Trail Welding with Batteries

[K7VZ]

Paul and I did a little DC arc welding yesterday. Here's a quick write up of what we did.

Items used:
3 - 12v batteries
2 - Jumper cables
welding rod
welding mask
welding gloves
wire brush and welding pick to knock slag off.

Our first attempt was connecting 2 batteries in series for 24v. After a few minutes of struggling to get an arc started, we pulled the 3rd battery and hooked them up for 36v. That did the trick as we were able to get a good arc after that. It seemed that 24v just didn't have enough horsepower.

Here's how we hooked everything up.
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv231/k7azv/20111015%20-%20Trail%20Welding/36vBatteryWelding.jpg

Paul doing some welding.
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv231/k7azv/20111015%20-%20Trail%20Welding/2011-10-15_15-19-07_405.jpg

http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv231/k7azv/20111015%20-%20Trail%20Welding/2011-10-15_15-19-15_93.jpg

http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv231/k7azv/20111015%20-%20Trail%20Welding/2011-10-15_15-19-25_742.jpg

And then I gave it a shot while Paul took video. You'll notice we found it a little tricky to get an arc struck, but it welded great once you got it going. The pack of rods I took were 6013 1/16" which is about as small as an arc rod as you can buy. I think it may have worked better with a larger diameter rod.

http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv231/k7azv/20111015%20-%20Trail%20Welding/th_IMG957726.jpg (http://s687.photobucket.com/albums/vv231/k7azv/20111015%20-%20Trail%20Welding/?action=view&current=IMG957726.mp4)

[N7TLW-WQGX468]

SMAW using batteries. Neat idea.

[WB7X]

More diameter mean more amps needed though.

Well played. In my early life I was a maintenance electrician is a steel fab shop. Our biggest welder was parallel set of Lincoln DC-1200s.

I'm surprised your GO KIT doesn't have a portable wire welder and generator..:rolleyes:

[KE7NEA]

That was my 1st time welding like that, the added 12v was a HUGE difference! And if your electrode gets stuck... disconnect it QUICKLY! that sucker gets very hot very fast!

[N7TLW-WQGX468]

You didn't happen to put an ammeter on that, did you? Every SMAW welder I've ever used had a current adjustment, but I never put a voltmeter on them to know what voltage they used. What was the amp rating of the batteries?

[K7NNT]

That was my 1st time welding like that, the added 12v was a HUGE difference! And if your electrode gets stuck... disconnect it QUICKLY! that sucker gets very hot very fast!
LOL... I bet. Good write up guys!

[theksmith]

George had success with 2 batteries and 1/16" 6013: http://offroadpassport.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2486&postcount=10

(http://offroadpassport.com/forum/showpost.php?p=2486&postcount=10)he was trying it on cleanly prepped bare steel though, you were working on plated nuts/bolts it looks like, so probably why you needed the extra voltage i'm guessing. he also tried a coathanger and found it would work in an emergency, but it's not pretty or easy to use.


i talked with a guy at one of the large welding supply shops a while back about what rod to get for general emergency trail repair, and he sold me 3/32" 6010 rod....

reasons he gave for this rod:
- mainly it's one of the easiest rods to make a decent weld with
- easy to strike an arc with
- can be used in any position
- fast freezing
- they burn pretty hot so you can work fast and they will give you good penetration even with oily or rusty metal
- less slag / cleaner than many others
- plenty of strength for a just a temporary trail repair
- you can cut with them if you had to (move slow with 3 batteries or 4)

6010 vs 6011:
- 6010 is specifically for DC welding (which is what we are doing with a car battery)
- 6010 welds slightly smoother and easier
- 6010 slag chips off easier

3/32" size:
- good all purpose compromise for the different thicknesses of metal you might encounter on the jeep
- should work fine with only 2 batteries (24v) if you don't happen to have 3 (36v) handy


for my trail welder that i keep in the Jeep, i used some quick-clamps for autozone for the battery connects: http://www.autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Lynx-Battery-Post-Terminals-Quick-Clamp/_/N-25nk

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LPRSaXMmmfQ/Tp96DqzJUPI/AAAAAAAASvc/QX16eIZV28A/s800/P1040431.JPG

(http://www.autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Lynx-Battery-Post-Terminals-Quick-Clamp/_/N-25nk)if you search ebay for "welding lead" and sort by price-lowest-first, you'll see several people selling different leads with a rod holder already on them. i just got a long set with 4 gauge wire and cut some off the end that gets the battery clamp to make the 2 jumpers for the batteries (so i can run 2 or 3 batteries depending on the metal thickness). then some nice shrink wrap on the connectors, some rods in a water/humidity proof container, and some gogles -throw it in a bag and keep it in your rig for emergencies, doesn't take up much space.

obviously in a pinch the jumper cables work just fine, but having the right tools in a small kit ready-to-go is nice, for not much money or time.

[KE7NEA]

Cant remember the rod thickness but it was small, and your right depending on what your welding depends on the voltage, zink / galvanized stuff is a bit tougher to weld + you have to be mindful of the fumes / smoke from it as well. Jumper cables were perfect for making the right +/- +/- connections, but not so ideal for a stinger, BUT you can do it (proper stinger end would of been better)

[KE5DTJ]

To expand: you can easily weld off a large case externally regulated Ford alternator. The second alternator on my rig is a large case ford and at the flip of two switches and about 2300 engine rpm I can easily weld 1/4" steel with a 1/8" 7018 rod AND the weld is pretty. My tire carrier was built with this alternator welder and has held up for years, not to mention the trail repairs I have done with this thing. It would also be VERY easy to configure a foot-pedal controlled TIG welder to the alternator using a variable voltage to the field to control current output. It also seems that with the alternator since it is a dirty DC voltage it tends to agitate the puddle and clean the weld, though I only back this up with what I have seen as I haven't hooked an o-scope to the output.

[W5LMM]

watch this Video!!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tHJ0NSjZnM

[K7DCL]

watch this Video!!

Well done Lee, thanks for posting.