Ask Fran: Build Your Own Friction Welder!

[@derrickmorin9701]

Well Fran Im a Welder for 35+ yrs and ugly welds are sometimes the strongest welds.Your weld was not ugliest but looked to be very strong and a good weld.I being a professional journeyman pipe welder for over 35 yrs im impressed .You not only did a good weld also were able to teach an old welder some new tricks . Nice very Nice ,Practice and soon you will Teaching plastic welding to some young up and coming stars ,Wow PVC,Plastic welding by FRAN-The you tube Welding GuRu. I enjoyed this vid !!!

[@lukewarren7857]

Hey thanks! I owned spinmaster when I was 7 or 11 I'm 58 still remember mending broken kitchen items for my mom, with Christmas gift

[@75blackviking]

Just came across this classic Franlab video. Super informative as usual, and even more entertaining!

[@edb6726]

Same here lol

[@TheAnkhLord]

Watched the entire thing thinking,"Meh will not be that great... Weak Joint, bad technique... Blah blah blah". I am absolutely floored. Finished, RAN to the store bought some. Wow. Thank you so much. Works like a charm. You are awesome.

[@tonyhenderson7512]

Well this video is 8 years old now... but it's new to me and I can't believe I just learned how to weld plastic. Very cool! Just ordered a bunch of styrene rods. Great and useful video!

[@LeandroAZago]

I wonder how youtube recommends jewels from the past that was never on my radar on that time. Great content.

[@deandasher]

I got a spin welder kit for Christmas one year and was very impressed. I could actually lay a pretty bead down with that thing and it made a solid weld !!! There has been many times over the years I could have used it to repair broken plastic items.

[@bzakie2]

I'm a new Fran Fan! This girl is so passionate about everything electronic, I just love her.

[@FranLab]

The signature of adulthood is getting all the toys we didn't have as kids. But you're too young Jeri - the cool toy era really ended around 1975 - by then parents caught on to the idea that Christmas afternoon in the emergency room was not so jolly after all. :)))

[@douglasmorley8613]

I am 68 yrs old and I must have missed that toy in the 70's. ThankX for the video. I will be making this tool. You did good girl. KZbin should put you back on "Recommended Videos". You just got another follower.

[@abpccpba]

Fran; I was a steel pipe welder with electric arc. From my experience it seems you are moving the tip way to much. If it actually is puddling like steel welding then every time you wiggle the puddle is cooling off. Try to hold the tip at a 45 and only move tip in a straight line when the puddle is liquid. This may work for you or could be I am just whistling in the wind.

[@williammitchell8515]

+Paul C Johnson Agree, but I don't think it is flowing like metal does. I also wonder if the plastic "rod" is not causing some of the movement.

[@tibfulv]

While plastic welding may not be exactly the same as steel, experience is always valuable. At worst, you give advice that may not work, which we would then know. At best, your advice may improve our work, and that should always be appreciated. Either way, our lives are improved.

[@aprilwright2822]

Paul C Johnson I

[@yosephdevries3051]

And a lil fast but awesomely done with the diy friction stir plastic welder and a lil more time with it and we'll she's got new beat...😜

[@garyha2650]

This was 2012 but sometime maybe dust that off and hold in one spot until something breaks, catches on fire or sends out signals alerting aliens we have finally developed this far, that was cool

[@toddsimpson8690]

Started watching shortly before this and nine years later its repeated...how cool..

[@StevieCooper]

I’m so intrigued by this type of welding

[@TheWtfnonamez]

Its very rare that I watch a random youtube video and suddenly learn an entirely new skill for my personal toolbox of skills. This is brilliant. I sometimes have to do repairs on plastic and this way is better.

[@TheTrueVoiceOfReason]

Takes me back to the early 70's when I had a Spin Welder. Same basic thing you have here. The plastic "rods" were slightly softer than the pieces to be welded together. If you want your welds to look better, push, rather than drag your welding tip. Makes for a much more smooth weld and you can actually dig the rod into the plastic pieces for better weld penetration. What a flashback. All you'd need to compete the kit is a 6 volt lantern battery. :)

[@repeat_defender]

7 years later I just found your channel and i’ve been binge watching for days, i LOVE all the tinkering and building and exploring all the gadgets and whatsits, very interesting, cathartic in a way. And sooo much content!!! Love it.

