Bit of a follow up on the DC TIG welding of aluminium (Spent most of the day on the toob - tedious)

I'm not sure if this will work on Birmabright but if you have a machine that will allow you to switch the polarity of the torch and earth (I don't mine is basic basic) this type of solution might be do-able



Mr TIG - nice (!) <= WTF ! Anyway the content is good

A brief explanation of the AC "cleaning action" is given here =>



Also worth looking at.

Bit the bullet and ordered one of these



Well that's baked beans on toast for the rest of September and probably for the whole of October...

OooOOOOOooooo VERY nice! Whose planning on a little aluminium welding then?

Shortbase said:

OooOOOOOooooo VERY nice! Whose planning on a little aluminium welding then?

Click to expand...

Got to find a solution to parts like this =>





(Outer body work rips)

And more structural problems like this =>





Rear tub stringers

If I don't / can't weld aluminium then most of this vehicle will have to be scrapped. (T'was a real blow finding out my DC TIG welding box won't be able to help)

The rear tub would be written off
The front wings would be gonners
The back door is buggered
Don't even ask about the side doors
And don't get me started on the safari roof...

Are there any welders in your local area could do the bits you can't for you? I suspect it might take a very expensive welder and an experienced user to make a good job of it.

Alibro said:

Are there any welders in your local area could do the bits you can't for you? I suspect it might take a very expensive welder and an experienced user to make a good job of it.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure - there is someone I know who would probably know someone who might know...

...thing is with people who do things for a living is that they always look at cost: There will always be a battle with them because they think it is cheaper / easier to buy a replacement.

In an ideal world I reckon this is probably correct.

Problem is - much like the bought A post replacement part (as you can see in the posts on the previous page and probably see in the forthcoming posts) different bits are often not as good as they could or should be. It isn't an ideal world. On the whole - for most of the projects I've done - be it houses or cars or what ever - the mantra "better the devil you know" is more often than not the correct line to follow.

Sometimes you'll come up with exceptions to that rule (and I'll post up an example of that in the next couple of days!) but on the whole - the bits you took off should go back on again. I'm aiming to DIY until it is finished - learning new skills along the way if necessary and eating beans on toast if needs be too...

Stretch said:

I'm not sure - there is someone I know who would probably know someone who might know...

...thing is with people who do things for a living is that they always look at cost: There will always be a battle with them because they think it is cheaper / easier to buy a replacement.

In an ideal world I reckon this is probably correct.

Problem is - much like the bought A post replacement part (as you can see in the posts on the previous page and probably see in the forthcoming posts) different bits are often not as good as they could or should be. It isn't an ideal world. On the whole - for most of the projects I've done - be it houses or cars or what ever - the mantra "better the devil you know" is more often than not the correct line to follow.

Sometimes you'll come up with exceptions to that rule (and I'll post up an example of that in the next couple of days!) but on the whole - the bits you took off should go back on again. I'm aiming to DIY until it is finished - learning new skills along the way if necessary and eating beans on toast if needs be too...

Click to expand...

I agree 100%. I used to work for a computer company that ordered whole printers from their spares suppliers instead of individual parts. I usually nicked the bits I needed from the spare because they were nearly always in a worse state then the faulty one. Even if they did work they usually ended up introducing faults the original never had.

Today this arrived =>



This is insurance - just in case those diesel series 2s are actually as slow as everyone says

The seller told me it was operational but that it whines - so that's a nice little project for the future - overdrive porn on its way...

BULKHEAD (partial) DAY TWENTY-ONE

Today I started the adjustments on the replacement lower A pillar (see previous post on other page for why + what etc)

Gutter for the door seal first =>



Starting out with a bit of Zincor that has been bent in the bending brake to form a 90 degree angle.

Carefully channel the Chi and voila =>



Alternatively give the stretching and shrinking jaws a go (don't forget expensive equipment like this isn't necessary if you want to do hammer forms as shown previously in the thread - unless of course you have graduated from the school of Uri Geller)...



These things are limited in how close you can get curves to sit next to each other - also as you can see - tight curves you get puckering





Anyway it is about right. I've learnt to not spend too much time trying to get curves on thin sheets of metal just right if you are about to weld them onto another bit...



...who knows what will happen? You could blow holes in the piece - it might bend a different way because it is being an utter ham shanker (or you've made it too hot)

Trimming the edge to get it closer to the size needed for the lip for the door seal. I needed a thicker piece to start off with because the shrinker / stretcher jaws need a certain depth of metal to work



After cutting / trimming it moved - hmmm

(Like I said don't stress - go with the flow)



Making sure the straight bit is straight though =>



(^^^^^ Like they say tidy workbench - tidy mind. Untidy workbench - tidy minge)

Trimming the replacement panel so the door seal lip width is correct (mine has a 20mm gutter width)



Don't even get too stressed if the new strip is wandering away from the edge you've just cut...



