oxy/acetylene welding/cutting...

[84gmcjimmy]

What does a flashback arrestor look like? I'm not sure if the oxy/acetylene welding set up I got has one or not. Also, is there anything I should be aware of before I start setting everything up? I don't have a welding bench, just wood benches. If I weld on a brick will that be okay? I have a woodstove to heat my shop where I will be using this, is this any concerns while I am not using the welder? I will keep it on the opposite side of the stove. When cutting metal with the cutting torch, do I just heat the metal till its red, then hit the long lever to blow the metal away? Or what? I have welded with oxy/acetylene before, just not cut.
The current tip I have right now is size 1 that is for 1/16" metal. What is the approx. cost for each welding tip and what other sizes of tips should I get if they are:
Size Metalthickness

00 1/64"
0 1/32"
1 1/16"
2 3/32"
3 1/8"
4 3/16"
5 1/4"
6 5/16"
7 3/8"
8 1/2"
9 5/8"
10 3/4"

Also, is a tip cleaner a brush? Or what is it? Should I get one for each tip I buy?

 

[camiswelding]

in the old days everything was gas welded.... its a dying art... they make torches like a henrob that can weld like tig but they require a fair amount of skill to be really proficient with

wooden tables have no place around welding... you might be able to get away with covering one of them with some sheetmetal just so you dont burn it up... but one of the first project any weldor does is construct a metal shop table... I found a 1 1/2 inch machine shop set up plate 4 feet by 4 feet in a junkyard... i welded some legs on it and then some cast iron wheels ... Ive built stuff on it for years... I highly recommend a heavy duty metal table... the biggest and strongest you can use....

tip cleaners come prepackaged all together in a little metal folding box for a couple of dollars....
I also suggest finding a frend or a class where you can learn to weld properly... very quickly you will get away from gas welding and will want to learn mig/tig/or stick for fabrication... each process has its benefits and drawbacks....
good luck
cam

 

[Hossbaby50]

When I learned to use oxy/ace I used the #2 tip to weld 1/8" steel. Beyond that I can't help you with the tips.

Do NOT weld on a wood table. Do NOT weld on cinder blocks. Only weld on an all metal table or on fire bricks.

Harley

 

[Hossbaby50]

Cutting tips do not just heat the metal up, they actually cut threw it. Cutting tips are different then the standard tips for welding. They are designed to cut the metal and not weld it.

Cutting with a torch usually leaves pretty jagged edges but it works.

Harley

 

[tx_sub]

the flashback arrestors i have seen are located right after the regulator between the regulator and the line. i do not see any in your pic.

 

[85mudblazin]

The tip cleaners look kind of like needlesa dn there are different size ones for the hole in the tip.
You can get a really clean cut with a torch if you use some type of guide or have a steady hand, also clean tips will cut alot better.
You can weld on your concrete floor, I do it all the time. I wouldnt weld on the wooden table it will eventually get hot enough from the molten metal and what not and catch fire.

 

[R72K5]

torch flame on brick or concrete will make chunks of it pop up, so can slag that falls on it, dont recommend using flame on such materials

 

[84gmcjimmy]

the flashback arrestors i have seen are located right after the regulator between the regulator and the line. i do not see any in your pic.

Yeah I didn't think there was one on it. I guess I will pick that up too on monday so I dont blow my shop up.

in the old days everything was gas welded.... its a dying art... they make torches like a henrob that can weld like tig but they require a fair amount of skill to be really proficient with

wooden tables have no place around welding... you might be able to get away with covering one of them with some sheetmetal just so you dont burn it up... but one of the first project any weldor does is construct a metal shop table... I found a 1 1/2 inch machine shop set up plate 4 feet by 4 feet in a junkyard... i welded some legs on it and then some cast iron wheels ... Ive built stuff on it for years... I highly recommend a heavy duty metal table... the biggest and strongest you can use....

tip cleaners come prepackaged all together in a little metal folding box for a couple of dollars....
I also suggest finding a frend or a class where you can learn to weld properly... very quickly you will get away from gas welding and will want to learn mig/tig/or stick for fabrication... each process has its benefits and drawbacks....
good luck
cam

Yeah I already have a MIG... MM 135.
I am planning on making a 3'x3' welding table for now because it will be really cramped with the frame in there soon. Then when I move into a new house in the spring...I will have an 8' table for welding/cutting...
What thickness of metal for the table should i use? Cost is a concern so I don't want to get too heavy of a thickness.
I have sheetmetal I will lay on the bench until I can get a welding table. I know not to weld RIGHT on wood... it will light up on fire.
I will also look into the tip cleaners when I get the welding rod.

