newby welding question

deacon · #1 10-29-2008, 10:52 AM

Yes I got my welder in the mail. Yes I borrowed a rod and shield and yes I read the stuff about how to start the arc. Of course I didn't seem to grasp the concept until I burned up a rod and pretty much butchered an old bike frame but by golly the thing looks like it is going to hold.

Now it is ugly as original sin but I think it will hold. Took one complete rod to learn how to get it started. They tell you to pretend you are striking a match. What they forget to tell you is not to actually touch the striker. In other words get close but don't actually touch the metal. Jeeze how stupid am I anyway. Thank god for my new angle grinder is all I can say.

So here is the question. I glanced at the blue flame a couple of times by accident. Just a nano second but I saw it anyway. So do I have a trip to the emergency room in my future or will my retina survive the glimpse. If it helps any I have double vision all the time so it wasn't in good focus lol. Just a blue blur. What are the symptoms of retina burn anyway.

**Bikeguy Joe** · #2 10-29-2008, 11:20 AM

Just a glimpes is nothing.....don't do it often though. I have welded with no mask before (stupid, young) and I was O.K., 'cept you can get a killer headache from it.

**Bikeguy Joe** · #3 10-29-2008, 11:23 AM

deacon- I got a self darkening hood/mask at TSC for 30 dollars!!!! Solar powered too.
In my opinion the MOST valueable thing for the beginning welder is a self darkening mask.

If you don't have or can't afford one, then use a halogen shop light on your work, you'll be able to see it before you strike your arc.

deacon · #4 10-29-2008, 11:27 AM

Thanks joe I feel much better. I think I am going to like this welding thing, when I conquer the starting of the arc lol.

The welder I got was not the welder I thought I was buying but it is what he advertised. I had no idea that they even made a welder with no amp adjustments. It is pure seventy amps. According to the instructions on the case the size of the rod is how I should adjust for the metal thickness. It sounds reasonable to me. I used a 3/32 on the bike/engine mount receiver weld. My neighbor gave me some 1/16 rods I might try tacking the engine frame with. Try to cut down on the vibrations a bit.

That monstrosity of a weld that I put down makes me feel ashamed but I will learn. One thing about me is that I am tenacious. I don't mind being humiliated by a new thing, I just hate being beaten by something like this.

Very cool on the mask... I'll start looking around for one. What is TSC by the way...

**Bikeguy Joe** · #5 10-29-2008, 11:35 AM

T ractor S upply C o.

**Bikeguy Joe** · #6 10-29-2008, 11:36 AM

I bought a 110 v welder at sears which has some amp- adjustment. I practice a lot, I am not very good, but I like the challenge.

deacon · #7 10-29-2008, 11:56 AM

I am going to have to practice a lot more before I attempt the drive wheel. those things have a lot of stress on them. I probably should just go ahead and con my neighbor into welding them for me. I might do that when I return his mask and replace the rods I have burned up lol.

He hardly ever uses his rod welder. He goes almost all with the wire one. I Think he did use it recently for weld a tractor part for his son in law on the farm or something. It's why he didn't want to sell that one to me.

It's about twenty miles to the nears Tractor supply but the information allows me to make intelligent bids on ebay. I agree the always black mask is a pain but I wanted to know that the welder worked before I tried to pick up anything else for it.

I may have to get a new lead for the welder but I don't plan to do too much welding. I might make some animals from the old spark plugs and bike parts I have laying around lol.

Walter F. · #8 10-29-2008, 01:02 PM

The main thing to remember about welding is, anything you touch is HOT! Can't you "Tom Sawyer" your friend into doing it while you watch and learn? Happy Hills & Trails Walter F. GVP

deacon · #9 10-29-2008, 01:23 PM

If I con him into the welding of the drives I will definitely watch this time. I have his dark mask now I can watch. But the welding is so small I won't be able to see anything.

**2door** · #10 10-29-2008, 09:08 PM

Deac,
Is there any way you can return the stick welder and buy a little wire feed machine? I think you'd be much happier with the results. Many of the gasless wire feed, (MIG, for Metal, Inert Gas) use a flux core wire that's okay for tractor parts and stuff you don't care how it looks but a machine with gas makes all the difference in the world. Get a tank of C-25, that's an argon CO2 mix that will make your welds clean and strong with no slag or splatter. It takes a lot less practice to learn good welding technique with a wire feed and the wire is cheaper than sticks.
If you can't return the stick machine, stop by a local welding supply store, talk to the guys there and tell them what you're welding. They can provide you with the proper alloy rods and give you some good advice on how to use them. There's rod for every purpose and bicycle frames, steel ones, will require a mild steel rod intended for the purpose.
Good luck.
Tom