[@Zcudazz]

YES!!! I had one of those spin welders and loved it!!! I even joined the Navy and became a SeaBee as a Steel Worker and learned to weld... all because of that Mattel TOY!! Fran thank you for doing that video!! Brought back awesome memories!!!!

[@johnyoung4747]

What a concept! I've thrown away many plastic items over the years -- defeated after using every solution available in glue-dom. This might just be crazy enough to work! I don't remember Matell's spin welder toy. Could have used one though back in 1970 when one of the fins on my lawn dart fell off.

[@denniswalsh8476]

Me too... plastic epoxy is NOT the answer all that often. And that stuff varies like crazy by brand. I wrote it off to the seemingly hundreds of different plastics and only a few types of epoxy.

[@grajmahal]

Yeah, I find the cordless dremel works really well for this. This is done a lot in the 3d printing community- the filament just happens to work perfectly in a properly sized collet. ABS is especially good material for spin welding, at least from my experience. I would probably try to use the same plastic I'm trying to join whenever possible.

[@neeandertallllatrednaeen6635]

Electronics Technician here, You are a fun inspiration to watch. I love your enthusiasm. I learned something useful here from you. Thanks.

[@elitejohnlp]

Hey, thanks for this great idea! A tip from a professional welder: on equal thickness fillet joints, keep the 'rod' at 45 degrees between the two plates, and in this case maybe drag it at 20-45 degrees in the direction of travel. The closer to upright - the more penetration, the more you lay it - the less. I'm going to sacrifice a small rotary tool to make this - thank you again. Btw your face at 11:20-11:40 when you're surprised at your own awesomeness is hilarious. You look like you just opened a Christmas present and got a puppy/cat/rabbit/dikdik/kangaroo-mouse hybrid.

[@AdrianCastravete]

I like how she bangs the welded piece to test the strength. :D

[@monkeywrangler5200]

Model builder here. Your video is helpful because I work in bigger scales... "durability" is important, so thank you. This will help.

[@hendrikhendrikson2941]

That look on your face when you discover the strength of the weld :) Priceless !!! I love your video's!

[@FranLab]

I am a drop-out and a basic disappointment to the institutions of learning. :)

[@ivorjawa]

So is Bil Herd, the guy who designed the C=128. Lots of nondegreed engineers.

[@Prestonesfpv]

Degree dosent matter, a lot of the engineers i work with on a daily basis freaks out when they need to do something practical, but they are damn good at memorise books and rules..... ill take a craftsman who knows whats going on into my team any day

[@Jimmy_in_Mexico]

Well youre not a disappointment to the species. Youre brilliant and inquisitive. You arent afraid to try. I would dig having a friend like you. I am inventing some sort of tarp welding system because I cant afford to spend 2 or 3 thousand dollars for a factory machine. Any auggestions would be awesome.

[@brucebaxter6923]

Spin welder! Loved them, taught me how to weld

[@bshinn4884]

The institutions of learning are a disappointment to themselves and everyone else that is paying attention. Wouldn't worry about it too much lmao

[@markbratcher9095]

I've seen several of your videos, new and old, and I can't believe how many new, useful tech tips I've discovered. I have to start writing them down in a consolidated list as I can't contain all of them in my feeble mind.

[@TrojanHorse1959]

Hi Fran, Many moons ago when I was young I had a store bought Mattel plastic friction welder. I have looked and they are evidently no longer available. Thank you for sharing this so I can now go back to my childhood and melt some plastics together. :)

[@saxbob2006]

Your banging it on the table to prove it's strength made me giddy with laughter! ...Like the nerd I am! 🤣🥰 Bobby B. Dallas, TX

[@diorama999]

I so remember the spin welder. I built cars and buildings. While learning I burned holes through the thinner plastic sheet that made the body of the cars. I remember ‘I’ beams, angle air on, etc. great fun as a kid, even with the occasional scorched finger tips. Thanks for bringing back the memories.

[@johncordey2769]

You are such a breath of fresh air ...I can't stop tinkering and it's all your fault!

