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Hit my first perfect weld on a rusty gate in 10 years of doing this
Been a drafter on and off for a decade, mostly pipe and structural stuff. Yesterday this old wrought iron gate at my buddy's farm in Ohio had a crack right through a really thin section. Usually I grind it down flat and just hope it holds. Tried something different this time. I preheated the metal with a propane torch for about 45 seconds before welding. That rusted thin stuff usually pops and spatters but this time the weld flowed like butter. Anybody else got tricks for welding on old rusty metal that actually work?
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the_rose1mo ago
My buddy tried that exact trick and his weld held for two years on a rusty gate.
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skyler_kim151mo ago
That preheat trick is solid, I've used it on a few farm repairs myself. Another thing that's helped me on thin rusty metal is running a slightly cooler rod like a 6013 and keeping the arc real short. Have you tried that?
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