newby welding question

We need a pool here to guess how long the sprocket will stay on. and also how far it will fly, well that one might be hard to prove since it most likely will never be seen again. You wanted a picture well here it is...

34dhf6a.jpg
 
Here we go again with the stupid questions. I need to cut some thin metal. 70amps may not be enough but I thought I would at least ask.

Then I thought what would happen if I used a coat hanger as the electrode for this. I don't want to lay down any metal. I just want to burn though some.

So what if I take a piece of thin metal like the end brace on a metal shelf system you know the channel thing. Then I stick a coat hanger in my welder and arc it. What will it do to the metal I'm tryin to cut.
 
Deac,
It won't work! Your electrode for cutting will need to be a non consumeable material such as a carbon rod or tungston. The coat hanger will just stick to the metal or melt and leave you with a weld bead to cut. If the sheetmetal is thin and you want a nice cut why not use a jig saw with a metal cutting blade instead of your welder? Or a good pair of aviation sheet metal snips?I've chopped tops on cars and used a saw and/or an abrasive wheel. Cutting with an electric welder is like carving turkey with an electric toothbrush. It can be done but It's just not the right tool.
Tom
 
Ive got some cutting disks but I really dont like them. I guess I'll give them a try when I get ready to cut the frame,. Thanks for the information...
 
It will be interesting when you have to replace the crankcase seal and/or main bearing.
As for welding-the ground is everything. I wasn't worth a (darn) until I got a professional ground clamp amnd dumped the onw that came with the Miller Thunderbolt Keith Williams
 
I think I'm tired of experimenting. My plan tonight (which will probably change tomorrow) is to build one nice diy ebike move on to some other hobby. Probably welding little animal sculptures or making bicycle parts wind chimes.
 
I'm going to freeze all the gasoline bikes in place so the bearing destruction will have to wait a while. But I'm sure it will happen eventually. I will probably come back to bike building even though I really don't plan to. Who knows.
 
Well I finally got past step one. Being able to start an arc almost anytime anywhere.

Now I'm on to step two... I call this one, it's all about the puddle.... It has taken me this long to understand what that means. Yes you can teach an old dog new tricks it just takes forever to reprogram burnt out brain cells.
 
Deacon can't you just use a freewheel crank on that bike so the pedals wont turn when the motor is running? And yes, it is all about the puddle. You have to control the puddle. You can't let the puddle control you..weld
 
I burnt the wiring up on that bike build so moved on to a direct drive friction which is the only real success I ever have with ebikes. This one, once I get the balance right, is going to do exactly what I want. If it doesn't come apart on me.

Part of my problem when I was trying to weld drive wheels was that I was using a common washer to cap the end of the drive wheel and that is much to thin. It warped causing the drive to wobble. I just didn't realize it till now.

I found out that with the straight seventy amp welder, I can weld thin metal to thick metal but not thin to thin it burns it and gets no puddle lol. A man without a puddle is a man with two pieces of unconnected metal. Sometimes they disconnect later going down the road.
 
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For welding two pieces of thin metel together... just use several fast spot welds, (spacing them out) & keep adding more untill there is a complete weld.
 
Great tip thanks... When you told me how to weld that sprocket without warping it was the same idea and that worked well. I'll try to remember if I don't lose it in the pea soup that is my memory these days.

I like that I can weld inside a 3/8 inch pipe that seems to work the best for attaching drive wheels to the scooter motors.
 
I use a 6013 at the moment... The next box is 6011 but I haven't opened it yet. They are all 3/32, I might be about ready to try the 1/16 if I could find it.

I assume it is an ac welder. To be honest I bought it on ebay and it is very poorly marked. I bought it as a learning tool and that's about all it's good for. However it does seem to be up to most things after I go back to them. and I expect my biggest problem is operator error.

It's like the bike seat post. I welded it a while back when my biggest problem was starting an arc and keeping it going. When it broke yesterday I realized that it was being held together by splatters. I redid it with a good puddle and it hold and looks much better.

This kind of thread is good for guys who have never welded before. It might help them avoid the problems I have had learning to overcome. The hardest thing for me to do is to read some boring lecture on line. Even if it is about how to do things that I need to know. If I can put a real face to the lecture it is easier.

The tips you guys give me, should help anyone who is trying this for the first time. Not to mention have valuable they are to me.

Here is a question for you guys. If I burn a 1/16 rod in the same set temp welder will the arc be less hot. Or is it all about the amps...
 
I dont know where you will find 1/16 rods.The 3/32 lincoln fleetweld 35 e6011 is a good rod for jobs where the metal isn't clean.If you can pick up some fleetweld37 e6013 3/32,they are excelent choice for jobs involving irregular or short welds,and used with smaller ac welders having low open-circuit voltage.Remeber good ground and clean metal.HARLEYS DAD
 
a good arc definitely requires a good ground. I found that out the hard way. I did use the 6013 frist and still am using it. Now that I am better at the arc and puddle control it is working well for me. It has even been able to handle jobs that are correction of previous screw ups pretty darn well. I have already worn out one grind wheel on an angle grinder just cleaning up my messes but hey, that's why I buy tools to use them.

Well to use them if I can find them...
 
Many years ago in welding school i would have the kids make figure eights or arks on a sheet of paper with a pencil,so they would know how to control the ark.HD
 
If you made them hold a new pencil by the eraser, I can see how that is very close to a welding rod. With a new rod it reminds me of how robotic surgery must be, at least for me. I have very little feedback from the end of the rod.
 
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