[@adrianb4263]

Hi Fran, I am amazed at the vast knowledge you have, you are so cluey about everything. Truly gifted!!

[@sonnyanyone6263]

I found my old Spin Welder in my Mom's basement last week. It had a half completed dragster and 3 of the 6 panels made to build a house. That's when I realized why I stopped...no rods. Thanks for the info on the craft store and the Harbor Frieght (everyone I know calls it that. Exploding cutting wheels and battery powered drills that catch on fire) tool mod.

[@turboslag]

LOL!! When came to this vid I was expecting to see some lathe based machine tool that would friction weld pieces of steel bar stock to flanges, sockets etc!! So this was a complete surprise. Plastic friction welding will now be part of my techniques portfolio and I can think of a number of applications straight away. Thanks.

[@user-pd5ot4zd4b]

Fantastic! Heh, I completely forgot about that awesome toy, but vaguely remember the commercials! Those were heady days when you could buy a toy that plugged directly into AC mains that created a fire hazard as well, like Light Brights and Easy Bake Ovens... Jarts, pneumatic water rockets, chemistry sets with cyanide, Shrinky Dinks! Seriously though, plastic spin welding is such a huge win, why haven't we been doing this all along? Awesome.

[@kgbeezr75]

Light Brights, I can almost smell the offgassing of the gently warming plastics, really takes me back to being a kid.

[@davepatti2296]

Fantastic! I actually had one of those Mattel "toys" as a kid in the mid 70s. Haven't seen one since until this video. Required a 6v "lantern" battery, came with various plastic "I beams" you could weld together to make bridges, cranes, all kinds of stuff. Had rivets in addition to the spin welding rods, to affix cardboard panels to your work. of course as a kid I started welding things to all of my plastic model cars, was a great toy. I never considered any of that stuff "dangerous" back then, just good old tinkering. Love your videos Fran, I tinkered with all the same stuff you feature, prob of the same age.

[@YknotLearnall]

Hey Fran, I stumbled upon your video over a MakeZine as I wanted to learn about spin welding plastics. I was smiling the while watching your video for several reasons. Among them being, I happen to have that same little rotary tool from HF. As you mention, I found it too weak for use as is. Put it away over a year ago and forgot about it. I built a variable 12v power supply last year as well for foam cutting. Not as fancy as yours mind you, but works for what I need it for. And of which I just finished making my first foam cutting tool this weekend, so I have it out. I also just bought those plastic rods... Smiling because thanks to your video, and what learned, it ties those things together and gives new life to a tool that I would never have looked at again. So thank you very much for sharing the knowledge. - chase -

[@billluchterhand9176]

Thank you for this I watched my father weld plastic with soldering gun and stick plastic the weld never held. I gave up on the idea years ago. I was watching one of your newer videos and you used the spin welder. I than had to google spin welding to find this video. Thank you.

[@Far2hip]

The method I have found works perfectly is allowing the combination of all surfaces to puddle and I push the puddle along instead of dragging. It seams to create a much deeper blend and in most cases I have found that blend is actually stronger than I would have expected. I use a dremel tool and a rod that matches the plastic I am joining. So far, it has worked perfectly on all the different types I have tried. Much better than the hot melt techniques I have used in the past.

[@FranLab]

I found that filling material is necessary - you can get plastic to melt with a metal rod but the weld is shallow and brittle, like if you use a soldering iron tip.

[@KOTYAR1]

Oh my god, this is one if the most amazing thing I have ever seen on KZbin. Thank you

[@DrTune]

I love the retro-style of Fran's engineering cave. "No PWM, just.. amps!" Plus those great chunky 9v batteries on her desk. Lots of chunky knobs on the equipment and none of those silly LCDs :-) Great stuff

[@olradguy]

Dr Tune Those are 6 volt lantern batteries,not 9 volt.

[@mheermance]

I had a spin welder when I was a kid. It was a lot of fun, so thanks for bringing back memories.

[@mindtekzone]

Thanks for sharing.... couldn't help noticing your Heathkit transistor checker in the background. I use to be one of their repair techs when they had retails stores in the 1970's.... I use to use that same transistor checker on a daily basis.... nice to see one still around and in use.

