Thanks. I was talking last night with my son at my granddaughter's pre-school graduation, an excuse for a concert. He suggested sanding the aluminum. I have been using a SS wire cup on a mini grinder. What type of sanding discs would you suggest for the mini grinder?

No, my computer skills involve finding the keys when I type. To get into the corners, I switched from a gas lens cup into the smaller orifice style that came with the welder. Basically I couldn't TIG weld a corner joint . It was my only piece of aluminum square tube, so I didn't get a do over. It wa...

I was trying to weld an 1" aluminum angle to a 1" square tube. Both 1/8". I coped out the tube so the angle would lay flat. I was able to weld the edges but the interior right angle looked like a "product of Fido's butt". What should I do next time.

In both cases, there was no brand,a plastic bag on a wall rack and in the storeroom out back. I hate nonstandardized stuff . I take it , a gap matters .

I overheated the #7 gas lens cup and it broke. I'm a rookie. So off to the tool store where I bought the welder but they didn't have any #7, just a #8 and #6. I picked them up and a spare gas lens. So I went a little further to LWS and bought a couple of #7s. They didn't come up to the white plastic...

On flap grinding discs for a mini grinder. The company just started to bring them in before they closed, so I don't have much experience at work with them. I found they leave a very nice finish, duh, sanded not ground. However using them around home, retired, they seem to load up and don't bite. I w...

Taps sometimes just fatigue .

Maybe wiser, but not as much fun.

Yes ,every time I walk by the Rubbermaid bin with the aluminum scraps, I think those will make some excellent (challenging) practice pieces. .095 checkerplate . corroded, too. I have a SS wheel for the mini-grinder. I have some 14 guage steel as well.

3000 watts is 25 amps of 120 volts.

Franz you dead wrong. The bearings on my drill press are 6200 series. They are much better at radial loads than axial loads. On the old American made ones, they likely had a thrust bearing, but on the imported clones of the Japanese style drill presses I've seen they just use a deep race ball bearin...

From the drill bits you have, it looks like it has an Morse Taper #3 ??, quil. Great for drilling ,but harder to find collets for holding end mills. They are available, though. The R-8 taper is more less the standard. What twigged me to it being a Rong Fu is the grey paint on the face. It's the same...

That is half a milling machine, as it lacks the cross feed table. But as a drill , it's great. You won't get better. Well it's not an Swedish Arborga , the worlds best, but I would bet it's a Taiwanese Rong Fu. Also a high quality gearhead.

My genny is clean, as in it will run electronics. It's Yammy 2400 watt inverter. But at $1300 USD, it's also pricy. I can carry it, but the though of a flight of stairs..... Try Costco for a Champion 3000 inverter.

When our mill was being shut down, rather than burn out my nice Walter Zip-Cut ing everything loose. I bought a $29.95 Hitachi. With us closing down the company wouldn't have time or interest in replacing the Walter. The Walter is a fat high amp 4 1/2". They were what the company supplied after...

We moved a weldmesh machine. Weldmesh is used in concrete slabs. When we were finished, it was fun watching it work. The sparks would fly. One wire was negative the others were positive, and they were slammed together.

In very few years Aussies will have developed their very own language. The one I liked was esky. First time we went there, I had to rent one. By sheer numbers , English Standard is what is spoken on the Indian sub continent.

I ran across my Union Carbide adapter recently in one of my tool boxes. I had to buy it when I leased my first set of bottles back in the early '70s.

I've seen cattle with a ring in their noses.

The Air Liquide regulators are not being made any more. There is quite a market for rebuilt used ones. I paid $100 at a LWS for an oxygen one as a gift to my son. I think that would make a great birthday present, don't you ?

Yes he could have, the guy I talked to did. And gave me a book.

Maybe they saw who they were dealing with? My combination torch set is a Air Liquide . They are the most common ones out there. When I watched Jody's vid on cutting ,he said tip size and pressures should be carefully match to the steel thickness. After having to use a soft faced hammer/torches on jo...

Well, this Friday morning I picked up my little TIG/Stick welder I ordered. Nothing looks cheesy, not even the gas hose. But even if I had struck an arc, how could I , a complete novice to TIG,tell if it's any good ? As usual I'm not ready, the welding cart is still just pieces. At least the welder'...

Fear not, it's Washington state that has 3.2%, most of Aus is 4.0. Maybe some other states do 3.2% as well?

Franz there is more Fosters in USA, then in Aus. In Western Australia and Northern Territory, I resorted to drinking Great Northern. Well the strongest available at 4.5%, it was still just one step removed from the 3.2%

My wife and I were touring around Aus,on the Gibb River Road, we were called Americans. I told the him that was the same as an Aussie being called a Kiwi.