How to Weld Rolling Ball Sculpture, Part 1: Butt Welding Track

The first in a series of instructional videos on building steel rolling ball sculpture, this video covers the basics of making a butt weld, one of the most common welding situations encountered when making RBS. I present information regarding parts preparation, weld machine setup and the welding process itself. The material in this video is stainless steel. I am using a Miller Maxstar 150 STH welder. I recommend using a foot pedal for ease of amperage control. All standard safety rules used in welding apply here as well, of course. If you have questions, please contact me through KZbin or one of the links below. I hope this video is of help in your creative efforts. Please comment, subscribe and enjoy! Thanks for watching!
My art web site: tomharold.com/
Facebook: / tomharoldart

[@HRsguest]

Hi Tom. Howard here. I'm taking an interest in building RBS things. I'm very happy to see that there are folks like you who are willing to share info and prevent us beginners from making quiet as many mistakes, as we certainly would with no guidance. I'm retired from SLAC (Stanford Linear Accelerator Center). I did a fair amount of stainless Vacuum welding there, and I'd like offer some advice to you and others here to add to your welding information. You are absolutely correct about maintaining cleanliness (dedicated grinding wheel). It is VERY important with stainless. Here, for what it's worth, are a couple of suggestions to hopefully make things even easier for you, and others. That tungsten you were using was very much in need of being sharpened, and I mean to a needle-point. A tip I learned from older welders was to finish the sharpening by pointing the tungsten downward on the grinding wheel while spinning it between two fingers. This is a "finishing move" that brings it to super fine point. You will need less power for that butt-weld, as well. The next tip will pay off for you also. Make a simple light-weight V-block that with a "notch" in the center of it. You could make it from a piece of small angle-iron, for example. You will be making lots of these welds, so it will save you time, in the long run. It will hold both track-ends in alignment while you make the weld. I hope this helps. Carry on!

[@patglenn7762]

Thank you. I'm new to welding and I've been trying to find out how to do this for months.

[@TomHaroldArt]

You're welcome, Pat. We all have to start somewhere. It took me forever to figure this stuff out on my own when I was starting, because no one had videos on it, so I made one! Glad it helps.

[@philipwolf3619]

Perfect !!

[@TomHaneyArtwork]

Nice video Tom!

[@TomHaroldArt]

Thanks very much, Tom! Sorry I missed this one when you first posted it.

[@edgardavila5466]

Hi Tom, You're a genius !!! I'm impressed with your work ...... For years I've wanted to do a rolling ball sculpture, I'd like to make a sculpture of billiard balls and I think I'm ready, but first I have to buy a machine welding of stainless steel. It is a great project to do with my kids !!! Could you advise me which brand and model of machine for welding buy?

[@TomHaroldArt]

Edgar Davila Thanks so much, Edgar! I don't remember if I mentioned it, but I use a Miller Maxstar 150STH welder. The first rolling ball sculpture I saw in person as an adult was made by George Rhoads and it used billiard balls. It made quite an impression on me!

[@williamreed912]

Thanks for the instruction. What rod diameter do you use for these sculptures?

[@TomHaroldArt]

Thanks for your follow-up email, Bill. 1/8" for anyone else wondering the same thing.

[@RobertSzasz]

Since this video was made have you tried an alignment jig that would allow one rod to be slid closer to the other? Combined with the beveled end a bolt cutter leaves, the "self filling" might be faster and easier than prepping two faces.

[@TomHaroldArt]

Robert, that's a good point you bring up, but it depends on a few factors, the big one being the condition of the cut of each rod end. Sometimes they can line up well, and you can get away without doing much or any prep to the faces. Many times, however, it just doesn't work out *quite* the way I'd like it to, and there is too much of a ridge or depression once the weld is complete. Often the shortest route seems to be: prep both faces and be sure you'll get the exact weld you need with no further fuss necessary. I've looked for a manual cutting tool that produces a good, straight face cut on stainless, but have yet to find one. That would be a valuable tool!

[@RobertSzasz]

Other than some sort of saw you will get at least one side with a bevel. If you do any aluminum or copper there are flush cut cutters that give one flat end, but I don't know of any for harder metals. I think the double beveled cuts coming together will make sure you have the best weld consistency, but the flat butt weld obviously requires a lot less grinding. Hmmm. I wonder if a little machined graphite mold (just a half a pipe) would let you clamp the rods in place and by running the metal right up against the graphite you would get a least one side that wouldn't need rework.