[@rybcage]

I had to test this idea out with a dremel tool & some polypropylene rods I found. I was successfully able to repair a pair of scissors with plastic handles that had cracked. The hardest part for me is to identify what type of plastic the base material is if it isn't marked. Thanks for the great demo & sharing your ideas.

[@e.x.watson9997]

Today all of a sudden I remembered that I owned a "Power Spark" welder toy in the 90's and in retrospect it was probably the most unique toy I ever owned. There's also pretty much only the trailer for it on youtube, so now I'm learning about friction welding xD

[@fredkylam]

Never mind the finish, if the pieces stick together, that is what matters. Great video and something to learn and play with.

[@scotia807]

Love your videos. I used to work at a pen manufacturer and they used ultrasonics to weld the button on the back of their pens. The base of the lighters they made were ultrasonicly welded on.

[@stanmarsh14]

One of the guys on my FME / Slot Machine Restorations forums in the UK has just picked up on this, and I have got to say it's a very good idea, and especially so with what us restorers sometimes have to deal with, when we have plastic bulb masks mounted to the display glasses, which all too often over time, get brittle and break, especially with heat coming off the 1.2 / 2.2 watt wedge bulbs.

[@tvtoms]

Wow I remember getting a spinwelder kit when I was a kid. 71 or so maybe. Dad helped me get going but like with a lot of things, I never got replenished on the rods and the thing went by the wayside along with Incredible Edibles, Creepy Crawlies, and Shrinky Dinks.

[@markp9952]

Have the same tool from Harbor but didn't realize it was capable of better torque. Not a bad weld considering the pieces were fused together by friction, it staying together is what matters, nice video!

[@alancordwell9759]

Well you learn something new every day! I've never seen the Mattel thing (perhaps they didn't sell them over here in the UK) but wow, that could be handy for prototyping things!

[@thehippigeek3963]

WOw I remember that thing when I was a kid and I don,t think I have thought about it since, But as soon as I started watching this video I went back in time,To another place were this little long haired boy was infatuated with tinkering with things and got my hair caught up in that thing and learned a very valuable lesson. Thanks fran. I love your videos!

[@Thohean]

KZbin thought I needed to see this and I'm not disappointed.

[@PuFFerTV98368]

I got Spin Welders model kits every summer I went to visit my Grandma. Only burned my self ALL the time!!! Such a fun toy.

[@joesgarage618]

OMG ! This is awesome. I had this toy as a kid, and had long since forgotten about it - until now. As I recall it worked REALLY well, then I think you used the gun with an attachment to get the wheels spinning in order to race them. No safety glasses for us ! Now I need to go rummage thru my folks attic.... Thanks Fran !

[@apb311]

Fran, this is really great idea. My five year old granddaughter and I have been building different projects together since she was three. I believe it's important to nurture a child's interest early in there life and they are never too young too learn. Since learning to weld on a MIG welder is far too dangerous, plastic welding will give her the opportunity to learn about welding; supervised of course. Thanks for the video.

[@SeanBZA]

I use a soldering iron a lot, and have found a good nylon to use is cable ties. Can bond to quite a range of plastics. Like the friction stir idea, and probably will give it a try if I can find a small but strong motor and use a mandrel and a filler rod.

[@histgeek3]

Hi Fran, thank you for pointing me to this! I tried this recently, I welted a polystyrene plate into a polycarbonate case using a Dremel-like tool and a thin polystyrene tube (did not have a rod). I noticed that the other side was polycarbonate only afterwards, it first I thought it were polystyrene, too ;-) . It worked surprisingly well.

[@FranLab]

Oh true - it may be impossible to get the desired 'stack-o-dimes' with plastic because the melting point is so low and it cools and hardens so quickly. :)

[@thecowconspiracy1587]

I wouldn’t have believed the effectiveness of it! You made a subscriber out of me!

[@davidzachmeyer1957]

The Spinwelder was one of the coolest toys I ever had! I had the dragster kit. When I ran out of the welding rods, I made my own from sprues from model kits.

