Vent: A bad weld on a quarter panel almost cost me a whole job

I was in the middle of a repair on a 2017 Civic's rear quarter in my shop. I had just finished welding a new section and started grinding, but the weld started to crack along the seam. I realized I hadn't let the metal cool enough between passes, and the heat stress was too much. I had to cut the whole section out and start over, adding about 4 hours to the job. Has anyone else run into this with newer, thinner sheet metal?

3 comments

3 Comments

jessicaw1128d ago

Nah, that's just basic welding. You gotta manage your heat. New metal isn't the problem.

jennifer_henderson9728d ago

Ever had a weld crack right after you thought it was perfect? Heat management is so easy to mess up on thin stuff. I feel your pain.

matthewp5211d ago

Tell me about it. I've had that happen on car panels where you get a nice bead and then it just splits overnight. Do you think it's more about the travel speed or the actual amperage setting when the metal gets that thin?