[@TomHaroldArt]

Robert Szasz Yep, Robert, lots of different possibilities to consider! Lots of times the solution presents itself as whatever is quickest and easiest in that moment. However, I'm always on the lookout for ways of reducing time and effort, as is anyone who produces work on a steady basis. There are fence pliers that make an almost square cut, but stainless will dull those right quick! I may give a few more tries of butt welding some unfinished cut rods and see how that comes out, though I imagine if it worked consistently well (consistency being a big deal in that equation), I'd have heard from one of my fellow sculptors about it by now. Not necessarily, though, and always room for experimentation. Thanks for the suggestions!

[@mykhailodavidian3949]

I love your videos. Well done! How many amperes do you use for this?

[@TomHaroldArt]

Thank you very much. doing welds like this I use generally between 50 and 75a.

[@rmoseley100]

Tom, I know you are using a "Miller Maxstar 150 STH" can you recommend a cost efficient new or old welders for the beginner. Nice video!

[@TomHaroldArt]

My only personal experience has been with Miller, so I can't say in terms of direct use what might work for you. However, I've heard guys who were happy with new Everlast welders for a budget. The Miller 150 STH goes for around $1200 used, and I think the Everlast equivalent is around $600 maybe when new? I'm kind of guessing there. I think all the lower priced ones are imports. I'd do your research thoroughly to see what the reviews say. I hope that helps a little.

[@rmoseley100]

Thank you

[@TomHaroldArt]

You bet!

[@baseballhunk723]

What do you use to hold the two pieces of stock in place for the butt weld? Is it just two bench vises in alignment, or did you make something yourself? And would you be willing to upload a picture of the setup?

[@TomHaroldArt]

+baseballhunk723 I'm not sure I used anything in this video, but you can make a simple jig, which is what I use when working on sculptures regularly. It would be something like a "U" shape with the two legs of the "U" being clamps and the open part in the middle leaving the weld area exposed. If you have an Instagram account, I know I've posted pictures of it on there before. I can't think offhand of any other places where I've posted pictures. I could do a video with it in the future, but I'm not sure when I'll be doing another how-to video. I also have a Facebook page where I post similar photos, and if you're on either of IG or FB and ask I can usually get a pic put up. All three accounts are TomHaroldArt.

[@edgardavila5466]

sorry Tom, I had not read below...... Regards!

[@robertkalinovich1400]

Nice video Tom. Thank for doing this video and posting it. Your welds are coming out beautiful. I'm having trouble getting nice clean welds like yours. It appears the main problem is that I'm baking the stainless with too much amperage. I can usually make the tack welds within a couple seconds so it's not because of too much time with the heat on. My question is: do you know how many amps you are typically welding with on these butt joints and on the t-joints? I see on the t-joints video you're really easing off on the amps at the end of the weld. You say 30 amps, but that's the max. So really, how many amps is your welder starting you off with when using the foot pedal and how many amps would you guess you're reaching? I suspect my welder isn't letting me get down low enough when using the pedal and that's why the burning is happening. Thanks again and love your work.

[@TomHaroldArt]

Robert, thanks for watching and for the questions. I can say that my welding methods have changed since I made this video. I used to ease in and out of the weld a lot more slowly. Now I stomp on it and hit it as hard and fast as I can. In doing so, you heath the metal intensely, but for only a short period of time. This makes for a good, solid weld with less warpage. If you're heat is right, you also avoid darker discoloration like blues, purples and even down to black and just plain burnt. It has taken me a lot of practice to get to that point. I'd still say 30 amps is fine, although I think now I set it to 60 and just stamp into it and out of it really quickly. It's a bit hard to say, as I've just kind of developed a feel for it, and I often don't look at the welder unless I've changed settings for some very different weld. For lots of thorough answers on this, I recommend going to the Facebook group for rolling ball sculpture. There are a lot of knowledgeable people there who are happy to share information on how to weld or do anything else RBS-related. Thanks again for checking out my videos and for leaving a comment!

[@robertkalinovich1400]

TomHaroldArt Thanks Tom.

[@TomHaroldArt]

You bet!

[@Anon54387]

@@TomHaroldArt Tom: What do you use to polish out what discoloration does appear? Would it be possible to drill small holes in each end of the stainless steel rod on center and put a pin to hold the two aligned and then use silver solder to make a solid joint?

[@TomHaroldArt]

@@Anon54387 Thanks for watching. I use a combination of a rotary stainless brush and rotary abrasive buffs to clean off the discoloration. In making the joint, yes, it would be possible to drill and pin the ends as you suggested, but the time and effort involved with those extra steps would make it impractical for me. In addition, silver solder is very expensive, and with the size and complexity of my pieces, it is faster and more financially acceptable to simply weld the ends together.

[@cpayne1757]

So, aside from appearance, do you see any problem using copper tubing? Seems like it would be cheaper and maybe you could use a brazing torch(?). Please advise.