[@abpccpba]

Hi Fran Subject Welding technique. I use to arc weld long ago as a pipe fitter. The first weld is done with out any side motion. If you need a second bead then you move side in a zig zag motion which melts the first bead into the new bead. Try this drag the tip along the right angle and slow down some. This will give the system more time to heat the puddle of plastic. If you move at the " right " speed the puddle will cool in the back to a nice bead as the puddle front moves toward you. PJ

[@pheenix42]

This is a great idea for a hobbyist doing plastic fabrication. Bought one of those HF rotaries myself.

[@LouRadon]

Your intelligence and generosity are appreciated Fran. I'm super glad I stumbled on your videos! You got another subscriber.

[@MantisRay861]

Pretty cool! I can't believe this hasn't become more popular for DIYers. I have used a rotary tool with a metal rod in the collet to drill friction drill holes in sheet metal. It works on thicker metal but sometimes it welds itself to it and seizes the motor.

[@FranLab]

True about ultrasonic softening, which is used industrially to merge large parts together - I suggest you try it and see how it works.

[@rorylee1021]

i love your videos.... this just kinda made my day. ive always just used an old solder iron to weld plastic gears and such but it requires doing so without addition of material. I was born in the early 80s and grew up with 90s toys so anything beyond the erector sets, electric circuit learning bread boards, and a balsa wood working shop toys I am not aware of... i did think my early 90s toys were cool but nothing beat being turned loose into a thrift store electronics section to gather up old electronics to take apart and build my own cool gadgets... those truly were my favorite toys.

[@roybaker3945]

I got this toy, it was a building set when I was like 8 or 9. It also came with plastic rivets that would spin and melt beams together. And ya, I burned the crap out of myself, not horrible, but did raise a few blisters..... It was so fun! Great toy for a 9 year old, why not just give me Jarts!! Oh wait, I had those too. :) Keep up the vids! I love 'em!!

[@MrAureli224]

so cute. you made it work and you were so surprised it worked so well. love your expressions.

[@JunkYardDogNYC]

Thanks for the info on how to upgrade the Harbor Freight tool. I was googling how to fix a plastic fuel tank on a tractor and found your video. Good job on the weld.

[@stephenvowles1326]

Impressive weld. Impressive lady. I didn't even know friction welding was a thing. I have to try this. Shocked by its apparent strength.

[@markemetcalf]

Dear Fran, I love your videos and great sense of humor. If you make them, we will watch. Many Thanks!!!

[@ampeyro]

The nostalgia... the smell... I remember having one of those when I was a kid, it came with a toy car to which you could weld accessories, even though I was born in 1990.

[@johnnyanonyme]

This is the first time I've seen a video on friction welding of plastic. It looks like a great method for joining thin materials. I'm going to give this a shot. Thanks for making this video!

[@ChristopherOBrien]

This is flipping brilliant, kudos. I will *definitely* be trying this out!

[@kevins4611]

Thanks for posting this! For years I've been trying to remember what that toy was called. A friend of mine had one and you're right, it's the most dangerous and the most brilliant toy ever made. I've been trying to figure out why nobody ever made an up to date version for sale. However, I've also wondered 8f it was possible to do what you just did. Also, thanks for the heads up on refabricating the harbor freight dremel tool. Awesome!

[@bfelix053]

Same here! How have I not heard of you?!?! You're hilarious and fantastic! Count me as your newest fan!

[@lidarman2]

I had to make a two piece 3D printing part and recalled my spin welding days in 1974. So I loaded up some 3 mm filament in my Dremel chuck and here we are.

[@jcgillin51]

My dad would have enjoyed your company, he did stuff like this all the time with everything.

[@stvnnmnn]

I was just thinking about my old spin welder toy from way back when and Fran has a video. Who could have guessed? Funny thing I remember the most about it was how it smelled. It was a pretty toxic smell. Ah the good 'ol days. I think my dad just bought us this thing so he could do this himself. He never let us touch it.

[@stevendunn264]

I had a wood burning kit as a 6 year old in the 1960's.

[@TacticalFireRescue]

I think your inventive nature is great! I too bought one of those weak little Harbor Freight rotary tools that was essentially worthless until now! Thanks!

