Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I have that same mig, got it from a buddy at Airgas. Seems to work well for me too.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Awesome I got the demo floor model from Matheson for about 50% off with helmet, gloves, and a tank of gas, it's nice and heavy isn't it with proper metal guts not plastic shiet. Can you please tell me what your settings are for welding 1/8th thick square tubing for example, I just can't get it dialed in to give me that "concave" bead looking weld... UPDATE: one month later, figured it out, I just had to increase my wire speed by one notch from a 2 to a 3 setting! but at the time I kept twisting the wrong knob (ie the volts) like an idiot.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

On 1/8" I'm running D at about 3, with .035 wire on thicker steel and on the sheet metal I'm on C at ~2.5 with .023 wire.

I keep fiddling with the settings trying to get a better feel for it, but I keep going back to these two.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Oh, and I am by NO means a good welder, but I'm learning and I'm liking it.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I can't thank you enough. Yeah I bought a demo unit from Matheson I think or some other small specialty outfit, and their unit actually has sharpie marks on 2 for wire speed and D for voltage! that with .025 wire works great on sheet metal.

Currently I think I am running only .030 wire on the 1/8th brackets cause I think that's all Home Depot had at 10pm one night when I ran out, ha ha.

Are you running on 120 volts? Do you have a 20 amp circuit? I keep tripping my 15 amp one LOL

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Yes, running 110 V on a 20 amp circuit. When the welder is plugged in, the only thing on that circuit is the welder. That was the way I set up the shop.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I see. I thought the parts that sandwiched the tubesteel were manufactured parts. Good work.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

wow thanks bro, imagine if my welds looked as good as my fab work, ha ha

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

a while back I got that rollpan in the organic paint booth and gave it a coat of high end cheap primer, lol

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

it's held on with screws for now (pronouned: "ever") ha ha and I like it it's probably good for another 20 hp, what do you all think

I apologize for the bad pics with the shadows and all

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I like it!



:lol:

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

nothing to write home about, just liberated the 45 lbs horn from the "core support" in order to have more access to mounting yet another radiator and fabricating the lower radiator core support crossmember

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I just removed one of those horns too. Couldn't get it to do anything and I needed the room anyway.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Cool, did you use an engine hoist, or a scissor jack, ha ha? solid heavy little suckers aren't they?

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Yeah, I feel a little guilty taking it to scrap. Feels like I'm cheating them.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

not the best pics sorry about that, but with the grille out of the way it is time to think on the bottom radiator support crossmember thinga jobbie, and I'm seriously considering going back to a pull electric fan setup instead of this push idea

now yes I do shaddy work, but I don't take credit where it ain't do, and this is all prior owners from like 7 owners ago frame rail cut job

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

so here's another look at the passenger side frame rail and how far it sticks out past the front inner fender facia

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and here's another look at the driver side, I use the 1/2 extension to show you there's a perpendicular set of holes in this second gen Camaro subframe that you can use as a reference for making a decision as where to cut

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

literally this little bent passender side front fender support rod is solely responsible for what happened next....

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

I tell you what I can literally sit there in my broken down lawn chair with a semi cold flat beer in my hand and stare at this next pic for hours, I am so fascinated with all the mechanical engineering - how about you?

So yeah I think we are woppin' 4" off of those frame rails to get some proper clearance

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

it appears someone brushed up against my passenger front fender ever so slightly

honestly, the dent's didn't bother me as much as the proper alignment of that bottom tie rod I showed you earlier

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and here's how it looked on the inside

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

tools of the trade...

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and... good enuff for Gobermint work!

again as long as all the bolt holes align proper, that's all I care abouts

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

... and it's belly all semi streightened, I still need to tack weld a few cracks, but you get the idea of the quality of my work, and I use both terms loosely

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

So here's the driver side frame horn chopped off

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and then it was off to the driver side

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and here's the ever so slightly damaged driver side front fender, nothing a three pound sledge can't handle

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

so using Ole Sarge thread 49 ls1 as an example I decided to lop off the bottom of the OEM radiator frame, this will allow me to slide the radiator further down, so I made the cut 23" down from the top to keep the most original metal that I could

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

and progress on the driver side front fender, not bad for a rough first pass, this truck aint getting painted so we are not going for perfection here

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

You do nice metal work.

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

Thanks mate, not bad for an IT guy! hee hee

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

put the front end back on for final fitment and alignment before welding in the radiator core support

it appears I am about 1/2 an inch off and the hood has a slight overbite and refuses to shut, the recommendations I am getting is to lower the front, which at the moment appears to be resting on the power steering box

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

sneak peak at the black grille and the look I am going for, it's like lipstick on a pig, ha ha

mocked up front bumper as well

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

looking good, I like the black grille!

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

random things that need a doin' but I'll be putting them off

this aint bad at all it's a Nevada truck

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

yanked out the rusted out L shaped bed side brackets - ordered 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" National Hardware N215-475 4060BC Solid Angle in Plain Steel off of Amazon, not the ideal place to source your metal, but desperate times call for desperate measures

fun level = 0

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

one of the bed cross sills had a little English on it so it took some gentle persuasion to get it straight

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

so bed cross sills wire wheeled, acid washed, baking soda neutralized, sun bathing, about to get some primer and paint (may be
throwing two extra in for strenghtability, we shall see)

please don't mind the two tone prime job, I was just trying to use up a can of light gray primer that refused to run out (wish it did that when I actually needed just a bit more, know what I'm sayin' fellas?)

Re: A '54 named Busty
 

alright, after getting my front end realigned so that the hood could close, it was time to make that asymetrical radiator frame

it aint gonna win any beauty pageants but it's strong and I made it out of all my scrap metal cause you know I can't exactly run over to Lumberjack and pick up some more U chanel or square tubing

still gonna add some gussets up on top tomorrow