First ever experience welding. Arc stick welding non-critical steel. Lifeboat Conversion Ep75 [4K]

[@nickg421]

I'd recommend an auto darkening welding mask. There are cheap ones available and it makes striking an arc so much easier especially while learning.

[@Armchairhero00]

I'll second this, I decided to become a weldy person myself a year ago (I'd already figured out how to do mig welding badly a long time ago mind). I purchased a cheap arc welder and mask and auto-darkening mask and I can now reliably produce structurally sound welds that resemble modern art. The mask is great because it frees up my hands as well. I'd also suggest adding a good neodymium magnet to the clamp as it really helps make a good contact.

[@trekintosh]

Yes, I consider them basically mandatory. You’re doing so much damage to your capability for detail work (or really any work) if you insist on using a solid state helmet. Even the cheapest auto darkening helmet is miles ahead.

[@PsRohrbaugh]

Doing your first ever welding on a critical part is a "boss" move 👍

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

I did practice on offcuts first...

[@11bravocrunchie22]

An old welder’s proverb: Grinder and paint makes me the welder I ain’t.

[@The_Duck_Pond]

Perhaps you can have the angle grinder bronzed and use it as a Nautical Figurehead on the bow of Alan? Neptune’s Angel?

[@TheLoxxxton]

I'm reminded of the saying 'grinder and paint makes me the welder I ain't 😊

[@r-urbex1611]

A saying I live my life by 😂😂

[@TheLoxxxton]

@@r-urbex1611 lol! Me too

[@namesake-mx9nl]

Considering you seem to be doing so much by yourself , your knowledge and ability to tackle so many various tasks is very impressive .

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Cheers. I like learning.

[@CAMSLAYER13]

It may be worth cleaning the steel a bit more before welding. You can use the colour change of the steel as its heated to get an idea of how its going

[@mktrollop1093]

No need, arc welder dosent care. He needs more heat and to go slower.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Slower is definitely my first lesson. I rushed initially and left gaps.

[@mktrollop1093]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals yeah, I'm not saying this to be an Internet tosser, but from what you showed of the finished weld it didn't look like you had much metal making a connection. Arc Welding is cheap to get into but one of the hardest to master the technique of. Having said that, there's plenty of video tutorials out there to help, nothing quite like someone who knows what they're talking about beside you to show you when you're learning though.

[@dcallan812]

learning to weld can be tough its more a feel thing, but once you get it then, the learning really begins.

[@pepperspray7386]

been watching the tally ho being built, why don't you get custom made hand poured bronze done instead? xD

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

They have a multi-hundred thousand budget.

[@jonathan5354]

​@@AlexHibbertOriginalsI am guessing he meant that as a joke. Each project is interesting to watch in its own way. Hope you get more viewers for this niche project. I ll keep watching for sure

[@FrontierlessCraftsman]

Sounds like the brushes are gone on the grinder, easy fix. And as a fellow nonprofessional weldy person Id advise making a much bigger weld pool and moving it along a lot slower especially when trying to fill a gap, this helps avoiding chipping off the slag to reveal sporadically placed bits of weld on ether side of the gap with occasional bridges holding it together.

[@solarfunction1847]

Well done with the stick welding, when you conquer a stick welder where your welds look good then you'll be able to weld with all types of welders looking like a pro.

[@davecoz4227]

Or in alan-speak, looking like a 'weldy person'

[@Zigge]

My dear friend, you are indeed making progress in your welding endeavor, albeit a tad slow. May I humbly offer some unsolicited advice? Firstly, allow me to remind you that welding thick material requires a considerable amount of heat. In the range of 85 to 95 amperes should be within the realm of possibility. You are absolutely correct in stating that the welder must have a clear view of the pool of molten metal. It is essential to keep the slag akin to icing behind the melting pool and move away gradually as the metal liquefies. Maintaining an inclination of approximately 85 degrees also helps to keep the slag away from the melting pool. Additionally, employing a robust light source can significantly improve the visibility, even when welding outdoors.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Appreciated!

[@MCallsen]

Not the anglegrinder! 😵

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

I'm considering how an appropriate memorial would look.

[@Jehty_]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals he (she?).. it deserve a sea burial in the arctic.

[@edwardmullan2724]

I found that its easier to get an arc going if you pull the electrode across a scrap piece placed close to your work piece immediately before trying to start your arc

[@brucechapman1946]

Practice makes perfect Alex, if you can find Weldall electrodes (which are higher than 304 grade stainless) and use high enough amps your stern reinforcement will not only be stronger and the welds not corrode but you can attach it to the factory stainless through plate. Please ensure you use sleeves around your bolts and don't crush the transom fibreglass, a Denso tape interface between the plate and the transom will also cut the need for gallons of paint on the steels mounting face. Love the content and good luck.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Thanks. I was warned to avoid mixing mild with stainless when welding (although, always go 'up' a grade), although I accept that the quantity of weld is so comparatively low that it won't cause a major galvanic cell. Sleeves around the bolts? Can you link to an example? I understand the principle I think, but surely the length is critical, or else the bolts won't clamp properly. Isn't it ok to torque the bolts to a level that's fibreglass-safe? Denso tape - an idea - although the entire mounting face will be pasted with thick epoxy, so won't be painted.

