welding upside down

If done right then that is ok. welding upside down is accomplished by turning up the welder voltage and amperage, this effectively throws the molten metal across the gap harder (opposing gravity) The higher wire speed (which gives the higher amps) stops the wire burning back into the tip.

Cheaper mig welders may not have sufficient 'Go' for heavier upside down welding.

mrcheerful

When I first bought the welder I went to the local collage night school for a welding course and was taught to weld two 3mm thick brand new uncorroded bits of mild steel laid flat on the bench and then how to do it vertically. When I asked what about doing it upside down, I was told to move the job so it was the right way up.

When I asked how to weld thin ten year old car panels I was told ?oh just braze them? I stop going after that

I've been and done the welding course. Got a certificate to prove I managed to mig weld 5 test peices from 3mm steel plate that withstood the destructive testing. Doesn't mean a thing when it comes to welding rusty vehicles though. As for brazing panels, provided it's not a structural panel, provided it's securely attached it doesn't matter.

Anyway, for welding upside down, as Conor says. Set the welder a bit higher, and just do continual spots. Spot weld the metal every inch or so, then just go back over it gradually creating a continuous weld by spot welds.

Doing a continual weld upside down is a black art, and I have never seen anyone successfully manage it.

As for your suggestion off cutting a slot in the floor, provided the panel is welded to the same panels as the old one, it won't be a problem. You've just got to make sure any welding within structural areas, is a continuous weld (or spot welded in a similar fashion to the original panel).

Thanks for that, I thought if was only me that couldn't weld upside down.

Since this is a structural part will probably go the slot route.

Heh heh. I can weld thick stuff pretty well, and also overlap welds in ordinary panels. But can I butt weld thin stuff as I really want to? Not in a million years.

snipped

In the dim distant past when I used to mig weld my,for example, Sunbeam I recall being told that replacement panels had to be seam welded even tho' the original had been spot welded ..and this by an MOT Inspector as well..I couldnt understand the logic of that . Stuart

Stuart ( snipped-for-privacy@xpozure4u.plus.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

AIUI, complete replacement panels can be spot welded - at least as often as the original (BIG caveat - if you can get to both sides of all the points with the spotter) - but *part* replacement panels must be seam welded - you can't introduce extra spotted joints.

The message from "Moray Cuthill" contains these words:

Ah, the difference between college learning and real life. Wish the government understood the difference. Unfortunately we're led by people who've only done "professional" jobs and who are intent on setting up a culture where if you haven't been "trained" to do the job you are assumed not to be able to do it.

If you want to learn how to weld rusty thin metal upside down then you should spend some time on a farm...

Most of the time it's also covered in shit and water.

I've driven my father to hospital twice in the middle of the night, suffering from ARC eye !

Andy

That rings a bell. I went on a course once, to be 'taught' the correct use and mounting of machine grinding wheels. Some national factory health and safety executive decision. It became quite obvious after a few minutes, that the instructor didn't really know what he was talking about. I suspect 99% of his knowledge came from reading. As an experienced engineer at the time, I took great delight in asking questions which I knew had no simple answers. Just to watch his embarassment as he tried to cover up his actual ignorance on the subject. A classic case of. 'Those that can, do. Those that can't, teach.' Mike.

Welding upside down's easy:

Step 1: Start welding Step 2: Shortly afterwards, jump up and down and curse lots as red-hot molten balls of metal roll about your sleeve / down your back / into your ears.

Iain

The message from "Iain McLaren" contains these words:

Ah, yes, wear earmuffs when welding upside down. A ball of spatter doesn't harf make funny noises as it makes your ear-hair crackle.

It ain't fun, but it's doable. I think some of the pictures on my Elf restoration webpage show this.

It's such a nasty job in fact that I've ben putting off my Minx resto for that very reason. When the current Mini emerges from the garage the Minx will be attached to a body tilter to save having to weld upside down!

I have a neat solution to this; I wear an old t-shirt over my head with my face through the neck hole. Looks really silly but it does work.

Chris Bolus ( snipped-for-privacy@FARINAb0lus.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Where do you get fireproof t-shirts from, then?

BTW - Step 3 was forgotten. "Shortly after jumping up, realise you're still under the car, and knock yourself out"

The message from Chris Bolus contains these words:

Neat - ET welding!

Thick cotton is quite good. Just don't use nylon, etc. ;-)

Wouldn't it be easier just to turn the car over?

i dont know if this might sound stupid, but would it be possible to ask some mates to turn the car over onto one side? or at least at a very steep angle, always better than welding upside down.

you might need to invest some thought into how to keep the car from rolling onto someone .