Welding Galvanised Sheep Hurdles - Repair Job...

[Muggins the Mug]

I've got a galvanised sheep hurdle where the weld that holds one of the loops on has broken off.

The loop appears to be made of 4mm galvanised steel, welded to 2mm thick box section galvanised steel. The edge of the loop appears to have been chamfered with a grinder, before being welding.

Obviously, I'm going to grind back the galvanising as far back as required and I don't intend to get "metal fume fever". I've got cold galvanising spray paint for afterwards.

Apart from that, what's the best way to proceed?

 

[tom2207]

give it a clean off with a flap disc ,nothing crazy and get it welded ,,, thats it .paint when finished and still warm , onto the next one

aim for a better penetration than the first weld ,,, they have been cautions on the thinner box , hence the failure

once its cleaned back ,,, hit it with a hammer to get it to sit back where it started from of course ,,, dont over think it

 

[RWD3M]

I doubt they've chamfered the loop, they've just failed to get any meaningful penetration into the post.

Hit a grinder over it the best you can, and MIG it back up ensuring you get penetration into the post. No drama there.

 

[RonMig]

I'd arc-weld it... with the stick/heat primarily on the 4mm loop, zig over to the 2mm and back, repeat...

 

[Muggins the Mug]

I'd arc-weld it... with the stick/heat primarily on the 4mm loop, zig over to the 2mm and back, repeat...

I've got some 2mm 6013 rods, but just waiting for postman to drop off an electrode holder for me, as the welder didn't come with one.

 

[Muggins the Mug]

give it a clean off with a flap disc ,nothing crazy and get it welded ,,, thats it .paint when finished and still warm , onto the next one

aim for a better penetration than the first weld ,,, they have been cautions on the thinner box , hence the failure

once its cleaned back ,,, hit it with a hammer to get it to sit back where it started from of course ,,, dont over think it

I've not got a flap disc, but have a knotted wire brush attachment for the grinder. Would that work, instead?

 

[Muggins the Mug]

I doubt they've chamfered the loop, they've just failed to get any meaningful penetration into the post.

Hit a grinder over it the best you can, and MIG it back up ensuring you get penetration into the post. No drama there.

I think you're right about the lack of chamfer. I guess the fabricator was being overly cautious about blowing through the 2mm box section...

 

[wyn]

I've not got a flap disc, but have a knotted wire brush attachment for the grinder. Would that work, instead?

The wire brush will just polish the galv. A grinding disc would be best to get rid of the galv.

 

[RonMig]

If you've got a blowtorch you can burn the galv off but it can be a messy way to do it...
and you still wanna grind the 4mm edge...

You need an assortment of angry grinder attachments - flap discs, 1mm cut discs as well as wire wheels...
Various manual wire brushes are handy too.
Seems like Tool Shopping is required !

Whichever method you use, wear a mask so you don't breathe it all in...

 

[tom2207]

I've not got a flap disc, but have a knotted wire brush attachment for the grinder. Would that work, instead?

probably not ,, use the edge of a cutting disc ,,, it will do , wear goggles and dont tell anyone I said it was ok ,,, you dont want the health and safety tossers advisors round your way if your using stick , just weld it anyway and if your outside and only doing one zinc poisoning wont be an issue just dont sniff the fumes , its a bad habit to get into.

 

[finyuk2005]

i actually find cutting discs as good as any for getting rid of heavy galv, a lot of other methods just smear it around,
Although with stick welding i wouldnt even bother cleaning it up, just have at it, but stay mostly on the flat bar, those gates are very thin box section!

 

[tom2207]

If you've got a blowtorch you can burn the galv off but it can be a messy way to do it...
and you still wanna grind the 4mm edge...

You need an assortment of angry grinder attachments - flap discs, 1mm cut discs as well as wire wheels...
Various manual wire brushes are handy too.
Seems like Tool Shopping is required !

Whichever method you use, wear a mask so you don't breathe it all in...

maybe even two grinders ,, lol ,,, [ said the man with about 40 of them ]

 

[Guineafowl]

I’ve done quite a few of these - hurdles are definitely getting thinner. Very easy to blow through with stick.

At the risk of overthinking, would it be better with DCEN, and maybe a heat sink inside the box?

 

[finyuk2005]

I’ve done quite a few of these - hurdles are definitely getting thinner. Very easy to blow through with stick.

At the risk of overthinking, would it be better with DCEN, and maybe a heat sink inside the box?

more galv than steel now!
if you had a chunk of aluminium that fits inside the box it would help stop you blowing through for sure

 

[jo1010]

Use mig or arc depending which one your most experienced with....if your not used to arc you can too easily blow through 2mm

 

[awemawson]

I gave up welding mine - they were cheap ones and the material is paper thin. I even made up a jig to hold horizontals and verticals at 90 degrees. Far too easy to blow through. I was migging but I suppose brazing would probable be a better approach but the welded one always ended up too weak and breaking again. Chucked a load away not long ago.

When I say cheap, they were cheap quality but definitely not cheap financially !

 

[Guineafowl]

I gave up welding mine - they were cheap ones and the material is paper thin. I even made up a jig to hold horizontals and verticals at 90 degrees. Far too easy to blow through. I was migging but I suppose brazing would probable be a better approach but the welded one always ended up too weak and breaking again. Chucked a load away not long ago.

When I say cheap, they were cheap quality but definitely not cheap financially !

Yes, very frustrating. I often end up using the ‘farmer’s weld’ (baler twine) for the loops.

 

[Blobber]

Just stick an M6 bolt right through it, wont fall off then

 

[awemawson]

Just stick an M6 bolt right through it, wont fall off then

They take paper thin electro-galvanised tube (I suspect sometimes cheap 20mm conduit), squash the end flat and butt them up to another tube at 90 degrees so nowhere for a bolt sadly.

 

[Blobber]

They take paper thin electro-galvanised tube (I suspect sometimes cheap 20mm conduit), squash the end flat and butt them up to another tube at 90 degrees so nowhere for a bolt sadly.

Look at the picture, a bolt straight through, no grinding, no welding, 5mins with a drill and some spanners?