Today's Pointless Welding

[FranV8]

Was in the garage today, decided to repair the really cheap hand fork (had a poorly attached plastic handle that was even more poorly attached after I gave it too much grief).

Anyway, quick clean up later and started welding it. Pleased with the solid result, especially given the thinner nature of the steel of the fork material.

Of course for the cost of the gas, and probably the metal tube, I could have bought a new hand fork...

The second bit was a piece of tube I needed to put some handles on. First tube junction I've ever done, and moving down thickness. So prepped it up, so the fit up was good. Then proceeded to weld it together.

Made my life harder using 1.6mm filler, should've clipped off some 0.8mm wire from the MIG. Anyway, got through it, using the pedal, had to fill a few blowthroughs as well.

After I'd finished, I got the calipers out, wondering what the thickness was. Turns out it was 0.5mm! I was quite pleased. Still plenty to learn, but it's progress. One side is airtight too, the other isn't quite, but I can see the pinhole where I didn't fuse the end of one weld into the start of the next.

Mask was playing about a bit - but found that the sensitivity knob is marked up the wrong way round...

 

[cumbriasteve]

There's a certain satisfaction in saving something from the skip, my lawn edger snapped across the half moon blade..out with the welder and for some reason that weld was probably the best I have ever achieved...even took it to show 'er indoors' which perhaps was not one of my better ideas...will take my muddy boots off next time!

 

[FranV8]

I'm quite pleased with the number of garden tools I keep going instead of a few quid here and there thrown at the garden centre. Mover is still on it's original blade, I know that's an easy one but that was also after an incident involving smashing the corner off one of these modern (and rubbish) drain covers.

I'm not always sure the ladies in our lives fully understand the satisfaction and savings we've made - but then I suppose they have some measure of the outgoings to the tool shops, gas suppliers and the fact that you spent three hours in the garage just to save a tenner...

 

[Wedg1e]

I'm not always sure the ladies in our lives fully understand the satisfaction and savings we've made - but then I suppose they have some measure of the outgoings to the tool shops, gas suppliers and the fact that you spent three hours in the garage just to save a tenner...

My lady friend comes from a family where they always just threw money at a problem untili it went away - new bathroom £££, telly packed in £££, lawnmower broke £££.
Then I came along... fixed the telly, sorted the mower and fitted a new bathroom
It's got to the stage now where anything Jo fancies buying she shows me a picture and asks "Could you make that?"
I come from a family where my dad fixed cars and in return his customers gave him their skills. Bathroom need doing? Pair of sills and respray on a Mk. 2 Escort. Telly faulty? Ex-rental (still with the coin box on the back!) 26", fair swap for new brakes on a Maxi...

 

[pedrobedro]

I broke the garden fork digging a pampas grass up so I welded a 2mm steel collar round the break and it took the rest out no trouble. Next door brought me a Ryobi strimmer to look at yesterday for his allotment buddy. It had been to a garden machinery repair shop for a new pull cord and never went since. I had it in pieces and the combined head and block were loose so it moved with the piston and the cdi connections were arcing to earth. He gave me a tenner beer money for getting it going. I like doing this kind of thing and it's all a learning curve and any contributions are gratefully accepted