Welding my initials on something

[jfsmith]

I have never tried this. I want to take my stick welder with some kinf of rod and put my initials or my name on my HF trailer, how should I go about this??

I think these are the steps:

1) remove paint
2) prewarn area
3) Us 60xx or 70xx rod, weld my intial
4) post heat
5) let cool
6) prime the area
7) paint
8) get a beer or in my case a diet coke


Is this really about all?

and what kind of rod?

Jerry

[SkidSteerSteve]

Pardon the ignorance....HF trailer? SSS

[Sundown]

Pardon the ignorance....HF trailer? SSS

HF (Harbour Freight sells small trailers), but I don't know if the frames are thick enough to SMAW on , maybe a viberating engraver might be a better choice, or maybe mig it. Jerry, If you really need to do this then I would clean it, use a 1/16 or 3/32 6013 rod, turn the amps down as low as possible, clean it & paint it.

[jfsmith]

Thanks for the info, I looked at the frame and Sundown was right, it is a bit thin. I am going to stamp my name into the frame. I have Alpha Numeric stamping set. That will work better than a vibrating engraver.

If you don't know about Harbor Freight, then you haven't lived. You need to go to a HF store near you.

Jerry

[TomVeatch]

...
If you don't know about Harbor Freight, then you haven't lived. You need to go to a HF store near you.

If you're not familiar with Harbor Freight, it'd be worth stopping in a local store and looking around. As I understand it, it's on about the same level as Homier, if you're familiar with them. I'm not, so I'm just repeating what I've been told about that.

Most of the HF stuff seems to be Chinese imports relabeled with American sounding names such as "Chicago Electric", "Central Machinery", "Pittsburgh Pneumatics", etc., and fairly low priced. In my experience, quality varies all over the map from some good stuff to cheap junk. The first time purchase of any particular item is pretty much a crap shoot. I bought a little 4 1/2 inch angle grinder for, as I recall, less than $15 a couple of years ago that's still going strong. I also bought a 18v cordless drill that stripped its gears before I finished the project I bought it for.

Supposedly they have a good warranty/replacement program, but I've never used it. In those cases, the drill for example, I figure why bother replacing one POS with another.

[SkidSteerSteve]

Duh...

Ok, well I feel a bit akward

I'm more that familiar with Harbour Freight. We have a store here in OKC. I have my fair share of stuff from them. Mostly just cheap stuff that I plan on tearing up somewhere along the way. My regular use stuff in either Craftsman or Snap-On.

My default for HF is High Frequency for short wave radios. You can see why I wondering about something called a HF Trailer. SSS

[jfsmith]

It is also know as "Harbor Fright" to some people. Cheap is a relative term. I keep buying their 1/2" - D handled drills, they run for about 6 months and something is gives out, burn out mostly. I take them back they give me a new one.

Try that with Sears.

I bought the trailer kit there because it is one of the few that is light enough for my Honda Element. I have about 1,800 pound towing capacity with it. So that trailer works great for me. When I need heavier, I can borrow a 10K capacity trailer and a truck with a big engine to pull the trailer. But when I am hauling my riding mower or something like that, the little trailer behind my Honda is plenty enough trailer. Plus I get good mileage with the Honda.


Jerry

[JonnyTIG]

HF sounds a lot like Princess Auto here in Canada. PA carries a whole line of tools that range from pig iron(junk) to drop forged steel...They sell hydraullic components, small engines, parts for farm equipment, cell phone stuff, welding supplies, pillow blocks, gears, shafts, you name it, all for a low price. I've bought tools from PA that lasted a one-time-use, and others that have stood up to the demands and are still working years later.

[jfsmith]

Johnny,

HF is a combination of Princess Auto and Busy Bee Tools. But they are closer to Busy Bee than PA.

Jerry

[fun4now]

I keep buying their 1/2" - D handled drills, they run for about 6 months and something is gives out, burn out mostly. I take them back they give me a new one.

