Re: Welding was: [PSUBS-MAILIST] CSX-1 technical inquiry.

["Captain Nemo" <vulcania@interpac.net>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Carsten Standfuß" <MerlinSub@t-online.de>
To: <personal_submersibles@psubs.org>
Sent: Monday, June 25, 2001 4:27 PM
Subject: Welding was: [PSUBS-MAILIST] CSX-1 technical inquiry.


> Okay - I did it this way : One side of both plates deep V grinded.
> Plate to plate tack welded with a distance gap of 0,5 - 1 mm.
> Than weld the deep V grinded side first.
> Go to the other side (if possible) and grind the weld gap out up to the
> time the weld gap is pure clear silver facing iron . Weld this side.

Yeah, I, too, like to start with a bevelled joint whenever possible; makes
for a strong weld.

> If everything is correct and the structure for example will be destroyed
 > the crack should be in the metal of the plate and not in the welding
area.

That's true.  Generally, the weld bead is stronger than the parent metal.
And the added care you're giving to metal temperature should do much to
relieve stress that could contribute to a failure.  Sounds good.

 (SNIP)

> With a stick welder it is not so important because in this process the
> dirt comes
> high and goes in the glas-surface-garbage layer.. (may you have a
> shorter word..).

The crusty layer that forms on top of the cooled bead is usually called
"slag".

> Welding is a three kind process :
> 1.) Teaching by a profesional
> 2.) Training
> 3.) see point two.

True.  And I would add, "Welding is as much an art as it is a science."  One
can learn the science from a book, or from a teacher; but the art of fusing
metal together comes from doing it a lot, and developing a feel for it.
With the size of the project you're building, I know you're getting plenty
of opportunity to do that.

Time to vacuum out the
> > pressure hull, paint the inside, start putting her back together, and
finish
> > up the exterior detailing.  Then, it's time to go diving!
>
> This year ?

I'm going to go out on a limb and say "Yes".  I got a lot done this past
weekend.  I'm literally too tired to work on it tonight, but I figure I've
got maybe another two or three days of welding small modifications inside
the P-hull; then it will be time to clean her up, put her back together, and
do all the "fancy" stuff on the outside.  I'm hoping for August.  Maybe;
maybe not.  But it shouldn't take much longer than that, unless I get really
finnicky about how much exterior detailing and "pretty work" I want to do.

Pat