How do you find a good welder?

HrcRacing · Post by **HrcRacing** » December 20th, 2009, 4:04 am

I have a '05 CRF250R frame coming so I can "practice" on it with the option to use it if it turns out as good as planned (thanks for keeping the pics up in your thread Bob!). However, I need to find out how to locate a guy that can weld aluminum. I know no one in the industry.

I don't want to go through all of the mock-up work, etc, just to have someone who claims to know what he's doing screw it up.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Post by **AlisoBob** » December 20th, 2009, 5:55 am

http://www.weldingschool.com/weldingcontest.html#jax

These guys are in Jacksonville, I'm sure they could point you in the right direction

redrocket190 · Post by **redrocket190** » December 20th, 2009, 7:40 am

You take the dog for a walk and meet a guy drinking beer on his driveway 100 yards away and after a little conversation find he owns a hot rod business and can fabricate just about anything. I'll get a picture of his car later. It is completely custom built, looks like a '37 Ford but has a Ford racing V8 in it. I gave him the vintage restoration and AF story complete and he just got given a late 70s CX500 he is good to restore.

87CR500Rider · Post by **87CR500Rider** » December 20th, 2009, 7:54 am

After being quoted $2,500 to cut a frame and insert a "Y", I bought a 200 amp TIG. It added the learning curve into my build but I needed to know how to weld aluminum anyway. Several guys are using a MIG to weld theirs.

100hp honda · Post by **100hp honda** » December 20th, 2009, 7:22 pm

how much is a new tig welder ? considering buying one, but i have no clue how to use it.

JBaze · Post by **JBaze** » December 20th, 2009, 7:32 pm

New they run around $1500 and up. Miller has a nice 250 amp machine that will stick weld also for around $3500. Expensive but well worth it if you do alot of your own stuff. Personally if I do another AF, I'll buy a tig machine. The welds look alot cleaner in my opinion.

HrcRacing · Post by **HrcRacing** » December 20th, 2009, 9:30 pm

redrocket190 wrote:You take the dog for a walk and meet a guy drinking beer on his driveway 100 yards away and after a little conversation find he owns a hot rod business and can fabricate just about anything. I'll get a picture of his car later. It is completely custom built, looks like a '37 Ford but has a Ford racing V8 in it. I gave him the vintage restoration and AF story complete and he just got given a late 70s CX500 he is good to restore.

What the hell are you talking about man?

Mik329 · Post by **Mik329** » December 21st, 2009, 7:57 am

Go to www.htpweld.com and look at the invetig201. I went to chicago and looked at this machine and I think its a good buy for the money. You can purchase it with a water cooled torch and all the necessary bs for much less than an inverter based machine alone from Miller or Lincoln. It's made in Italy like everyone elses stuff....

87CR500Rider · Post by **87CR500Rider** » December 21st, 2009, 8:19 am

100hp honda wrote:how much is a new tig welder ? considering buying one, but i have no clue how to use it.

I bought a Chinese TIG/Stick welder off Ebay with a 30 day return policy and 5 year warranty (If of course, they still exist). Here's a shot of the front panel. It's got alot of knobs.

Long story short, the cover got bent in shipping, they had one that had some scratches and had it painted to my color choice. Here it is.

At less than $800 (with shipping) brand new, I'm in. Spend a couple of hundred more on an argon bottle, tungsten and some TIG rod and you're ready to go. As far as Tigging, I find it easier than stick welding. Most likely because I can actually see the puddle. I didn't say I was good at it, just that I found it easier.

"SOLID Bro!!" · Post by **"SOLID Bro!!"** » December 21st, 2009, 8:46 am

If you buy this machine be careful what you expect it to do.

The duty cycle is so small that it will weld about 3" of 1/8" aluminum and the thermal breaker will shut the machine down.

Welding frames require a bunch of energy, to create the heat and high frequency to stick those two pieces together. It may do it but it could get frustrating.

My suggestion buy a used syncrowave 250 by miller or Lincoln equivalent.

It will have everything you want and cheaper in the long run.

http://www.youtube.com/user/500bigbore · December 21st, 2009, 9:26 am

We just bought a new Miller Dynasty 350, UNREAL what that thing can do!

dannygraves · Post by **dannygraves** » December 21st, 2009, 9:30 am

My welder is less than a mile from my work and builds these
http://www.tinytrophytrucks.com/Home_Page.html

I asked a friend of mine if he knew a guy, and he did. he uses a miller synchrowave 3500 and gets some damn nice welds.

when I was living in cali and needed an AL welder, I opened up the phone book and called up the first place. ended up being a super chill dude who made the cleanest damn welds I have ever seen. he also didn't really want to take my money. I had him weld up a couple bungs on an intake manifold and put a plate over the filler cap on the rad for my starion and I think he charged me like $40. Hoofarted had the same dude do his gen-2 and the welds came out fucken sexy!

dannygraves · Post by **dannygraves** » December 21st, 2009, 9:31 am

Roostius_Maximus wrote:We just bought a new Miller Dynasty 350, UNREAL what that thing can do!

oh shit! the dynasty!!

someone has some $$$

"SOLID Bro!!" · Post by **"SOLID Bro!!"** » December 21st, 2009, 9:43 am

Roostius_Maximus wrote:We just bought a new Miller Dynasty 350, UNREAL what that thing can do!

