Emergency arc welder

If you travel off road there comes a time when something breaks.
There are couple of emergency essential items that can get you home if the breakdown prevents you travelling.
(1) Welding shield. (If space is a premium you can take just the lens and a piece of carboard will suffice as shield.)
(2) A number 1.2mm all purpose welding rods.
(3) A welding handpiece with cable and clamps.
(4) An earth lead with clamps.
(5) A short battery cable with positive & negative clamps.

Most prospecting vehicles have twin batteries.
If some thing breaks remove batteries from vehicle and connect them in series (24V) with item 5.
Connect 3 & 4

Using 1 & 2 you can lay a weld to repair broken item to get you home.
If you haven't tried this method of arc welding give it a try, you will be surprised with result.

***Obviously you don't sit there welding for hours and flatten your batteries thereby adding to problem. Burning 3 or four rods will not flatten batteries.***

At one time there was a special alternator sold that you could use for light arc welding .

[video=480,360]https://youtu.be/w3KybuVQY-8[/video]

Not once did we hear them mention that the vehicle battery/batteries needed to be disconnected before any welding is carried out on the vehicle or there is a risk of cooking some electronics or worse.
These misleading videos are the main reason I rarely ever watch the like.
You don't need the fancy welder they displayed.
AND they weren't sure whether 12 or 24V?

Our simple welding method began back in the 80's.

Nightjar, I suggest your welding method started a long time before the 1980's

Just in smaller social circles

You can do it both ways depending on the amperage you need for the weld needed. I have seen your method NJ and -it is a emergency repair--at most.

Yes, Jaros, emergency welding only.
However we welded a few cross stays on our camp water tower because it was swaying in strong winds, that was in the early 90's.
We since had the tail end of a cyclone and the tower (three 200 litre drums atop) is still standing to this day. :Y:
GH,
Have no idea when the method was first used, no google, youtube etc back then, just bush mechanics. We were dubbed the gang of four. Three mechanical fitters and an electrician.

A Polish tradesmen showed me a handy way of filling gaps in two steel joints.
Instead of multiple runs with the arc welding rods he held one rod in his free hand and puddled it in with the rod burning in the handpiece.
Little bit like bronze welding with the oxy/acet torch being the the arc handpiece and rod fed with other hand.

I think I saw that method of welding with batteries when I was a kid in the late 60's or early 70's.

On one of those bush exploring series with ex army guys or a doco about the bush or similar.
But I am sure it was done well before that, many things new, are old, if you know what I mean.

However it is good advice for someone going bush and needing to be independent, some brothers I knew
that were Geo Surveyors, were kited out so well it astounded me.
Everything was habit, they packed and left for 4 to 6 weeks at a time.

I have had the pleasure of working with a German welder, the tricks he knew and how to use his tools left me in awe.

I think that trick you speak of is like using a tig, you have to smash all the flux off of the feed rod to do it, from memory.
Did he reverse the polarity of the headpiece and earth?
I think that's how it is done to make a basic tig, but maybe not with batteries, not sure.

Seeing a blacksmith at work on a forge is amazing how they can join two pieces of steel together and finished on the anvil so that when it cools you can not see a join.
Unfortunately some of the skills of the early tradesmen have been lost with their passing.
It is a throw away world now and very little is repaired.
Picked up a VW beetle that had been rolled years ago for zilch, was going to make it into a beach buggy until a new panel beater/painter neighbour moved in across the street.
Over a few get to know one another beers he saw the Beetle and asked what I was going to do with it?
When I told him he said, "You rebuild my Mini Cooper engine (parts supplied) and I'll have your battered VW looking like new." Which he did.
Win win!

Ahhhh... good neighbours to have.

A beer over the fence and sort out the world as they know it. :Y:

Never tried this, is 1.2mm rod the limit, or can you go slightly bigger?

If you connect the batteries in series I would say yes. i.e. 24V ilo 12V.

Kai said:

Never tried this, is 1.2mm rod the limit, or can you go slightly bigger?

Click to expand...

24v x 1.2mm rods for deep penetration then you could use 2mm for the cap/finish weld.

Your best bet is to experiment before your final project.

RR,
No tig and no reverse polarity and the flux was left on the rod. 3phase arc welder only.

Nightjar said:

Kai said:

Never tried this, is 1.2mm rod the limit, or can you go slightly bigger?

Click to expand...

24v x 1.2mm rods for deep penetration then you could use 2mm for the cap/finish weld.

Your best bet is to experiment before your final project.

Click to expand...

Ok,thanks, not sure if I'd ever use it, but interesting, I suppose you never really know...

Bloke who taught me how to weld was Swedish.
Yes, He showed me the rod dip method.
The welder we had you could also hit a switch that kicked in the RF
choke on it.
Big square 3 phase that you pushed buttons in to select your amperage.
Man oh man he could make that welder sing.
And what he taught me was child's play in comparison.

Miss Dunker very badly.

Tathradj said:

Bloke who taught me how to weld was Swedish.
Yes, He showed me the rod dip method.
The welder we had you could also hit a switch that kicked in the RF
choke on it.
Big square 3 phase that you pushed buttons in to select your amperage.
Man oh man he could make that welder sing.
And what he taught me was child's play in comparison.

Miss Dunker very badly.

Click to expand...

the ones with the bakerlite push pull knobs are the best old arc welders ever! the pie warmers.

older than dirt and still the best.

numpty said:

Tathradj said:

Bloke who taught me how to weld was Swedish.
Yes, He showed me the rod dip method.
The welder we had you could also hit a switch that kicked in the RF
choke on it.
Big square 3 phase that you pushed buttons in to select your amperage.
Man oh man he could make that welder sing.
And what he taught me was child's play in comparison.

Miss Dunker very badly.

Click to expand...

the ones with the bakerlite push pull knobs are the best old arc welders ever! the pie warmers.

older than dirt and still the best.

Click to expand...

not to mention they could pump out 300-350 amps if needed :Y:

Unfortunately I had to sell this for $50 with the leads and cables . No were to store it and no 3 phase power . A good stick welder . Might have got more if I took it to the scrap man .

I put it on Gumtree or was it Ebay ? Nobody interested in it .

Mike678 said:

Unfortunately I had to sell this for $50 with the leads and cables . No were to store it and no 3 phase power . A good stick welder . Might have got more if I took it to the scrap man .

Click to expand...

They were built to last Mike, but not many sheds have 3 phase.
$50 is better than the "poke in the eye."