Aluminum Welding Spool gun or Tig??

[Gdogg]

I TIG and MIG aluminum, depends what it is.
I bought a new Miller MIG and got all the options, I set up the spool gun for aluminum to weld up an old aluminum car trailer. I hand the gun to my son and say give it a whirl, it’s the first try with the gun. He laid down an almost perfect bead, we were both surprised at how well it went.

 

[[486]]

I kinda like TIG for aluminum because I don't have to clean anything at all
just crank the knob up and when it goes poorly you stab the pedal to the floor, then jam rod in there fast enough that the rod doesn't burn back from radiated heat
then you shout at yourself, maybe throw things
and if nobody is watching you can cry a little too

ETA: oh right and if it is too dark to see with your helmet, you dip the tungsten in the puddle and that makes it brighter

 

[Tiha]

Don't forget to post the actual repair pix

I'm not too proud to post ugly welds. Lol. Just hope it helps somebody else someday.

This is me playing with the pieces I cut out of the trailer, the actual stuff I will eventually be working with.

I butt welded it. There was a gap so I kind of stitched the first pass. Made a second and third pass without cleaning.

When I tired to break it the factory tube tore and broke. Not the weld.
That is the point isn't it? Weld is stronger than original metal?

 

[arse_sidewards]

That is the point isn't it? Weld is stronger than original metal?

That’s just aluminum being retarded per usual

 

[Tiha]

Got the trailer slobbered together. Struggled because I couldn't get to the back and clean it. Also the wind would gust and carry my gas away. No way to avoid that.

Ugly, but I am confident it will hold. We always want them prettier but honestly if I put it back together with the interior skins nobody will ever see it. But I want to inspect it after a couple trips.

The original frame had box tubing, 2 of them. Like one for the wall and one for the roof. Now you know why such a small repair totaled the trailer.

The box tubing was 1.5" tall and 1" wide. Very thin, like 1/16" thick. I started with an 1/8" 2x2 angle.

I welded the to box tubing together where it met. that way I didn't have to worry about catching them both when I added the strap.

When I put the 3rd strap in place I tied the bottom together with some little pieces. I am sure it didn't need this, but couldn't hurt right?

Finished product.

 

[CarterKraft]

Got the trailer slobbered together. Struggled because I couldn't get to the back and clean it. Also the wind would gust and carry my gas away. No way to avoid that.

Ugly, but I am confident it will hold. We always want them prettier but honestly if I put it back together with the interior skins nobody will ever see it. But I want to inspect it after a couple trips.

The original frame had box tubing, 2 of them. Like one for the wall and one for the roof. Now you know why such a small repair totaled the trailer.

The box tubing was 1.5" tall and 1" wide. Very thin, like 1/16" thick. I started with an 1/8" 2x2 angle.

I welded the to box tubing together where it met. that way I didn't have to worry about catching them both when I added the strap.

When I put the 3rd strap in place I tied the bottom together with some little pieces. I am sure it didn't need this, but couldn't hurt right?

Finished product.

Not bad, not good

It will be good to keep an eye on it for a little bit. There's probably not much load there but aluminum likes to crack so much it will go from bad to worse.

 

[Tiha]

Not bad, not good

It will be good to keep an eye on it for a little bit. There's probably not much load there but aluminum likes to crack so much it will go from bad to worse.

Exactly why I left it open. I am pretty confident because I can see the back of it and see the penetration. Also read the 4043 is better to prevent cracking even though the weld strength is not as great.

But better safe than sorry. Just didn't see any other way to do it without ripping half the trailer apart.

The roof is flat again now so I can make a proper repair. That was really my main concern. The side door also works a lot better now. Figure the side door will be my first indicator something is moving again.