Welding Tips and Tricks

I'm new to this roll cage stuff and I want to make sure I'm getting enough penetration for it to be safe. This is a 2 passes with 1/16" er70-2 at 130 max amps but I wasn't full pedal. Mostly between 3/4 and 7/8 pedal. What do you guys think?

PS. I'm not a welder, just a hobbyist

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IMO it sure does look good. Maybe call up dirtmidget...this is what he does but I think it looks great.

I like it. I like it a lot.

I'd say it looks pretty good. No expert but have seems few etches and that looms good for tubing. Another simple test is one Jody did with some bicycle frame parts. He just took hem outside and beat them with a sledge until they were and if they weld held it was good. Repeated hits with a sledge might be a good indicator of strength for roll cages to with shear sudden force. If nothing else it gives you an excuse to beat the crap out of something of you get pissed about something.

There is nothing wrong with that!

If you step up to 3/32 rod you could probably do it in 1 pass, save a bunch of time and your HAZ will be much better. Your fillet is not oversized for the material, but a little less won't hurt, any more would be useless or counter productive.

I'm assuming this is a mild steel (DOM) cage?

Rudy Ray wrote:There is nothing wrong with that!

If you step up to 3/32 rod you could probably do it in 1 pass, save a bunch of time and your HAZ will be much better. Your fillet is not oversized for the material, but a little less won't hurt, any more would be useless or counter productive.

I'm assuming this is a mild steel (DOM) cage?

Yes mild steel DOM. I tried 3/32 rod, but it would stick to the puddle like a magnet when dipping. Maybe a little preheat would prevent that.

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Dcstang67 wrote:

Rudy Ray wrote: Yes mild steel DOM. I tried 3/32 rod, but it would stick to the puddle like a magnet when dipping. Maybe a little preheat would prevent that.

Up your amps if the filler rod is sticking when dabbing. You're much better off with a single pass of the correct rod she than multiple passes. In fact, some race associations won't pass a frame with secondary passes due to the potential for welding over gaps and embedding porosity. what wall thickness is that tubing? That should be your guide for rod size. The 130 amps tells me you're using pretty thick walled tube, and thus your wire should be nearly equal.

cj737 wrote:

Dcstang67 wrote:

Rudy Ray wrote: Yes mild steel DOM. I tried 3/32 rod, but it would stick to the puddle like a magnet when dipping. Maybe a little preheat would prevent that.

Up your amps if the filler rod is sticking when dabbing. You're much better off with a single pass of the correct rod she than multiple passes. In fact, some race associations won't pass a frame with secondary passes due to the potential for welding over gaps and embedding porosity. what wall thickness is that tubing? That should be your guide for rod size. The 130 amps tells me you're using pretty thick walled tube, and thus your wire should be nearly equal.

.120" wall tubing. I'm going to try a couple more test pieces today

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I tried the 3/32" rod with max machine amps set to 140on this one.

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Better! As was mentioned, you won't hurt anything welding hotter and moving faster...always better than slower and heat soaking your part. Nice work!

There is nothing wrong with the 3/32 filler weld you got there. I'd roll a car at 120 with that weld. Maybe just a wee / tad / pinch more filler material but you don't want a big ole hump in your cross section either. Ideally you would want the cross section of your weld, penetration included, to be at least the same as your material thickness for a cage.