Tig and flatstock

[Gaslight]

I want to weld together some stainless to make a layout stick with.

http://www.bigfoottools.com/index.html

It is basicaly 1/8" flatstock with 1.5" pieces layed at 90 over 2" pieces. I'm planing on using stainless.

My main concern would be whether I should lay down full welds. or just tack it. It needs to be accurate, so anything to minimize distortion would help.

[VBI]

Are you talking a overlap or a T joint?

Without knowing the details of your design or how accurate your layout stick needs to be I can offer what might be a procedure you can use which will yield minimum distortion with non structural overlap joint welding.

Drill a couple 3/16” holes in the 1 ½” pieces and plug weld to the 2” material. This procedure will offer minimum distortion within heat affected zone. Weather you use stainless or mild steel I would recommend using GTAW.

[Paul Seaman]

Stainless will distort at the drop of a hat so I would tack it and back step the welds to prevent the distortion.

[Gaslight]

"Plug" welds are like Rosette welds?

"Backstep" means just go back over it? Does it make any difference whether I go middle out or edges in?

I would like to make it perfectly accurate, and can accept having to bend and bang it a little to get it back where it needs to be. The crosspieces will just be lapped over the main stock.

But as trivial a little job as it is, there are four crosspieces, and I can try four different things, and possibly learn some right and wrong ways to do things.

[VBI]

Preventing distortion is impossible you can only minimize it.

Placing your weld as close as possible to the neutral axis of the intended weld joint will offer maximum distortion control and good repeatability (i.e. resistance weld).

If it is not possible to use fasteners with your layout stick than the next best method would be to use a resistance welder (spot welder).

A double plug weld will give you almost exactly the same results as a good spot weld.

A single plug weld is the easiest, and should work for your application.

[Paul Seaman]

Backstepping is where you weld a small weld and move to another section of the assembly and weld and keep moving the heat around trying to tie in the welds. I personnaly would work middle out but there maybe good reasons to do out in I just can't think of any. Make sure it is tacked all around before you start. Stainless can get crazy with distortion, if you put in alot of heat.

Peace

[fun4now]

why the layout stick

i looked at the layout stick at
http://www.bigfoottools.com/index.html

and dont see the real use ???
i built houses for over 20 years and have seen lots of new things to help speed up the process of plaiting. this is not 1. as for the 16" or 24" centers all good tapes have the 16" incements marked and most people can count by 2's. all in all im shoure you willl find this marking stick to be combersome and confusing, as well as slowing you down. that being said as a marketing ideal it would no dought sell to thouse that dont know any better. thinking this stick will make them a home builder.

a speed square, tape, framing square, level , saw, and hammer and you are good to go.

[VBI]

Now that I finally see what you are making; clamp it, weld it, be done with it!

[Paul Seaman]

VBI is right tack it check the squareness and welder up, no huge accuracy problem there. if your within 1/32" your golden.

[Blown S-10]

i was going to say clamp it. a couple of c clamps should hold it from warping

[orgalmeister]

for what it has to do clamp it and stick it. Just a thought, why not make it out of wood with half lap joints? Mahogony, cypress, redwood?

Steve

[Rocky D]

"Plug" welds are like Rosette welds?

"Backstep" means just go back over it? Does it make any difference whether I go middle out or edges in?

I would like to make it perfectly accurate, and can accept having to bend and bang it a little to get it back where it needs to be. The crosspieces will just be lapped over the main stock.

But as trivial a little job as it is, there are four crosspieces, and I can try four different things, and possibly learn some right and wrong ways to do things.

Backstepping is like this:
<-----<-----<-----<---- <=weld direction weld progression is this way >>

Skip welding is like this: <)))))))_________<)))))))_________<)))))))________ _

and a plug weld is a rosette weld

If you need the square corners a plug weld will do the job. Stainless is easy to straighten, too.

[VBI]

[QUOTE=Rocky D]Backstepping is like this:
<-----<-----<-----<---- <=weld direction weld progression is this way >>

Skip welding is like this: <----- <----- <-----

Rocky D, I think you know the procedures however I can’t quite grasp your schematic.
Maybe this will help?

1-------2-------3-------4-------5-------6-------7-------8-------9-------10-------11-------12

Let the dashed line represent a butt-weld joint you want to back-step.
One way you could weld it would be to;

1. start your weld at 3 stop at 1
2. start your weld at 6 stop at 3
3. start your weld at 9 stop at 6
4. start your weld at 12 stop at 9

To skip weld you could (weld from 1 to 2), (skip 2 to 3), (weld 3 to 4), (skip 4to 5) and so on …

Now get back to arcing & sparking.

[Rocky D]

I put tabs in there but the format was changed when I uploaded it.

it should be like this...
<)))))))_________<)))))))_________<)))))))________ _<)))))))_________

I know, I off the joint This is the only way I could get it to come out.