The start of Gringo's first build

[Big T]

Yeah... made a lot of people mad. LOL. so far no fire department or police.


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Some people just don't know what fun is!

[Dirtytires]

You could always claim arson...

[Gringo]

Well I guess I tried to rush it yesterday, still had some epoxy on the bottom of the Drum. Grabbed another batch of wood, and some lump coal to do a 2nd burn. There is a ton of old wooden fence material around after Hurricane Irma. This time I waited until the neighbors left for work!

[Dirtytires]

No smoke...must be broken!

[Gringo]

So, I picked up a 3/4” Cable strain relief connector to allow probe access. Where is the best place to mount it? Side of the drum or in the lid? I just bought the Maverick et-733 so not 100% sure.

[ajfoxy]

I generally put the probes through the side. Saves all the mucking about when you take the lid off.

[Gringo]

Ok, Finished cleaning the inside of the Drum as well welded on the Handles. I managed to burn a hole in the drum and I'm having a hard time filling it in, I have a flux core welder Chicago Electric 125A. I have it set to Min, Wire Speed 4.5. Any pointers???

Whenever I try to fill it in, I make a bigger hole.

[Dirtytires]

Try to minimize the heat in the area. I find good results by doing multiple "spot" welds. Put a quick spot of weld on a side of the hole. Release trigger for several seconds till area is no longer red and then hit it again for another second. Keep repeating this till you have the area filled in. It will typically look horrible and will need ground off at which time you will probably discover more pinholes that need re-welded. It looks like that is currently where you are.

Another thought is to cut a small piece of sheet metal slightly larger than the hole and use it for a backing plate on the inside.

[ajfoxy]

Dirtytires has got you covered. One thing about learning to weld... you get really good at filling holes and at grinding.

[Gringo]

Thanks all. I had to walk away because I was making it worse. I’ll give it a go tomorrow


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[Dirtytires]

That sometimes works too.

I have ruined a weld one day and made a perfect pass the next day with the same machine settings.

You will get it.

[Gringo]

It has been decades since I picked up a welder. I figured this was a perfect project to make my mistakes.

Thanks Again for everyone's inputs!

[Gringo]

One thing about working from home, I've been able to go outside and fill holes during my "Breaks". down to 6 or 7 pin holes now until I grind them back down. I am using a grinding wheel, should I be using a flap disk?

[mp4]

I am using a grinding wheel, should I be using a flap disk?

You will like the finished product better with the flap disk.

Too much is just right!

[Gringo]

I am using a grinding wheel, should I be using a flap disk?

You will like the finished product better with the flap disk.

Too much is just right!

Thank you sir!

[ajfoxy]

I have several 4.5 inch grinders and have a flap disk on one and a grinding disk on another and a slim disk cutoff wheel on the other. Depending on how high the weld bead is I use the grinder to get it nearly flush then the flap disk to take it to level and finish. I find with the flap disk alone it takes too long to get huge welds flat. Y.M.M.V.
Prior to that I had one grinder and changed the disk... a real pain. But then maybe I'm just a lazy old bugger.

[Gringo]

My problem is I'm hard headed and wanted to weld everything on this UDS. I burned a couple of holes, now all I'm doing is trying to patch them up. I fill them, grind it down, find new holes, fill them burn new ones, ect... I need to attach the top handle, tried to spot weld it, didn't take. Guess I'm a bit gun shy right now! LOL

Would dropping down to .30 wire help?

[Dirtytires]

I'm not the welding expert but my experience is that smaller wire will transfer less heat to the workpiece. I always use 0.025 on my thin gauge projects and break out the 0.30 only on the bigger material.

If you are still constantly blowing holes it is time to change your technique, your settings or your equipment (wire). Find a piece of scrap and blow a hole in it then practice fixing it by changing just one variable at a time till you get comfortable with it.

What type of machine are you using? Gas or flux core?

[Gringo]

Using a Chicago Electric flux core set to Min and 4.5 wire speed.


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[ajfoxy]

One thing you can try to patch holes in thin material is make yourself a copper backer with a wooden handle. Basically a flat bit of copper at least 1/8th thick. I mention wooden handle as that sucker gets quite toasty. So you put the copper backer on the backside of the weld and spot weld on the other side. The copper stops the weld from coming through and soaks up the excess heat. Of course some holes may require a helper to hold the backer while you work on the other side. You can also attach it to the other side via weld magnets.

[Rodcrafter]

You picked a challenging thickness of metal to get back into welding. Keep up the good work, after this your next project will be easy.


Making memories!

[Gringo]

So... I decided to lay out where I am going to attach the angle iron pieces. It just happens one of the brackets will go over the area where I burned all the holes. This will help me fix my mistakes.

I started to mock up all the pieces today as well to make sure everything will fit. One more run to Home Depot for 3/4” box nuts and a run to Wally world for grates and then she’ll be ready for primer and paint.

[Gringo]

Quick question. I know at the car dealership to remove a dent, they will use a heat gun and ice to remove minor dents.

When I was burning out the liner, the lid warped quite a bit. Will it hurt anything if I heat it up with a torch then cool it off with ice or water? I’m hoping to straighten it up without beating on it.

[mp4]

At this point it can't hurt, right?

Too much is just right!

[Rodcrafter]

Maybe put a Weber lid on it


Making memories!