[@LesNewell]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals If the transom is solid fibreglass you don't need crush spacers. However if it is two layers of glass with a foam/wood core you do need to use spacers and spreader plates on the inside. As far as the crush spacer length is concerned you have to make a guess at how much crush you want. A better solution is to hole saw though the inside layer and the core leaving the outer layer. Now fill that big hole with chopped fibreglass filler and re-drill. This way if any water creeps around the bolt it won't get into the core. The filler also makes a good crush spacer.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Thanks - it's a solid fibreglass transom.

[@brucechapman1946]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals Alex, from my lifeboat servicing experience the transom is a sandwich construction glass foam glass which won't like being stressed by bolt compression if you use a sleeve 5% less than to overall depth of the hole and a sleeve with an ID hole one size larger than the bolt eg12.5mm hole use "teadit" compressable teflon washers on the inside and outside of the sandwich plates with a dollop of sikaflex leaks will not be a problem. As you say galvanic corrosion shouldn't be a problem but epoxy may struggle with temperature and expansion/contraction in the ice which is why I suggested the Denso.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Thanks for the added info, but yes I've triple checked. 100% solid fibreglass transom. Alan was made well!

[@Koolteer]

English humour at is dryest. You deserve a lot more views. Collaboration with somebody like Harry Dwyer would help. Build a community is my advice.

[@keithc904]

Are you getting the same grinder gain or upgrading to a better brand? And as it has already been pointed out, an auto darkening helmet will make a world of difference, I'm sure some can lend you one if it's not needed long term.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

I'm not DeWalting, but yeah a little more power. To be honest, I feel that three years of pretty intense use for £30 made it a good purchase.

[@srtabc123]

A little grinding and a little paint, makes the welder what he ain’t.

[@chris7015]

What watch are you wearing at the 6:44 mark?

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

The Luminox ICE-SAR Special Edition

[@LesNewell]

A few quick notes on welding and grinding. It looks like you are using standard 3mm cutting discs. Get some good quality 1mm stainless discs. Norton, Dronco and Osborn make good discs. They cut much faster. Avoid cheap Screwfix 1mm discs. They are useless. Get some heavy gloves. Heavy leather gardening gloves will do, though proper welding gloves are pretty cheap. Synthetic fibre/plastic coated gloves melt and burn if sparks land on them. The molten plastic then sticks to your skin, giving you a nasty burn. As others have said, get a decent self darkening mask. You can then use your free hand to support the welding rod. This makes it much easier to control the weld.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Cheers. Yes on all counts (I moved to thick bramble gloves after filming the clips). And you noticed the discs! I ran out of good 1mm ones and wanted to crack on with the job. Well spotted.

[@ThePaulv12]

*Hold the electrode up more vertically. This will help. *Use the angle grinder to prepare the surface for welding first. *Clean the spot where the earth clamp goes on with the angle grinder so it earths properly. All this will help immeasurably with the sticking rod. If the rod still sticks, hold it down near the welding end like a pencil and strike it like you're striking a match and swap hands. *You NEED a chipping hammer. Here's the thing, if having a dinner party it might be prudent to not cook a dish for the very first time for your guests. You cook something that you know well. Welding is the same; don't practice on the love of your life. Look at a vid on MMAW on KZbin. After watching YT vid or 10, practice running straight beads about 2/3rds the the length of the welding rod rod, then chip off the flux. It teaches you everything, like proper speed, compensating for the burning of the rod, casting off cleanly, starting cleanly, amperage setting, looking into the puddle, judging puddle distance and puddle control etc. It varies with metal thickness too, so on the practice piece it will weld one way but on something else another. You need to look right inside the puddle then as you improve you use sight + feeling + sound to gauge weld quality and consistency. After you can do that properly, say 10x, then do it again laying beads parallel to each other but overlapping 2/3rds. When done properly they should all look like worms all nestling up against each other. Consistency of each bead is the goal - height, width and straightness of all the beads should be the same. Also re your steel angle workpiece, welding butt welds together you need to bevel the edges so the weld has something to flow into. Clearly there is a lot to learn but in an afternoon and 2x packs of rods and some scrap you'll be amazed at the substantial improvement. When a weld is good, you can just blow the flux off with your breath of hit a hammer next to the weld and it will fall off. The flux is the 'shielding gas.' It doesn't take long. Just a couple of packs of rods. BTW, let the machine cool down. Duty cycle of cheap machines is very low, but they very often do a surprisingly good job. My son just owns technique on cheap machines. I honestly don't know how he does it but he is a professional welder so there's that and his retinas aren't as burnt as mine LOL. Don't overheat your machine in practice. It is very easy to do as you start to 'get it' the puddle becomes like a visual mantra and you go into a deep meditative state and lose track of duty cycle as you're starting to improve. It doesn't take long. 30% welding 70% resting or what the machine's instructions say. Above all watch KZbin vids on MMAW (Manual Metal Arc Welding). 2 packs of rods and you'll be away. It is all about muscle memory, prep (very very important) and technique. Oh, and don't forget the prep. Prep....

