Gas Welding

I just got an oxy/acetylene rig working after 10 years and need some input.

Some of my projects in my head say I will be braising in pinholes in an old Mac header, playing with an old Suzuki gas tank that had multiple dents and such, and I have a Chevelle that needs some serious rust removal.

I have never gas welded in my life but look forward to the learning curve. I have a Lincoln Mig without the gas hookup to. I am not the best migger but I manage to get things done with it.

As far as the header is there a certain rod for the thin metal? Right now I have a #2 welding tip and I think it might be to big for sheetmetal. My cutting tip is a #0 which is what I want for small stuff.

I have an old KZ900 tank that was in a wreck years ago that I will hone my skills on after I butch up the Suzuki tank. I want to cut the tanks in half so I can hammer and dolly the dents and then put them back together. Would braising them together work or should I mig the pieces together? Any particular rod I should use that will not affect paint adhesion?

Lastly my 71 Chevelle will need floorpans, trunkpans, passenger side whole quarter panel, and patch panels on the fenders and doors, I will have some work to do on the SS hood to. The hood pin holes have cracks that are coming from the holes and creeping in different directions. Would the hood cracks be a candidate for the gas or the mig? What about the patch panels, gas or mig? Remember I do not have the argon rig with my mig only flux cored wire.

I have been practicing on some scrap light gauge metal with an all purpose rod that was recommended for exhaust pipes and such and the white rod that was recommended for bodywork. Are there any other rods I should tryout? Be patient with the newby, this is all another world right now.

About the only advice I can give with the gas rig is that you're right about the #2 tip being too big for sheetmetal. I have managed to do nothing but burn holes with a #2 in my few experiments with sheet. I think a smaller tip and the thinnest rods are your best bet.

As for the mig, does your welder have the option of using a gas regulator for real mig welding? If so, get it and the bottle. You'll never want to use flux again once you use the real mig setup. The mig with 0.023" wire would be my choice on body panels, floorpans, gas tanks etc.

I'm sure that someone who is good with a gas rig could probably do wonders on that sheetmetal, but for me the mig is easier and more controllable. Remember when using the torch to always keep an eye on your flame, especially when not on your intended work. That baby will light up your garage in a hurry if your not paying attention.

i personally wouldnt cut a motorcycle tank in half and weld it back together period! :laugh: id try brazing some pins into the low areas to pull it out as much as possible then lay some lead in there.
eastwood makes a reasonably priced lead free solder kit that is pretty easy to use and can even be powder coated.
as far as the chevelle goes im with testarossa,get a bottle for that mig welder.
a torch is good for shrinking metal and helping to form things in metal or laying in lead,but a mig welder is so much easier for attaching panels with a lot less warpage issues remember plummen knows a thing or 2 about vintage tin! :laugh:

The Lincoln welder I have is capable to run the argon setup but I never got around to spending the money on it. I have a friend with a Hobart welder that is set up with gas so if if it came down to it I could borrow his.

I saw a write up years ago in a biker magazine where the guy cut the tank, cleaned and repaired the inside them he braised it back together. I thought it was an interesting article and that got me thinking what a fun little experiment it would be. I am not sure about paint adhesion though.

I have a fire extinguisher on hand and the garden hose ready. It sure could get out of hand with some carelessness when using them thats for sure.

id be more concerned about it coming apart going down the road on top of a hot engine at 75mph! :ohmy: :huh: :dry: :blink: :blush: :S :woohoo:
ive welded up sumps in the bottem of a few car gas tanks with a mig welder after boiling them out ,hell ive even built a couple from scratch! :woohoo:
but on a car the gas tank is not normally sitting on top of a hot engine,unless of course youre driving a model A! :woohoo:

PLUMMEN wrote:

i personally wouldnt cut a motorcycle tank in half and weld it back together period! :laugh: id try brazing some pins into the low areas to pull it out as much as possible then lay some lead in there.
eastwood makes a reasonably priced lead free solder kit that is pretty easy to use and can even be powder coated.
as far as the chevelle goes im with testarossa,get a bottle for that mig welder.
a torch is good for shrinking metal and helping to form things in metal or laying in lead,but a mig welder is so much easier for attaching panels with a lot less warpage issues

remember plummen knows a thing or 2 about vintage tin! :laugh:

That sounds a little easier than cutting it in half.
I knew I could get you to post a pic of your projects

that project is sitting in the corner since the boy decided he wants my 55-56 chevy pickup,wait till ya see that project! :woohoo:

Plummen you mentioned brazing some pins on for the dents. Could I use the copper pins and use a dent puller then grind the pins away. I am not much of a sheetmetal man but this sounds doable.

Cutting the tank in half is alot of work. I took the seam of the kz I'm doing now the look of a deseamed tank is great but it is a pain in the ass. I used a tig welder to weld it which took even longer but you get a much more controled and stronger weld.

Kawickrice wrote:

Plummen you mentioned brazing some pins on for the dents. Could I use the copper pins and use a dent puller then grind the pins away. I am not much of a sheetmetal man but this sounds doable.

steel pins might be easier for you to braze without melting them

rslingshot wrote:

Cutting the tank in half is alot of work. I took the seam of the kz I'm doing now the look of a deseamed tank is great but it is a pain in the ass. I used a tig welder to weld it which took even longer but you get a much more controled and stronger weld.

allright,how about a better picture of your avatar? its giving me a warm feeling! :woohoo:

google the "tinman" metal working....he has some instructional dvds for gas welding/brazing....and a uber cool micro torch
hope this helps