Car Parts and Accessories

Strike the arc by lightly touching the metal with the point of the carbon rod, then withdraw it slightly until you obtain an intense glow. On a 12 volt car battery the arc is extremely small and in fact the carbon pencil will be almost touching the metal. Maintain the arc and move the carbon rod in small continuous circles until metal flows from the piece of metal being welded and the car body.

The two pieces of metal are now fused together but molten. To increase the thickness of the molten metal slowly feed in the tip of a filler rod. Remove the carbon rod so that the arc ceases to strike and when the molten metal sets, the two pieces of metal will be one.

If it is necessary to weld for any length, then the only difference to the above procedure is that the flux should be laid in place along the length of the job before the welding starts.

The arc should be maintained and moved along slowly as the filler rod is fed into it. If the seam you are welding is longer than 3 to 4 inches and you weld it in one run, the heat will expand the metal and on cooling, distort it.

The procedure to adopt here is to weld in small spots in several places along the seam, e.g. every inch, then complete the seam in sections. Start at the centre, and weld small sections on alternative sides until the seam is completed.

A most important point to bear in mind when arc welding, is the damaging effects that looking at the intense white light of the arc can have if you are not wearing protective goggles. It is not immediately apparent because you can lock at an arc from a distance of about 12in without feeling any pain at all. But unfortunately pain is no indication of damage and observing this terrifically white light for any period of time can seriously damage the tiny sensors in the back of the eyeball. So even before you strike the arc, put your goggles on and don’t take them off until the molten metal has at least reached a bright red.

You should also avoid welding within the immediate vicinity of the petrol lines, and under no circumstances near the petrol tank. As the heat is so intense with arc welding it quickly travels along the rest of the car and could cause quite a serious fire. No one would consider welding a full petrol tank but it is surprising the number of people who would consider it safe to do so when the petrol tank is empty. Unfortunately, this is when the petrol tank is at its most dangerous and petrol tanks which have been standing completely dry and empty for weeks have been known to explode. If you must repair a petrol tank, then the only safe way to do it is with resin and glass fibre.difference to the above procedure is that the flux should be laid in place along the length of the job before the welding starts.

The arc should be maintained and moved along slowly as the filler rod is fed into it. If the seam you are welding is longer than 3 to 4 inches and you weld it in one run, the heat will expand the metal and on cooling, distort it.

The procedure to adopt here is to weld in small spots in several places along the seam, e.g. every inch, then complete the seam in sections. Start at the centre, and weld small sections on alternative sides until the seam is completed.

A most important point to bear in mind when arc welding, is the damaging effects that looking at the intense white light of the arc can have if you are not wearing protective goggles. It is not immediately apparent because you can lock at an arc from a distance of about 12in without feeling any pain at all. But unfortunately pain is no indication of damage and observing this terrifically white light for any period of time can seriously damage the tiny sensors in the back of the eyeball. So even before you strike the arc, put your goggles on and don’t take them off until the molten metal has at least reached a bright red.

You should also avoid welding within the immediate vicinity of the petrol lines, and under no circumstances near the petrol tank. As the heat is so intense with arc welding it quickly travels along the rest of the car and could cause quite a serious fire. No one would consider welding a full petrol tank but it is surprising the number of people who would consider it safe to do so when the petrol tank is empty. Unfortunately, this is when the petrol tank is at its most dangerous and petrol tanks which have been standing completely dry and empty for weeks have been known to explode. If you must repair a petrol tank, then the only safe way to do it is with resin and glass fibre.

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