Never let an idiot weld up a car wheelarch...

[Campfire]

Mr Cheese, I forgot to say that Mr Campfire restores Triumph Stags. We are usually on the North Staffs/S Cheshire stand or West Lancs. He once did a full restoration on a Triumph TR6 (or was it 4) many years ago and car still going strong. I'm not sure what club that guy is in. I like the Triumph 2000 estates although they're rather cavern like - would fit a lot of bikes in though.

 

[Night Train]

I don't know if this is an urban myth, but there is a story about someone who wanted to weld his fuel tank. He very diligently drained out all the petrol, and then scratched his head wondering how to get rid of the petrol vapour. He got out his vacuum cleaner, and stuffed the hose into the tank......

The sparks on the electric motor brushes instantly ignited the vapour and his Hoover turned into a very powerful turbo-assisted flame thrower.

I watched a friend weld a gas bottle once. He was converting it to a compressor reserviour so it was emptied, washed out, drilled for some pipes and then filled as much as possible with water.

When he started welding it went 'Whooosssh!' and shot the water out of one of the pipes with a jet of flame.




When my late brother and I were restoring his MGB I had rebuilt and started welding the sills. When it got late I left it and locked up for the night.
My brother hadn't realised that the sills were not finished so he went on to the next stage and filled them with Waxoyl.
When I got back to it, the first thing I did was to lie under the sill and carry on welding. Each of the drain holes shot flaming Waxoyl down onto my overalls.
Fortunately my brother had the good sense to have the fire extinguisher ready but not the good sense to tell me had had injected the sills in the first place!

 

[slowmotion]

Yep...faintly hairy scrapes are what make engineering stuff fun IMVVHO..

 

[Maz]

it was only worth about £250 (17 year-old Renault 19)........

Looks more like a Renault Fuego now!

 

[Kestevan]

I used to have a Triumph GT6 before wife, children and sensible cars came allong.

Cracking car, dead easy to work on, that huge clamshell bonnet made getting at the oily bits so easy.
Of course owning a 70's BL rotbox means you need to learn how to weld

Always fancied a Stag. Maybe when the kids are older......

 

[Black Sheep]

I am now trying to think how to phrase the opening statement to SWMBO when she get home.........

Just don't tell her, let her spot it, come and ask you and simply reply "bugger"

I don't know if this is an urban myth, but there is a story about someone who wanted to weld his fuel tank. He very diligently drained out all the petrol, and then scratched his head wondering how to get rid of the petrol vapour. He got out his vacuum cleaner, and stuffed the hose into the tank......

The sparks on the electric motor brushes instantly ignited the vapour and his Hoover turned into a very powerful turbo-assisted flame thrower.

I can see how that happens, in an electric motor, for each fully revolution of it it makes and breaks contact twice, which can make a spark, given that it's probably doing a couple of hundred revolutions in a minute then the chances are high


I have been reliably told that to weld a fuel tank you should fill it full and to the brim, that way there isn't any air or fuel vapour to ignite

Mr Cheese, I forgot to say that Mr Campfire restores Triumph Stags. We are usually on the North Staffs/S Cheshire stand or West Lancs. He once did a full restoration on a Triumph TR6 (or was it 4) many years ago and car still going strong. I'm not sure what club that guy is in. I like the Triumph 2000 estates although they're rather cavern like - would fit a lot of bikes in though.

I'd love a 2000 estate, I prefer the early front end tho

 

[tyred]

Back to the OP, we always used to disconnect the battery as matter of course.
IIRC this is because the welder earth strap is connected as close to the metaly bits you are welding and the cars electrics are generally earthed to the same metaly bits.

I may be wrong, so any car electricians please feel free to set this straight.

Definitely a good idea on anything fitted with an altenator as you stand a good chance of blowing the regulator circuit, in fact I would disconnect the altenator as well. If the vehicle is old and fitted with a dynamo, it won't matter.

 

[biggs682]

during my apprenticeship in the late 70's when welding cars was quite common , it was common for myself to have to sit in a car with a bucket of water dousing down any suspicious looking smoke from inside the car , great fun not

 

[Browser]

Looks more like a Renault Fuego now!

Cor, there's a blast from the past!! I used to quite like Fuego's, saw one for sale at the side of the road last year whilst on holiday, they haven't aged well

Fascinating fact; The first-generation Renault Espace was based on the Fuego floorpan.

 

[speccy1]

...or if you do, make sure you watch for flammable objects touching said floor. Despite thinking that I'd propped the sound deadening mat clear of the floor, I obviously hadn't done it well enough, as when I returned to the car after a loo break I found it full of smoke, with the only recourse open to me being to call the fire brigade.
This is what the interior of the car looks like now:

OK, it was only worth about £250 (17 year-old Renault 19) and we were looking at replacing it within the next 6 months, but I'd rather have tried to sell it on!
I am now trying to think how to phrase the opening statement to SWMBO when she get home.........

This is the best looking Renault I have seen in years :-))))