Arc Quality comparison

[ShieldArc]

[QUOTE=weldingrod;85265]

I remember who you are now! Here I was thinking you were the sewer guy who had the run in with Lowes over a 200.00 $ payment!





120.00 pile,and still no payment.work done around thanksgiving.

Did you get paid yet????

[Coalsmoke]

Just imagine a long 1" diameter spring wrapped a couple times around a pipe and then pulled to the other end of the pipe. The spring slides across the coating. You ground the pipe and the spring is high voltage like a sparkplug. If there is a defect in the coating, high voltage from the spring will make its way to the pipe through the coating and you will hear a beep. It checks taped joints too.

ShieldArc and Finney, thanks for the picture and detailed discription

[Finney]

Picture of a jeep

[Pile Buck]

Just imagine a long 1" diameter spring wrapped a couple times around a pipe and then pulled to the other end of the pipe. The spring slides across the coating. You ground the pipe and the spring is high voltage like a sparkplug. If there is a defect in the coating, high voltage from the spring will make its way to the pipe through the coating and you will hear a beep. It checks taped joints too.

I’ll be dam, never heard of such a thing ! I’m like Coal, I too would like to see a picture of this!

[ShieldArc]

JT, good to have you back

Ok, Finny or JT, do you guys have a picture of a pipe jeep? I have an idea of what they do from you're guys' discription, but haven't seen one.

Just imagine a long 1" diameter spring wrapped a couple times around a pipe and then pulled to the other end of the pipe. The spring slides across the coating. You ground the pipe and the spring is high voltage like a sparkplug. If there is a defect in the coating, high voltage from the spring will make its way to the pipe through the coating and you will hear a beep. It checks taped joints too.

[Coalsmoke]

JT, good to have you back

Ok, Finny or JT, do you guys have a picture of a pipe jeep? I have an idea of what they do from you're guys' discription, but haven't seen one.

[JTMcC]

JTMcc,
Ever run the jeep on a morning with a heavy dew??

I've never run a jeep period. All I do is weld, but I've seen people shocked by jeeps many times. Sometimes on accident, usually on purpose ; )


JTMcC.

[Finney]

JTMcc,
Ever run the jeep on a morning with a heavy dew??

[Pile Buck]

Like a pipeline turned sideways

Now that’s funny!

Yeah them vertical pipelines are as close as a guy in my league could ever hope to get to a real pipeline!

[JTMcC]

Hey JT welcome home ! You through building America for a while?

Thanks for posting this information, I guess I missed a lot driving by at 50-MPH .
Always like learning how other crafts do their work.

Ok I know we’ve worked in the same refinery before, but different times. Now that pipeline I was talking about must have been 1981 or 82, and it runs besides J-5 road between highway 580 and Brentwood, don’t suppose you were there?

No I wasn't there.

I was in the area between the Bay and Modesto a couple of years ago making anomily repairs on the 24" Mobile line laid during WWII.

As for "Building America", with a little luck I'l be in the mix pretty heavily for the duration of our current pipeline construction boom. And when that's over I'm hoping for a Pile Driving boom so I can weld cans ; ) and that's the truth. Next to pipeline work I like big bore heavy wall cans quite a bit. Like a pipeline turned sideways and the pay is very good. Similar mentallity as well.

I just got a new to me 1980 pipeliner that I really like so far.

Have a Day!
JTMcC.

[Pile Buck]

Hey JT welcome home ! You through building America for a while?

Thanks for posting this information, I guess I missed a lot driving by at 50-MPH .
Always like learning how other crafts do their work.

Ok I know we’ve worked in the same refinery before, but different times. Now that pipeline I was talking about must have been 1981 or 82, and it runs besides J-5 road between highway 580 and Brentwood, don’t suppose you were there?

[JTMcC]

im gonna open a can of worms here,but the biggest difference in these machines are hands.those things holding that electrode holder.just find what you like and feelcomfortable using,and try to stay away from buying just cause so and so has one,or says his welds better,i see that a lot on this board.that machine dont change the outcome(when comparing the top of the line ones).

When you make your living welding downhill line pipe, under harsh inspection and in a very fast paced high pressure enviroment, all day, burning a 50 lbs. can of 70+ threes in a day, you will very quickly be able to notice the very great differences in how different machines perform that task.
And like most sensible human beings you will gravitate to the tools and equipment that make your day as smooth, easy and pleasant as possible.
In a world where repairs mean you are run off (and this results in a great loss of income), often after driving a thousand miles or more, people use what works the best and makes for the most comfortable, pleasant day possible.
To the neighborhood shop, running mig guns on junk iron all day the difference will not be a factor but it's a major deal to some.

JTMcC.

[JTMcC]

Years ago I was working in the San Joaquin valley. Everyday I drove by a pipeline project. I was amazed at how ruff they treated the pipe when installing it in the ditch! The sidebooms had huge Tommy Moore blocks on them. Must have been 4 or 5 sidebooms all working with different boom angles, and they would just travel along side the pipe all in unison. The first sideboom picked the pipe off the dunnage, and all the other sidebooms were spaced so many feet apart and with different boom angles, the last sideboom laid the pipe in the ditch. Pretty slick system!

It may look ruff, but our world the pipe is sacred and treated as such. The lowering in tractors have cradles with plastic wheels that travel along the pipe without damaging the pipe. The pipe is jeeped, that is a jeep is run along the length as the pipe is lowered in. Any holidays (places where the coating is damaged, they are found by the jeep, which tries to pass a current thru the line pipe, and only succedes where the coating is comprimised) are repaired before lowering in. There are one or more coating inspectors on hand for the lowering in process, as well as the ditch inspectors. The archeology inspectors are also on hand for anything related to excavation.
Welding inspectors swarm over pipeline jobs, sometimes one inspector per welder. they number joints of pipe, number welds, put station numbers on the pipe, lay out any cathodic protection as to where it goes, make sure the procedure is followed, make visual inspection of all welds, build weld maps, ect., ect.
Grinding marks or arc marks are almost always a cutout.
Line pipe of course comes coated, usually with an epoxy or poly type coating. The ends are bare for a few inches to allow welding. After the welds are made the area is sandblasted and gets several coats of a hand applied coating (dope).
All of the welds will see several layers of inspection from visual to x-ray to the pressure test.
All of this because the pipeline is going to be expected to perform for well over 40-50 years underground.

JTMcC.

Line pipe usually isn't even allowed to come in contact with the skids (the wood used to crib) instead a pad has to be under every point of contact.

[Pile Buck]

Isn't Weldingrod the same guy or am I losing my memory already

He11 if I know, I can’t keep track of all these guys

[Coalsmoke]

I remember who you are now! Here I was thinking you were the sewer guy who had the run in with Lowes over a 200.00 $ payment!

Isn't Weldingrod the same guy or am I losing my memory already

Weldingrod, no need to get defensive, well not with me at least, I never re-opened that thread or said unsubstanitated things of your workmanship, like your welds were of poor quality. I've been minding my Ps and Qs, hopefully you do too

Coal grab a piece of extention ladder about 3-4ft. long and bolt a piece of plywood or plastic to it . very light and easy to store .I'll post some pics of mine later. Jef

That's a fantastic idea, wish I had thought of that Thanks.