Can of rusty worms

[Glenwood]

With both sides ready to go, I decided to coat them with epoxy after I cleaned off the zinc coating with a wirewheel and degreased.

Good time to blast the filler tunnel and epoxy as well. It had a lot of surface rust and took an hour to blast.

Good day's work done!

 

[JimKueneman]

You make me tired just watching.....

 

[Glenwood]

You make me tired just watching.....

lol, you should talk! The level of detail you are doing is exhausting...

 

[JimKueneman]

lol, you should talk! The level of detail you are doing is exhausting...

It is really not that much work if you plan it out right. Crawling around under the car cutting, hammering and welding kicked my butt. I am thankful I only had minimal work to do in that regard.

 

[ckessel]

One thing that may help is if the new floor pans are a little thicker than the old ones. Its a little challenging to weld when you have varying gaps, thick to thin metal, areas so tight you can't get the gun in, welding overhead etc. One thing I thought of after I did the ones on a guys 65 Bel was to lay wet towels on the floor topside to help with heat and control burn through. The guy who owns the car was topside with a squirt bottle so we didn't have a car b que going. The interior was partially out too. Don't forget to get some paint etc. on the welded areas and find something to squirt the backside of the connectors with after you are done.

 

[Glenwood]

Some good tips, thanks Carl!

 

[Crumley]

Glenwood, you are knocking it out of the park with the fabrication.
The subframe connectors on my Belvedere where made out of 2" x 3" x.125 wall tubing. So they where welded looking down from inside the car.
Carl's tips given above are spot on.
When using the US Car Tool subframe connectors.....they are close but trimming is needed to get them tight. Once a good tight fit is achieved. The only additional input I could give, is make sure that all of weld joints, the entire length, have been ground clean. And I mean very clean. Remove as much paint, under coating and even the electro plating on the sub frame connectors as possible.
Then stretch out on the floor, get comfortable and relax. Turn on you favorite music and begin welding....there will be blow thru. When this happens let the weld puddle cool and begin again. My rule of thumb on blow thru is, just as the weld puddle begins to change from cherry red to a little darker, begin again. Be patient and keep at it. The project is progressing very nicely.

 

[Glenwood]

Cleaning to bare metal under the floor was tiring! All tacked in yay!

I have the welder set to 12ga, the connector thickness, should the welder be turned down a tad when welding to the floor?

 

[malex]

You likely will have to make some adjustments once you get going. Wasn't too long ago when I was at your stage..

 

[Glenwood]

You likely will have to make some adjustments once you get going. Wasn't too long ago when I was at your stage..
View attachment 384093

View attachment 384094

Thanks Malex. I guess I'll figure it out when it starts to blow through.
Is it better to aim at connector then tryto move the puddle to the floor pan or aim right at the edge where they meet?

 

[malex]

Thanks Malex. I guess I'll figure it out when it starts to blow through.
Is it better to aim at connector then tryto move the puddle to the floor pan or aim right at the edge where they meet?

You got it, concentrate on the .125. You'll be fine.

 

[ckessel]

Malex cheated using a rotisserie! Lucky dude. I'm glad I at least have the 4 post lift to give me some room to get my slim body contorted under the car with.

 

[Crumley]

Glenwood, Don't lower the heat on the welding machine. When welding thinner metal to thicker metal always keep the heat on the thicker metal. Begin the weld on the sub frame connector. The metal is thicker and will take the heat. Then step over to the floor pan (thinner metal). Continue doing this. You will begin to develop a rhythm. The hard part is getting comfortable and learning not lay directly underneath the weld. Every now and then there will be blow thru, just let the metal cool and begin again. Occasionally a large slag ball will come rolling out on you. Be prepared to put your self out when this happens because you will end up catching on fire. If you have access to welding leathers I would suggest using them.

 

[Glenwood]

Thanks for the tips Crumley!
I gave it a shot and got the left side about 75% done.

I welded the frame areas first which was fun. The area between the torsion bar socket and the connector is bloody tight!
Here's a few pics..

First problem was too large of a gap on one side where there the connector meets the torsion bar cross member. The connector cuts are square but the cross member is not. I took a cut-off piece and tacked it on. Filled the gap nicely.

 

[Glenwood]

After tacking both in place, I welded them to the frame about an inch at a time, changing locations to manage heat.
Welds don't look too bad for an electrician!

I turned the welder setting down a bit to 14ga. Worked out well but a bit too hot for the pan I think.
I found short bursts about a second long worked best, overlapping the last weld just after the metal darkened as Crumley suggested. Gave me good control over the puddle.

Moved along the connector every 12 inches or so to manage heat, while keeping a damp cloth above as ckessel suggested. Worked well!

 

[Glenwood]

I'm amazed how long it takes; three hours to weld about 75% of one side. It's not very comfortable laying on a creeper trying to weld! I had to hold a trouble light while welding so I could see what I'm doing...lots of fun. I tend to use both hands to hold the torch steady. I need another arm lol.

I used this spare 742 to add some weight to the floor. Didn't really help much but I got good penetration anyway.

I still have to weld the rear pan which is original and is a bit pitted. I hope I can manage to weld it without burning through too much. Should be fun tomorrow.

 

[malex]

Malex cheated using a rotisserie! Lucky dude. I'm glad I at least have the 4 post lift to give me some room to get my slim body contorted under the car with.

Hey hey hey. I had to build that rotisserie! It attaches to the 4-post hoist that I also built so it's the rewards of hard work.

 

[Glenwood]

Hey hey hey. I had to build that rotisserie! It attaches to the 4-post hoist that I also built so it's the rewards of hard work.

Awesome lift you built!

 

[khryslerkid]

Glenwood, your welding looks good!

What gas are you useing?

 

[Glenwood]

Glenwood, your welding looks good!

What gas are you useing?

I think it's called C25 Argon mix.