...clamp at one end and tack (weld) from one end pushing in / clamping where necessary =>



See - getting better - even though the curved bit at the end is being a pillock



Note about where to weld: Grinding material in the gutter is harder / more difficult =>



Grinding on the underside of the gutter is easier =>



^^^^^

Because of this I spent more time (seam) welding on the side of the gutter (allowing stuff to drop through if it wanted to the underside) as it is easier to grind that side

I've just got to sand / smooth out the sides of the gutter with the Black and Decker Powerfile (surprisingly good / handy tool) then that bit will be done. However before that gets done I want to make sure the rest of the modifications work out. (No point in making it gucci if it ends up in the bin 'cos another bit didn't work out)

##########

Next up: Joggle / step for the bit that should go under a larger sheet piece on the bulkhead.

I'm just using bits of wood and metal to pad out the bits that shouldn't move =>



(So effectively a make shift hammer form)

I need to smack it down a bit by about the thickness of a sheet



Decided to help it some by annealing the already (incorrectly) made edge



Hammer time =>



Compared with a "straight" edge =>



Next up - adding in a bit of metal and shortening the panel ('cos they also made it too long)

To be continued

BULKHEAD (partial) DAY TWENTY TWO

More of the adjustments to the lower A pillar

Smoothing out the gutter welds =>



They're not as bobble free as I'd like them to be so I need to do some adjustments later on

############

Welded in some extra metal at the top end so it will fit to the old bulkhead part properly



##########

Cut and bent the end of the panel to the correct length =>



Very tightly clamped bits of wood - hammer time



I then trimmed the edges and filed them smooth

############

Number one pain in the arse - holes for the front wing adjustments =>

Cut out the whole pressed section for the holes and the joggled depressions for the clips



Checking the hole positions are at least more or less in he correct position in relation to their individual positions...



...they were! More or less right: Just punched into the wrong place on the replacement panel.

Right - here's a welding trick (quite a common one) =>

Heat sink



^^^^^ This is a big lump of brass (I think)

Clamp it firmly under a gaping chasm and you can weld over the top of it. Because it is a dissimilar metal (to steel) the welds don't stick (unless you are being a total plonker and apply way too much heat for absolutely ages and end up mixing everything into some unhappy mess)



This is the underside of some spot welds (big block of brass removed)



Tacking everything into place...



...you can see the gaps between the parts are massive. Not much can be done - the cutting wheel has a certain thickness (though I'm tempted to cut the whole panel orthogonally and reposition the holes in a different way if I have to do this again)

{I've said it before - I'll say it again - when at all possible weld sheet steel real close - no gap - if at all possible}



It is times like this when I wish I had a MIG welder - I could blast through a lot faster - filling those crappy gaps a lot quicker.

I got fed up and came home early today - filling that amount with a TIG welder is a pain in the arse...

I have to recommend getting a mig welder. I tend to call it "bridge welding" where you close op the gaps!!!

Shortbase said:

I have to recommend getting a mig welder. I tend to call it "bridge welding" where you close op the gaps!!!

Click to expand...

Yeah - I know it would be good for the situation above but for the long term (in most situations) it really isn't worth it for me.

I've already got three large(ish) gas cylinders in the workshop. If I went for MIG as well then I'd need another cylinder for CO2 / argon mix - a half decent MIG kit would cost the best part of a grand - already down to beans on toast for the next few months - and the blinking argon cylinder is nearly empty...

If you are not going to use the mig "hard" i.e. Business use, then a semi decent unit would only cost you a couple of hundred. And a bottle of argon mix from hobbyweld is £70 plus deposit and one of those gave me enough gas to completely rebuild my mates 72 beetle ( and I do mean rebuild - new floors, outriggers, sills/ heater channels, about 30 fabricated plates/patches - all in all either 7 or 8 0.7kg reels of wire) so I do feel you don't need to spend that much to achieve what you need for now.. plus a mig is so much better for those grotty "under the Landy rusty chassis patches" we all love so much.....

Shortbase said:

If you are not going to use the mig "hard" i.e. Business use, then a semi decent unit would only cost you a couple of hundred. And a bottle of argon mix from hobbyweld is £70 plus deposit and one of those gave me enough gas to completely rebuild my mates 72 beetle ( and I do mean rebuild - new floors, outriggers, sills/ heater channels, about 30 fabricated plates/patches - all in all either 7 or 8 0.7kg reels of wire) so I do feel you don't need to spend that much to achieve what you need for now.. plus a mig is so much better for those grotty "under the Landy rusty chassis patches" we all love so much.....

Click to expand...

That type of hobbyweld system doesn't exist in Holland - bit of a shame because if you are an intermittent user then it looks like a good plan - the deposit on their bottles (210 GBP for a 5 litre bottle) is more than the cost of buying one here though. There's a slightly different system here where you buy the bottle and then join in with the exchange system.