[@TomHaroldArt]

+Zippy DoDah The only problem with using copper really comes in if you want to build larger sculptures. Copper is very soft, so it requires a lot of bracing if you are going to create large pieces with it. I created my early sculptures using copper, but it got to a point where I wanted to build bigger sculptures, and stainless was a good choice for them. Also, copper will degrade in the air over time. You have to paint it with clear coat if you don't want it to oxidize, and even then there is a chance that oxygen could make it through the clear coat. This adds time and expense to creating the sculpture. Copper solder joints also have to be cleaned extremely well, or else they can corrode over time. Using stainless avoids a lot of these issues. You asked a great question. I enjoyed learning with copper. My work just outgrew its usefulness.

[@cpayne1757]

Thanks for the feedback - good points that I had not really considered. Guess I was thinking of the cost alone. Do you know of any books / reference materials to get started with(?). I saw one awesome design with a center post that loaded the balls, but it was motor-driven. Have you ever seen any 100% perpetual designs...(?).

[@TomHaroldArt]

Zippy DoDah The best places right now for reference material are online. There is a lot of archived material at the Yahoo email list for rolling ball sculpture. I got tons of info there when I started out, both for working with copper and for steel. There's a Facebook group too. As of now, there are no literary resources. If you could get a text on rolling ball sculpture, what would you like to see in it? I've gathered a lot of information and would like to put together some of it, but I need free time and some input to make it a good reference. As for perpetual designs, science hasn't conquered that yet. If I had that design, I think I'd be making a lot of money from it!

[@gordonbryant4835]

Hi Mr. Harold - I'm recently retired and have decided I want to start making rolling-ball sculptures for my grandkids. Your videos are excellent, and I truly appreciate your investing the time and energy to make them available. Would you mind posting a list of the resources / vendors you use for track rods, motors, etc. Again, thanks for the videos that give us noobs the hope that we can actually do this. All the best! gpb

[@TomHaroldArt]

Thank you very much for the kind words, Gordon. Your first resource for connecting with other artists making these works of art would be one of the online groups such as the Yahoo group or the Facebook group. A quick Google search should turn those up under "rolling ball sculpture." For materials and such, check out my "Builder Q&A" page on my web site www.tomharold.com for all your answers. Thanks again for the great comment, and best of luck in your future sculpture work!

[@gordonbryant4835]

I can't believe I didn't see your "Builder Q&A" page. What a great resource - thank you!

[@TomHaroldArt]

Glad you found it helpful, Gordon. I figured it would be good to put up answers to the most popular questions. Those are all the same sorts of things I wanted to know back when I started.

[@gordonbryant4835]

Do you ever use software to help you work out your creations' designs?

[@TomHaroldArt]

I may sometimes do a rough drawing, but generally I start with an overall idea, maybe pinpointing a few specifics, like the lift location or perhaps a specific element my collector wants, but usually I develop things as I go. I would like to use CAD for making some specific components, but I haven't learned how to do that yet.

[@eeftop8128]

You say that you are using a Miller Maxstar 150 STH welder. What kind of welding machine is this? This machine just heats up the tip and if you want you can add filler metals? On the web it says that this is a stick welder and consumes a welding rod but it doesn't seem that way, so can you explain a bit please?

[@TomHaroldArt]

+Eef Top You can use the 150 STH either way depending on how you set up the welder. You can plug in a stick electrode holder to use it as a stick machine, or you can use a TIG torch like I am using here. Check millerwelds.com for more information.

[@eeftop8128]

+TomHaroldArt ah yes i get it now, only problem i face is with getting the stainless wire. can you perheaps tell me what u use and where u get it?

[@TomHaroldArt]

Eef Top I use mostly 304 stainless. That is very common. If you live in a big city there should be metal suppliers that sell it. If not, then ordering from the internet works, like from a place such as Speedy Metals. It pays to shop around.

[@davidevans4609]

Great video Tom. Can you use a stick weld instead or is the surface area too small to strike an arc and weld successfully?

[@TomHaroldArt]

I encourage anyone to try and see what works for them. I think it would be a challenge to make a small, clean weld using a stick welder, but I am sure a talented stick guy could make the joint and get it finished off nicely. MIG welding can do the job, as can silver soldering or brazing if you're looking for alternatives to TIG.

[@davidevans4609]

@@TomHaroldArt Good advice. I think I'll try MIG and see how it goes. Your videos are really informative.

[@TomHaroldArt]

@@davidevans4609 There's a guy named David Morrell who does great work with a MIG. He has videos on here. You can set up a MIG welder to weld stainless, or you can weld mild steel and then paint it afterward. Glad you like the videos, thank you.