Say I wanted to make my own frame...
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well at least you saw it,, i went to edit something else into it and deleted it by accident. didnt feel like writing it all again.
Building a frame for an off road rig only needs to be moderately precise, I KNOW my cruiser's frame is certainly tweaked.
That said, the frame of a track car has to be held to MUCH higher specs. When fractions of degrees in the suspension geometry can drastically change the handling, the basis of those mounting points needs to be superb.
Ultimately, jumping into building a frame w/o fab experience could endanger yourself and OTHERS.
That said, the frame of a track car has to be held to MUCH higher specs. When fractions of degrees in the suspension geometry can drastically change the handling, the basis of those mounting points needs to be superb.
Ultimately, jumping into building a frame w/o fab experience could endanger yourself and OTHERS.
If your motivated and you really want to do it, go take a class. Take the best class you have access to, meaning one that trains weldors for jobs in welding and it taught by a welder/welding instructor vs a shop teacher. Before you waste a bunch of time and money buying a welder, chop saw, band saw, plasma cutter, smoke wrench (acetylene torch), drill press, layout tools, welding table, etc, etc, etc... the class will give you some time to see if you really get a hang of it and like the welding hobby. Plus, you'll have a lot of fun and learn to weld stuff the right way right from the start.
I say this because I took a welding class 12 years ago with a group of car buddy's and was surprised when several guys that I took the class with did not really get into it and went in different directions while some really got into welding and stuck with it. Like anything, it's not for everyone.
If you really want to get into it, check out the classes that Lincoln Offers in Ohio. They have a motorsports welding class that is really impressive and the first one is only a week long. Would be a great way to get started quickly. In the past, these classes have sold out far in advance, but they are very reasonably priced.
You can also get some great student info packs from both Miller and Lincoln and the Hobart web site has a great forum for welding info. www.hobartwelders.com
You don't have to go to welding school to be a hobby welder, but it won't be a waste of your time. Especially if you get lucky and have a good instructor.
Good luck and have fun.
-Stumbaugh
I say this because I took a welding class 12 years ago with a group of car buddy's and was surprised when several guys that I took the class with did not really get into it and went in different directions while some really got into welding and stuck with it. Like anything, it's not for everyone.
If you really want to get into it, check out the classes that Lincoln Offers in Ohio. They have a motorsports welding class that is really impressive and the first one is only a week long. Would be a great way to get started quickly. In the past, these classes have sold out far in advance, but they are very reasonably priced.
You can also get some great student info packs from both Miller and Lincoln and the Hobart web site has a great forum for welding info. www.hobartwelders.com
You don't have to go to welding school to be a hobby welder, but it won't be a waste of your time. Especially if you get lucky and have a good instructor.
Good luck and have fun.
-Stumbaugh
no offense taken. i just meant that with welding, a weld can look good may not have been the right temp or speed, and that comes from experience. that is where the learning comes in. it will probably come even quicker for yourself based on your description of how quick you pick things up.
if you build it, post up progress pics.
no offense taken. i just meant that with welding, a weld can look good may not have been the right temp or speed, and that comes from experience. that is where the learning comes in. it will probably come even quicker for yourself based on your description of how quick you pick things up.
if you build it, post up progress pics.
That's a great point, although I'd like to think you can tell a lot about a weld by the way it looks if you know what to look for, there is a lot to say for doing destructive testing of welds while you are learning. Many times in class, beginners would think that a weld looked good only to pop off the base metal when broken in the piranha (fab tool) or in a metal press. You can even break them with a vice a huge Crescent wrench.
This is one of the reasons I always tell people to take a good class, it's cool to see how all of this stuff works. I would have never done that on my own.
My instructor and his brother ran a business doing destructive and non destructive weld testing. Xrays, etc.
-Stumbaugh
Motivation is the best start...experience comes later.
I am actually re-fabricating the center section of my frame which requires the frame to be cut in half...so its not really a complete frame build but it does require proper alignment. Here's what worked for me.
I have a one car garage so space was tough to get. I started by buying two sheets of 3/4" plywood, two 16' 2x10's, one 8' 2x10' and six 8' 2x8's. Do yourself a favor and buy from a lumber store where everything is outside (Home Depot lumber is stored inside and warps to s***). I then basically built a 4' by 16' floor in my garage, put it up on some concrete blocks, and had myself a decent base for jigging up the frame. A steel base would be nice but I could get away with the wood because I am not building a complete frame and just needed to hold the front and rear sections in place while I cut the center out. All of my jigging arms are made of steel and I just screw them down to the plywood. If you are really worried about precision I would suggest double layering the plywood. I will try to get pictures...
I am actually re-fabricating the center section of my frame which requires the frame to be cut in half...so its not really a complete frame build but it does require proper alignment. Here's what worked for me.
I have a one car garage so space was tough to get. I started by buying two sheets of 3/4" plywood, two 16' 2x10's, one 8' 2x10' and six 8' 2x8's. Do yourself a favor and buy from a lumber store where everything is outside (Home Depot lumber is stored inside and warps to s***). I then basically built a 4' by 16' floor in my garage, put it up on some concrete blocks, and had myself a decent base for jigging up the frame. A steel base would be nice but I could get away with the wood because I am not building a complete frame and just needed to hold the front and rear sections in place while I cut the center out. All of my jigging arms are made of steel and I just screw them down to the plywood. If you are really worried about precision I would suggest double layering the plywood. I will try to get pictures...
I should also mention I had no welding experience and just went out and bought a used 220V MIG welder from a guy I was working with...played around with it for a year...rebuilt my entire tub...then jumped in and did the frame. Motivation is all you need and don't let anybody discourage you. It is A LOT of work to do but nothing beats the satisfaction when its done!
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