I know the cutting torch will actually cut the metal, I was asking if I am suposed to heat it up first, then go on to cutting. Or if I just press the lever and cut. Thanks
I don't know how jagged the cuts are, I've never seen the cuts before... but I will just be using it to cut thicker metal, and eventually at the junkyard. I will mainly be using it to weld, and learn for when I learn to TIG in university or whenever.

In my shop its all wooden, so I can't weld on a concrete floor
Although, I could weld out in the carport, but wind and cold air is a cocern.

Thanks for the help!!

 

[84gmcjimmy]

torch flame on brick or concrete will make chunks of it pop up, so can slag that falls on it, dont recommend using flame on such materials

Okay I will wait for my metal bench then, thanks for the heads up

 

[85mudblazin]

The thicker the table the better, I am going to make mine out of 1/2", its really how much you want to spend, I am getting a 4x4 1/2" thick piece for $180 if that gives you a idea on how much it will cost.

 

[ryoken]

everyone touched on the good stuff... i'll just reiterate to get some tip cleaners. you will need em... iirc they're cheap.. http://www.tpub.com/content/construction/14250/css/14250_106.htm

it is a lost art, i spent years brazing in bodyshops. not too many guys torch weld.. you can also use 1 size tip to weld different thickness's to a certain extent, depending on how you set your flame and techniques.. a couple sizes are nice to have tho....

you'll find your using the cutter 95% of the time.. and yeah, get a little puddle going, then blow thru.. as said, a clamped metal guide helps tremendously. and a rosebud is a nice toy, but you can heat with the cutting torch most of the time.

have fun and be safe

 

[84gmcjimmy]

ryoken,
Thanks for the website, those pictures really helped me now!
I will maybe pick up one bigger size tip for welding a bit thicker metal, just in case I need it.
Thanks!

 

[diesel4me]

any scrap yards nearby??

A good welding table can be made from an old manhole cover with 4 pipe legs welded to it,or a peice of the heavy plates they put over holes in the road,you can usually find them at the scrapyard--one guy I know used old tractor trailer rims welded together with a 1/4 inch plate welded on top,works pretty good..

Make sure the tanks are shut off after every use!--I know better,but often forget myself! --this is especially important with a wood stove going !!--I've never had a problem having my torches in the same room with the 2 stoves,but it would not be a good thing to have acetalyne or propane seeping out in the room with the stove going!--but I have started more fires with the torch than the stove !!-
-those sparks always seem to fly to the most innaccessable place in the shop when welding and cutting--and many times a peice of cardboard or rags will smoulder for a long time before igniting--one day recently I welded a hook onto my plow frame,and left to go visit some friends--when I cam back I opened the garage door,and it was full of smoke,smelled like a rag smouldering--at first I thought "its just smoke from the welding rods"--but after a quick search,I saw a rag way in the corner of the shop,glowing red!!--a few more minites,who knows,it was on cement,but only a foot or so from a large 4x4 foot cardboard box of kindling for the stove!! --thats why I usually do my welding and cutting outdoors!--the worst part is my hose is frozen solid,no way to put it out,I had a 5 gallon bucket of water in the shop,thankgod it wasnt a block of ice!!...running water is a good idea for a shop,wish my hindsight wasnt 20/20...

Have fun with your torches--the ONLY way to learn is to USE them--you can read every book in the world,but its practice that makes you good at it,not reading about it!!--but BE CAREFUL!--torches are a Godsend when working on a rusty truck,but they will burn thru fuel lines,brake lines,and other stuff faster than you can say BOOM!!!

 

[darkshadow]

to cut properly you need a nutral flame. if you havent learned the different flames in shop yet then it will be harder to learn, when done wrong you can still cut but will burn up a lot more gas.


when you have a low o2 flame you will have a long light blue cone in the flame increce youe O2 to get rid of this. the torch should sound 'smoth' ( as i would say) and the cone sould not come back when you hit the cutting leaver.

if it dose agust your gas and O2. (note. dont always turn every thing up you dont need a huge screaming flame to cut)

get comforale with the torch dont be afrade of it. lean down on your work, have two hands on your torch, start on the egde (for now easyer you can punch a hole and cut from there but thats later)

heat one spot up and when it is ready if you push the leaver the molten metel will blast through, if not keep heating. it the metel sparks on its own your there to long cut it sooner. tilt the tip the directin you are cutting and smothly push your cut, not to fast not to slow. it will take some practis to get used to it.
neet tip you can hold or clamp a strate edge to you work and use it to guide you tip for smoother cuts.

 

[84gmcjimmy]

Thanks for the advice! I will definitly look back to this thread when I get started on monday. Thanks!