I took a summer semester (short) of body 101 at a local jr college in the early 90's. We had to pass his hammer test to start working on our own projects, no real instruction, just help as needed. So I can warp 2 pieces together that just happen to stick to each other. I watched him weld a patch in and then hammer weld it clean.......it was f'ing art. I tend to always be working on something with no time to practice, so the torch is for cutting and bending. I hope in the future after retirement to spend time practicing, right now screwing up my stuff and re doing it is practicing . Sadly no "shop" class in my H.S, then later all the college courses for welding (or engine building) were during the day only and I was already working full time and out on my own. There wasn't anything real industrial around here back then, hell I still need to go a few towns north and inland to get welding gas now.
I gas welded all the oil pans I built, got pretty good at it. Also when I widened the tubs in my S'Box by 3". Never attempted body pieces. Only issue I had was Chevy oil pans, they would spit and pop; Fords and Mopars were no Problem.
We used to use some I forget the brand name but it came in a tube like toothpaste. Good stuff when replacing quarter panels just run a bead of it above and below the seam and go to it. Wiped right off as it turned into like a solid waste. BUT it did have asbestos in it.
Saw a video of Gene teaching a class once where he had an assistant standing by as he welded in a patch panel. He'd lay down maybe 1/2" - 3/4" of weld then hand the torch to his assistant while he hit the bead with a hammer & dolly as it was still hot. Then he'd set down the hammer/dolly and take the torch back from the assistant and lay down another short bead, give the torch back to the assistant and hammer the bead flat; and repeated until the weld was completed all the way around.
Re coat hangers for filler rod. We used to use them all the time. All our uniforms/coveralls came in weekly and we had a stack of coat hangers in the locker room, those of us who drove a service truck kept them in a cabinet, so we always had a bunch of coat hangers. Back when they were black the steel was really good, perfect for welding filler rod. But sometime in the 80's or 90's I guess they changed to a much cheaper wire for the hangers, the color changed to a light gold/greenish color. The alloy used was really crappy, not fit for use as filler rod.
As to the "gas saver" a few posts back, when I worked at GM/Fisher Body plant in Atlanta from 58-66, I was in the body construction dept. and we had a torch that was a "gas saver", and if I could find one at a reasonable cost I'd buy it. It was only a slight bit larger than a normal OA torch but had a lever on the handle like a cutting torch. When the button was depressed and a lach button slipped into a "keyhole", it worked like a normal OA torch. But when that lever was released it cut the torch back to an adjustable acetylene only flame. You could weld, then release lever and hang the torch on a hook, ready for instant use on the next car down the line! Would be nice for hammer welding, etc. also.
Called an 'Economiser' on this side of the pond, here's the one fitted on my O/A rig. In this close up view you can see where the Acetylene pilot flame comes from. These are really handy when hammer welding, hanging up the torch puts it out; pick it up and the pilot flame lights the torch. Before I had the Economiser, I had to be so careful not set fire to something important when putting the lit torch down to do some quick hammer and dolly work.
I have all 4 processes of welders in my garage, mig, tig, arc, and gas. I prefer tig or gas, but use whatever I feel is best for a particular job.I have two stories about gas welding that I love to share. The first goes back man years to when my late friend, Danny Barger and I were building an exhaust system for a 56 pickup with a 390/C6 installed. As we laid on our backs joining sections of exhaust tube together, Danny looks at me and asks in all seriousness, "how did they weld exhaust systems together before they had metal coat hangars?". The second story takes place at a major car show a few years ago. I am at Rod Covell's booth trying to negotiate his donation of a couple of his how to tapes to my auto mechanics program I was teaching at the time. Over to one side, Rod was playing a continuous loop video of him forming and welding an aluminum midget nose. A guy stood there, with rapt attention to the video. We are talking and all of a sudden this guy shouts out and interrupted us, saying, " hey, you're gas welding that aluminum nose together!". Rod replies, "yes I am,". And, the guy says, I tried gas welding aluminum and all I got was holes and puddles! Rod looked at him and said, "So did I when I started out.". Good point, especially gas or tig welding. It's kind of like the guy that jumps into a cab in New York City and asks the cabbie, "how do I get to Carnegie Hall?". The cabbie looks over his shoulder and says, "practice, practice, practice". To be a good welder, it takes the same. Practice , practice, practice! .
the putty for sure helps control the heat. i was impressed with it when i tried it. i placed it on the front side and the backside on both sides of the joint. it was about a quarter inch away on both sides and i could touch the surrounding metal after welding it together. ill try do a step by step tutorial next weekend
No it certainly is not cheating! At Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis we made our own "asbestos mud" We shredded some asbestos sheet and mixed it with water (think paper mache') in a bowl into a consistency of thick mud. It would stick to vertical surfaces. After application we would poke holes in it with the rod to promote heat escape. After welding and cool down we put the mud back in the bowl and re wetted it if needed again. My current batch is 40+ years old and with fresh water will be ready to use. I have a large roll of asbestos sheet out of a hardware store if anyone wants some PM me. Once wet with water no fibers escape. Is that traditional or what?
I have that method described in at least one O/A welding handbook from the 1960s. Didn't think anyone was still using it though.
The Jalopy Journal