[@milesfifer171]

I had one of these spin welders as a kid in the 70s. I got pretty good with it, if you go a little slower and make sure you melt into both pieces it will be a very strong weld.

[@VB-bk1lh]

I seem to remember those Spinweld 'rods' had a soft core inside, they weren't the same material all the way though. I had one that came in a Richard Petty Kit, it came with a 71 Charger and parts to 'weld' on. The gun outlasted the rest of it but eventually got worn out being used on all sorts of other things. I do remember using it to fix an old cracked radio case, which it worked well for, but it was only good on polystyrene plastics.

[@FeasableOption]

Best part is I already upgraded my cheapo rotary tool. Now all I need to do is sub you & get some of that rod you used. Thanks for the inspiration!

[@ChozoSR388]

I got a version of the Spin Welder for Christmas in the '90s; the Kenner Power Spark. Came with black plastic rods and the gun was battery powered and had a trans orange front to it with I guess little flints inside, 'cause it sparked fiercely (or so my 7 or 8 year old mind remembered) when you pulled the trigger. Had some sort of military-esque vehicle with pieces (armor, weapons and gadgets) you could weld onto it. I remember it looking in a pretty sad state by the time the supply of rods ran out a couple of weeks later. lol Probably came with like 50 or 60 rods, so, I doubt it was actually that long before I ran out of them (I remember constantly playing with it), and the refills were pretty expensive, if I remember correctly.

[@russpeele9882]

You are definitely a teacher.. you would really inspire some young brains!

[@GEOsustainable]

That is a very strong weld. You just solved a huge problem for me.

[@johnjohn-ed9qt]

Not bad technique for first time. Don't know if you have practiced/improved since you posted this, but a few pointers anyway: Let the heat melt into the base material. Excavate a little, then fill. This gets the weld all the way through Use less extension from the collet. I run about 15mm extension with 1/8 rod. when it gets too short, loosen the collet, slip out a bit, and go back to it. Angle straight into joint, tilt 30 degrees Follow with a smooth ball-end steel rod to smooths and cool

[@Forbesbm124]

Holy cow I never thought of doing something like that so many projects are now going to go much smoother !

[@FranLab]

It depends on the thickness - with thin plastic it is easy to overheat and burn through the material if you push. No shielding gas to worry about, and control is easiest pulling rather than pushing.

[@JohnLueckenotte]

I had the Mattel Spinwelder toy as a kiddo! Cool demo of your invention/hack!

[@BlackWolf18C]

I had one of those toys when I was a kid. It had a truck with parts that would pop off when it smashed into the wall and you just weld them back on. Best. Toy. Ever.

[@markgreco1962]

Had one. It was super cool. Ran out of the little welding rods and then sat in the drawer it was probably around seven or eight at the most 10 years old.

[@240zzm]

HF has a bag of .125" plastic welding rods that fit my dremel tool. They have 3 different plastic types. This technique works amazingly well. I've always needed cute plastic boxes for my various projects, now I can make them out of old ABS computer covers.

[@alexpowers3697]

You never fail to amaze me with stuff I've never seen before. Awesome and thanks!

[@ItsMedicationTime]

UNREAL!!! I thought it would have snapped when you bent it for sure!!! Genius stuff here Fran! Thanks for the video, now Ive got a ton of ideas!!!

[@GareauRA]

Fran you put such "spin" on your video's. Love watching you!

[@spiritof6535]

No one is born a welder, so nice 1st try with the homemade friction welder. Practice makes perfect, Fran. May I suggest clamping the item down before attempting the weld, and using small rods. I know you'll have to change them more often, but I think the control over the tool may be an upside?

[@JudoGingerNinja]

I enjoyed that Fran! It worked 'great". If you do wish to improve your weld all you needed to do was create a pooling effect. Welding plastic like this is actually very little difference then welding with oxy / acc welding steel to steel. Hold the rod long enough to create a pool and then manipulate that pool of hot stuff without blowing a hole in it. You can do the same job using a soldering iron! But your way is better and I will be adopting it asap! I may even try it with steel. Cheers.

[@mastercad7260]

Hi, Your way of the demo is very nicely explained. You are demo very natural and friendly,Thanks