Try that with Sears.

why would you want to have to return your drill every 6 months?? i got a good millw. about 10 years ago still runs fine, i also picked up a lighter dewalt about 5 years ago, again still running strong.
HF is marketed to the home hoby guy that rarely uses his tools and thinks saving some $$ is more important that getting a quality tool that will last. witch is just foolish, look at all the $$$ you have spent on gas returning the same drill, you could have just spent the $ for a good one and all the time you spent returning it you could have been working on some thing.
buying cheep tools never saves you any $$ it always ends up causting you one way or another. i am far from having loads of $$ to spend on anything but it realy is cheaper in the long run to just get a good tool in the first place. if you dont know what HF is its probly for the best. electrical tape, hamers, grese fittings and maybee some wheels is about the only thing werth getting there. check my bank acount its almost always colse to or in the red but 90% of the time i still save up till i can get a good tool, buying it once and having it for life or nearly that. HF is no way to start a tool colection, i would rather have 1/2 as many tools and know they will work when i pick them up, than have a hole shop full of cheepo stuf that may or may not die in the midle of my project causing me to find a way to make another tool (the wrong one for the job) do the work the broken one cant, or lose 1/2 a day going back to swop it out for another POS.
go buy a good tool and run away from HF screeming like you were on fire.

as for welding in your name, i used my MIG on my trailor to add the ser.#'s when i licenced it. (no not a HF version)
ok flame away.

[jfsmith]

I do have lots of high quality tools, a lot of my screw drivers and nut drivers are Klien. I have SAE and Metric Snap On set of ratchets, as well as my fathers 1/2 and 3/4 inch sets.

Most of my shop stuff is like threading equipment from Hanson and my other stuff is quality brand. Around the house, the garden and some other places, I use HF stuff. But some of there stuff is actually pretty good. For the last 2 years, these 1/2 inch D handles have been abused to a degree and used heavily. I used to buy Sears stuff because of the band recognition, but there stuff is crap these days. I have a set of Craftsman files, that were 14 years old and were dulling up, took back to Sears and the clerk didn't understand that a life time warranty is a life time warranty. Finally the department manager, broke a set of files and replaced mine.

In files I have 3 craftsman, and a bunch of Nicklsons. My finer small files are from jewelry supply houses.

My end mills are very high quality and my carbide for my lathe is quality.


The quality of my welding equipment shows the same quality.

But I cut down a lot of trees in my backyard. Stumps from 4 inch to 16 inches anound. I got a decent drill bit and my 3/8 drill was stalling out, so I bought the HF drill. It would do a few, then I would wait for another bunch of trees to come down. Then drill them full of holes. You ask why drill the stumps, I get a stump remover that you pour the powder in the holes, wait a couple of weeks, then fill with kerosene, let stand for a couple weeks, then add some more kerosene and light. This burns right down thru the roots. Doing this abuses drills and bits.

Jerry

[calweld]

HF (Harbour Freight sells small trailers), but I don't know if the frames are thick enough to SMAW on , maybe a viberating engraver might be a better choice, or maybe mig it. Jerry, If you really need to do this then I would clean it, use a 1/16 or 3/32 6013 rod, turn the amps down as low as possible, clean it & paint it.

Anything I weld a name or serial number on, I use SS, it's almost impossible to completely grind it off or hide it . . . oftentimes I put the name on top, then the DMV serial number on the bottom. Assuming, of course, the metal is thick enough to weld without any strength or stress issues.

[SkidSteerSteve]

.... You ask why drill the stumps, I get a stump remover that you pour the powder in the holes, wait a couple of weeks, then fill with kerosene, let stand for a couple weeks, then add some more kerosene and light. This burns right down thru the roots....

Jerry

Sorry Jerry, gonna pick on ya for a sec....I like my version of stump removal. It involves joysticks, hydraulic cylinders, and a diesel engine. There's just something about ripping stuff out of the ground that makes you feel like a kid again....I didn't grow up...I just got a bigger sand box and bigger toys!! Have a good one....SSS

[fun4now]

SkidSteerSteve
not all of us are lucky enough to get to play with the big sand toys. must be nice.

[calweld]

not all of us are lucky enough to get to play with the big sand toys. must be nice.

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