MORE POWER!!!!!!

Post by **AlisoBob** » December 21st, 2009, 9:45 am

Roostius_Maximus wrote:We just bought a new Miller Dynasty 350...

You just like the name....

I stepped up from the 350, to the 496

350 is for quitters

http://www.youtube.com/user/500bigbore · December 21st, 2009, 10:56 am

Dude, we tried it at the show, welded a perfect bead down the edge of 1/16th aluminum, NEVER had that kinda controll before. Got a couple of weldtech torches for inside head port work too. Its by far the nicest we've used. It'll be here this week

HrcRacing · Post by **HrcRacing** » December 21st, 2009, 12:30 pm

dannygraves wrote:My welder is less than a mile from my work and builds these
http://www.tinytrophytrucks.com/Home_Page.html

I asked a friend of mine if he knew a guy, and he did. he uses a miller synchrowave 3500 and gets some damn nice welds.

when I was living in cali and needed an AL welder, I opened up the phone book and called up the first place. ended up being a super chill dude who made the cleanest damn welds I have ever seen. he also didn't really want to take my money. I had him weld up a couple bungs on an intake manifold and put a plate over the filler cap on the rad for my starion and I think he charged me like $40. Hoofarted had the same dude do his gen-2 and the welds came out fucken sexy!

My luck I call the first guy in the phone book and get bird shit welds that break. It's a Woods' family tradition.

Of course, now that Adam is getting a new welder I think my problems are solved.

http://www.youtube.com/user/500bigbore · December 21st, 2009, 12:45 pm

solved? hows that? you buy a jet?

HrcRacing · Post by **HrcRacing** » December 21st, 2009, 1:48 pm

Yeah, really, not exactly my corner welder.

dannygraves · Post by **dannygraves** » December 21st, 2009, 1:56 pm

serisouly, you have to have some local fabricators, it would suck to mail your frame back and forth, especially in regards to canadian customs.

I have a harbor freight cheapo MIG and I used that to tack everything, then just dropped it off with my welder, didn't even have to leave a mockup engine in it or anything.

http://www.youtube.com/user/500bigbore · December 21st, 2009, 1:59 pm

ya, theres going to be an unreal amount of guys within 100 miels of you, i wouldnt consider shipping a frame up here for that

HrcRacing · Post by **HrcRacing** » December 21st, 2009, 4:48 pm

dannygraves wrote:serisouly, you have to have some local fabricators, it would suck to mail your frame back and forth, especially in regards to canadian customs.

I have a harbor freight cheapo MIG and I used that to tack everything, then just dropped it off with my welder, didn't even have to leave a mockup engine in it or anything.

Yeah I know, I was just goofing around. How much did the Harbor freight MIG welder set you back. I like the idea of being able to tack everything in place. Thanks.

I talked to my buddy today and the guy that built his wife's open wheel VW should know a really good guy for aluminum so we'll see.

dannygraves · Post by **dannygraves** » December 21st, 2009, 5:10 pm

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/D ... mber=55525
then I got a regulator for free from work, but they are usually $35 and a bottle of argon.

asteroid500 · Post by **asteroid500** » December 21st, 2009, 6:43 pm

do you have an alloy boat builder nere you.....honest question.
they weld over 400mm in one run and sure know how to weld.

HrcRacing · Post by **HrcRacing** » December 21st, 2009, 7:04 pm

dannygraves wrote:http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/D ... mber=55525
then I got a regulator for free from work, but they are usually $35 and a bottle of argon.

Sounds great Danny. Is Argon pretty cheap? Sad, that I'm so fucking illiterate considering that two of my three brothers were welders. Sadly, one is dead and the other lives in Ohio.

Thank you.

asteroid500 wrote:do you have an alloy boat builder nere you.....honest question.
they weld over 400mm in one run and sure know how to weld.

We had a place that built frames for boats tops but they closed a year or so ago. We had them repair a crack in my brother's '98 CR250 and you absolutely couldn't tell it had been welded.

I'll give the Yellow pages a good look when it comes that time if my buddies friend doesn't know anyone. Thanks man.

BannedCR500Riders.com

How do you find a good welder?

How do you find a good welder?