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Will have a proper read of this. Thanks

[@marktanska6331]

No corrosion, agree, but always UV damage.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Glassfibre is exceedingly UV resistant. Most boats are made from it.

[@marktanska6331]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals It is actually the gel coat that protects glass fiber. I built 52 foot boat, and have been maintaining it since its launch in January 2005.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Gel coat is just a slightly thickened polyester resin, like the rest of the laminating resin, that sits on top of the reinforced laminate (or rather, was beneath it in the mould). You may get discolouration over time, but the material strength itself is highly resistent when in a laminate of normal thickness. If the appearance is an issue, flow coat or a good paint solves all.

[@Hissmannen]

Sitting down and using a headmounted visir will free your other hand up. Using a two hand grip makes my stickwelding easier.

[@ThaJay]

Those large bolts in the transom seem like a pretty effective conductor of heat. Any plans in mind to mitigate that? Or is their position already isolated from the interior?

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

I guess a foam jacket is possible, but that small area of inside transom is uninsulated, so there will be a little condensation.

[@ThaJay]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals Okay then it won't nearly make as much difference as I feared. Are there more uninsulated areas on the hull and do you plan to improve on them? I can imagine it's already good enough for that first expedition and actually getting Alan into the Arctic at some point would be nice after all this hard work.

[@benderbender1233]

🤙

[@steve66oh]

I could hear that angle grinder crying "Damn! my days of easily grinding plastics and occasionally keying fiberglass are done.. it's hard labour from here on out.. my owner is now a Weldy Person!"

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Oh it had periods of hard labour before that day! For a £25 grinder, ran like a champ for years.

[@steve66oh]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals Funny thing.. I'm doing my own lifeboat conversion - a Harding MCB034 (another Norwegian cousin of Alan's..) - and I have yet to break out the angle grinder.. my "tool-de-force" for the recently completedremoval of the entire inner canopy shell and 300cu.ft. of flotation foam, has been a large reciprocating saw with a diamond coated blade made for cutting cast iron. Cutting speed was as fast as any other method, and this blade makes a powdery dust which does not itch! Anyway, Rocinante (my boat) is looking at Alan's renovation with awe and wonder, and no hint of derision or competitive avarice - instead, since discovering your videos last week, Roci has begun "biting" me, drawing an unprecedented quantity of blood, as if to say "Why haven't you painted MY bilge? Where's MY new exhaust system? Why can't I have solar panels?".. and the only answer I can give is "I'm not taking you farther North than 65°, and I'm not planning to leave you drifting in pack ice for a year or two.. you'll be on the hard before the Bering Sea freezes".

[@jeremyhudson]

A grinder and paint, make you the welder you 'aint.

[@MaxMakerChannel]

If you look at a 10mm drill bit, you will see that there is no cutting edge in the middle. So you are just rubbing against the metal there. If there was a cutting edge, the drill would split in two pieces.

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

I shall set aside some time to look at 10mm drill bits.

[@Armchairhero00]

A while back I came across some reasonably priced Milwaukee ones that have a little secondary tip on the tip so they sort of self pilot, they have saved me a lot of time and are really easy to centre on a mark.

[@TheCrapcakes]

Absolutely gutted to hear about the angle grinder. This may be your "Wilson" moment. What a fairhful companion it has been. 😢

[@ptonpc]

"WITNESS ME!"

[@r-urbex1611]

Get a proper mask mate, when you can see what youre doing its sooooo much easier!

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

I kinda asked for that. Yes, it was the cheapie included one.

[@r-urbex1611]

@@AlexHibbertOriginals you'll be amazed at the difference between that shield and a 30 quid mask! And with regard to your rod sticking turn the amps up, for what your welding and what I'd imagine the output of that welder to be (120-160a) I'd run her flat out if you want to get any decent penetration! Give her all she can suffer!

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Oh - sadly my welder only chucks out 100A. It's a baby machine, hence the sticking and need to run the seam three times in 8mm steel.

[@ptonpc]

Definitely invest in a proper mask, it will give you a free hand at the very least.

[@scottmccarroll2618]

I really look forward to every new episode you bring out but it’s so frustrating that you only do such short episodes why don’t you just do one every two weeks and we could feel content

[@AlexHibbertOriginals]

Others prefer regularity. Can't please everyone!