.

Make sure all your metal is clean, and I mean clean. Contaminents will mean it spits back at you like a bastard!

Happy welding

 

You must have fire extinguisher/s available and buckets of water and washing up liquid type squezzy bottles for small fires, WHICH YOU WILL HAVE.

YOU MUST HAVE SOMEONE WITH YOU WATCHING THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WELD FOR FIRE.

Practice on scrap metal , not brand new shiney metal, BEFORE you go anywhere near a car.

If you are new to it, cut the new piece bigger than the hole, place it underneath and weld through the old onto the new.

Don't weld inside a garage unless you can afford to pay for a new garage and house after it catches fire.

Inner wing holes, it has to be which ever side you can get at withhout stripping out too much, and which is furthest away from anything that will catch fire.

Welds have to be continuous around the patch.

Take some photos of the burnt out shell and post when you have finished.

.Did I mention fire extinguishers


.

 

as above be carful not to set anything alight,and an extinguisher is a must!

The hardest thing is gettin ur welder setup properly,it needs to be set high enough to penetrate properely but not so high it just blow a hole in the thin steel! This is were practice comes in handy!

I only tried welding for the first time maself a few months ago and u soon pick it up!Just gotta be patient!

 

Use a good quality mig welder and the proper gas those small bottles are a load of shite

Fire extinguishers and disconnect the battery

Make sure everything is clean and you have a good earth connection...

Practice first

Good luck

 

crikey i was contemplating having a bash at welding, fuck that! ill leave it to the pros

 

Dont do pidgeon shit welds lol.

 

here's some tears for the fire.

 

Thanks chaps, fire extinguisher is first on list then

I'll post some pics up of either the burnt out car or nuclear standard welding

 

something i realy must learn

stepdad and his mate were welding the family car up (a nova) small fire took a door card out luckily there was water to hand

 

Welding cars is by far much harder then ppl think. Thin sheet is such a nightmare to weld and you simply cannot do full neat runs.

Also, if your not experienced I wouldnt start practicing ona car, remember most of your welding will be either overhead or vertical............again takes a lot of years to get it right.

if you can try and do as much downhand if possible.

I find short, spot welds with a few seconds to cool between give the neatest and strongest joint without the risk of blowing through.

 

perfect advice for you, plus with small spotwelds the distortation of the metal is not as bad

 

anyone got any pics of welding they've done?

I want the bits in the inner wings to look as neat as possible but enevitably you will always be able to see the patches won't you? Unless the whole panel is replaced is suppose, but i'm not going to be doing that!

 

Ok, few photo's of some of the welding on my Series 2 restoration - this is TIG welding with a LOT of experience - don't expect welds like this on your first attempt







(I know they're big - but if they're small you can't see up close and personal )

Few tips to welding:

Fire extinguisher
Make sure the welding equipment is set up right and you're using higher gas pressures if outside etc.
Make sure the area is bare metal and cleaned with a solvent like acetone
If sorting rust out - don't try and weld patches where it's gone through - chop a section out using a rule of removing 50% more than the rust patch - i.e if the rust hole is 4cm wide, go 8 centimetres, 2 each side for the hole.
Never try and weld over rust.
Avoid welding where there's waxoyl on the other side - it catches fire VERY quickly.

Hope that helps

 

1000 points for being flash with tig, mmmmmmmmmmm tig!! well tough

 

used mig on my resto, with co2, pump gas from the pub, also know as poor mans mig. Still solid

 

Do a 4 year apprenticeship in it like i did, helps no end!

 

ouch, all the rubbish you breath in, in a few years. My hat is off

 

Oh - and never weld on an empty stomach - you WILL be sick



I can't take the credit for the welds i've posted above - should have made that clearer earlier - they're by Chris, the guy doing the respray on my Series 2.

I can weld and was taught to TIG weld (amongst other styles) whilst at Honda Racing F1, figured there were worse places to learn

 

one good thing is you can get a milk allowance for welding zinc, so no more cornflakes with stella, or is that just me! lol

 

use all there advise!
i had enuff of paying people to weld my cars,so i brought a decent gas mig and seeked advise,and keep trying,also its a good side line,earnt a few quid doing other peoples!

 

Lots of good advice on this given but the above sums it up perfectly

 

Some Pics I took what seems like years ago lol (before the arc eye set in )





Replaced only part of my panel and joined it in behind the headlight where its not seen, that way the top of the slam panel is still as it left the factory.

Its good to have a go yourself - but if your worried about the look of the inner wings etc then get someone else to do it

 

Tony have you still got that spit ?

 

Yes Boss Bang my head on it every time I go in the garage

 

When you up here next ?

 

11th of Oct

 

Whats happening then

Will give you ring tomorrow about it mate if thats ok ?

 

no one has mentioned that fact that you should have a decent mask too
and DON'T look at the sparkaly bits when you are welding without the mask, it hurts your eyes, sometimes for days

i've got no pics of when i welded up my sills but they were rotten to the core, floorpan and sill were not joined by anything so out came the grinder and the welder and everything else

if you are thinking of welding in a difficult place then it's best left to the pros, but if it's the open end of a panel then have a bash yourself

but make sure you practice with a bit of old metal first, that way you can set the mig up to do whats right for you, rathe than flap about with settings while on the car itself

and, if you are doing a long run, make sure you only tack it in place first so that everythng lines up proplery before you even think of seaming it, anddon't seam a bit long length all in one go, the metal heats up and it distorts like a fooker

 

a good forum to check out here
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/

 

If you're using a mig, you should really disconnect the ECU and alternator too. I dont always do it and have got away with it, but you may not be so lucky

 

Thanks for the advice, lots of helpful stuff here, the idea is that i can have a crack at it on my old merc 190, there's a fair bit to do so hopefully when its done my skills will be better than when i started!

This way when the rusty old fords i have a liking for fail their mot's with welding i can save myself some serious money

 

This is not the way to do it ......