vintage welding techniques?

Paul you are right i fogot about them.

 

Keeping the rods from absorbing moisture can be a big issue that can negatively affect your results.



I've got 3 of these rod storage tubes. The top screws on with the black gasket to seal out the moisture. I just opened one a month ago after at least a 5 year rest. I was amazed that the rod was still dry and welded like it was new. It saves having to buy new rods for each new project. I've been using mig for so long that it was kinda fun to stick weld an exhaust system for my buddy using his antique buzz box. (older than a hip roof Lincoln) I did a nice job. I was pleased.

 

Oxy Acetylene was invented in France in the 1890's just in time for early auto's. Many veteran cars have the body panels riveted together (similar look to aircraft). Manual Metal Arc (stick)was invented in the U.K.? in the 1920's but not used in heavy industry until the 1940's when the bugs had been ironed out. The first ship constructed with MMA "The Prince of Wales" sank shortly after entering service, the welds failed and she went to Davy Jone's Locker. Mmmm? back to hot solid rivets until the technology improved. BTW if anything had to be welded before O/A your local Blacksmith was the man to see, he would heat the metal white hot and dripping, quickly place the pieces together
and hammer weld them together, a good weld became a homogenous joining of two or more separate bars. (For simple welds, we can still Fire-weld and finish to a smooth surface two bars faster than they can be MIG welded and the welds ground smooth). Mig appeared in the 1960-70's, the first MIGS where huge and used by steel makers and heavy engineers to fabricate large steel beams and sections, the torches ran on electro-mechanical tracks, much like modern Submerged Arc welders. The modern small MIG is the welding marvel of our time. Now I'm waiting for the next generation of welders, the one where you hook up a couple of wires to the job, and the voice activated welder does exactly what you say, and, when it's finished the weld will make you a nice cup of tea. BTW before MIG a lot of sheetmetal workers used to weld with MMA and small dia. "touch electrodes" it was faster than O/A and had less distortion.
Finally, even with the benefit of modern technology it still comes down to one thing.... skill. Young apprentices come into my forge and are amazed at what the older hands can do, not realising at the time that one day they will possess the same skills. We have a saying when something dosn't work out the way it should... "lack of operator skill" and so they have to think (for themselves) what went wrong and do it again. When they get it right, that is their achievment, achievment leads to pride in their work, and the desire to learn and master more. Hence more masters.

 

I learned to O/A and Stick weld in high school (66-67). When I started working as a Heavy Equipment mechanic I had the luck of working with an Old Timer that bothered to teach me how to weld on the equipment. Used a lot of 7018 LH 78, 7024, and 7014. 90% of our welding was done with a SA 200 Lincoln gas welder. Used an Airarc a lot for cutting out welds then welding the new pieceback in.The O/A was mostly for cutting and heating (Rose bud tip ). I still use my 1946 SA200 at the houseand my torch for body worh now.

OLD HEMI

 

O/A, O/Propane, AC stick, DC stick, carbon-arc kit (man those things gave out major heat) on our old IdleArc 225 (which is over 30 years old and still going), coat hangers bronze rods (with and without flux)... gee. Good times.
Traditional? We used any ****** thing we could get our hands on.
I feel SO old but darn glad to have learned what I have learned. Sure wasn't spoiled.
But I like the new stuff.

 

Yea the 7018 lo hi was a ***** to keep flowing. but we did it.