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Old 09-20-2020, 08:56 PM   #286
SkinnyG
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Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Beautiful BC, Canada, eh?!
Posts: 2,192
Re: SkinnyG's '61 Apache

Cab corners are welded.

Like an idiot, I decided that I should oxy-acetylene weld these in. My reasoning, is that gas welding leaves the most malleable weld, (theoretically) distorts less as you heat the metal up more gradually, and cool it down more gradually. In theory, it is quicker, as you do not need to stack a bunch of beads together, but you can give'er in one pass (once tacked, of course), and you don't have to grind the welds down, and there's a whole lot less shrinkage since there's a whole lot less bead to contract.

At least that's the theory.

The reality was really more of a slow-paced but-whuppin.







They ain't gorgeous, but they are solid, and they actually ended up fitting relatively well. And yes - there was less shrinkage/distortion.

MIG is so much easier, and while it may be more work, MIG feels more productive.

It also took quite some time to stretch/shrink parts of the cab wall. That was un-fun.

Also filled two antenna holes (shortwave? two way? CB?) that had been caulked and plated many moons ago.

And filled the fuel filler hole. I bent the flange into the opening and planished it flat, then cut a patch from some e-coated offcuts, and gas welded that in. The gas welding certainly is WAY more malleable than MIG.



These'll be good enough for a skim of filler. It ain't gonna be master metal craftsmanship. Not yet, anyway.
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1961 Apache: "Grabber Orange" Shortboxed, pancake, step-notch, air-ride, boosted-LS
1977 Silverado: Shortboxed & dropped, potato-potato
V8 Pontiac Firefly (Chevy Sprint): The ultimate engine swap: 5.7L in a 1.0L bag
Lotus Super 7 Replica: Scratch-built street-legal rollerskate
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