The cheapest machine here in Holland is about 250 euros. I don't think I'd bother trying to get something like that working (!). With the cheapest option I'd be about 500 euros in the hole. (Machine {250} + 10L bottle of gas {200} + other stuff) The problem is with that kind of outlay I'm nearly always of the mind to spend a bit more on the machine to try and get something that will work effectively. There are handy features on the better machines that promise to make life so much easier...

Shortbase said:

If you are not going to use the mig "hard" i.e. Business use, then a semi decent unit would only cost you a couple of hundred. And a bottle of argon mix from hobbyweld is £70 plus deposit and one of those gave me enough gas to completely rebuild my mates 72 beetle ( and I do mean rebuild - new floors, outriggers, sills/ heater channels, about 30 fabricated plates/patches - all in all either 7 or 8 0.7kg reels of wire) so I do feel you don't need to spend that much to achieve what you need for now.. plus a mig is so much better for those grotty "under the Landy rusty chassis patches" we all love so much.....

Click to expand...

Actually - having just flicked through the manual on my new machine it looks like I've got an AC SMAW function on there! I think this could be the same as "pulsed DC MMA" which should hopefully mean I'll be able to weld thinner and thinner stuff with sticks - if that's the case I'll be having a much happier time of it all. I've just got to wait for the box of bits to arrive (they weren't sent with the big box for some reason) and then I can start to play...

...here's what chuck e chuck chuck's got to say about it

BULKHEAD (partial) DAY TWENTY THREE

Well it was tedious but I got the holes filled =>



It now needs a bit of attention - smoothing out and bending straight after all that welding - to be done at a later date...

...best to do something else if one bit is getting on / has gotten on ya wick...

#########

So back to the main part of the bulkhead.

Before cutting off the old A post (RHS) I noted that the edges line up like this =>



I kind of felt that was a good thing to remember (!)

The next bit went a bit Pete Tong - but I'll show is anyway 'cos the photographs might seem a bit confusing if "as if by magic it all gets done" (and there's a bit of that anyway 'cos I had a bit of a brain fart and forget to take some pictures)

In the picture below I made up a bent bit of zincor and marked out the holes for the door hinges.

I then thought - "You know what? I could finally use those joggle pliers I bought twenty {yes twenty!} years ago" - gucci gucci - could make a nice strong joggle joint just there...



...then I remembered "oh yes - the other side has to be flat so that new panel fits"...



...anyway these are joggle pliers - they're crap - I hardly ever use them - I've had them for over twenty years don't ya know...





Meanwhile back looking at the damage => Rust! RUST! So that needs to be fixed too



Hmmmm



Well nothing for it - carry on! Remove the A post (and the foot well - note I've left a fair amount of meat on it so I can try and save the end capping bits)



I also cut around the wiggly bit to save the stiffener so I can copy that shape later on



(what fun)



Que'll surprise - Mon Dieu - sacre bleu - Arc de Triumph (<= yes folks that's a bryd called Joan on an old motor bike)



Oh well - went off and had a bit of a ball scratch and then decided to replace the rusty bit on the far right hand side of the picture below...



...this is when the brain fart happened and I forgot to take some pictures - the end got bent over and round to match the edge of the panel - and the new bit got tacked in place. This is me trimming it to size after all the smoke cleared...



############

I think the brain fart happened 'cos I'm expecting sudden bright lights and sputtering at any moment as this is running out =>

Ah. That's a rather low main bottle pressure. Technically known as "all gone"

Ani I actually love my Joddle Ploers / edge setting tool. Works a treat as long as you remember to leave. 1-2mm gap between the fold and the edge of the infill piece for the fillet weld.

Shortbase said:

...
Ani I actually love my Joddle Ploers / edge setting tool. Works a treat as long as you remember to leave. 1-2mm gap between the fold and the edge of the infill piece for the fillet weld.

Click to expand...

Well I'm glad to hear someone has a use for them - if I find a use for mine I'll let you know!

Reached a crucial stage today - could hardly get into the workspace - time to tidy up.

Problem with tidying up is not only that I know tomorrow I'll spend most of my time trying to find stuff again but it makes you stand back and look at things a bit differently.

Ho Lee Fuq - I wonder what he would make of this =>





It really doesn't look very good does it?

Especially when you try and find the rest of it...

i cant fault the make do a mend, have a go attitude.

if you do go down the route of replacing your rear tub supports YRM in uk sell galvanised versions (now with correct series support brackets) they also sell the top hat channels which run north south under the floor, and floor plate itself. in the case of the floor plate thats 3mm alloy which brings me onto my actual point. if its an upgrade to an original part (in this case galvanised, or thicker parent material) then i dont mind replacing for new.