We got into a discussion about welding on the truck.

This involves welding the exhaust system. Any problems just hanging the ground on a good place on the exhaust pipe and weld away??

What about MIG welding same way??

I have a TIG welder I use a lot. How about the high frequency start?? Is this ok??

With all the muffler shops around and seeing them cut things off with a plasma torch and weld a lot with MIG, I would guess there isn't much problem. I don't see them unhooking anything or being particularly careful where the ground goes.

bentwings

 

i think by theory, if the ground is between your elec system, and what you are welding you should be o.k...current takes shortest path...but i would disconnect batteries just to be safe..cheap insurance

 

if u clamp the ground on the pipe close to where u weld there is almost no chance of it screwing anything up, but there is still a chance.
edit: anyone ever weld up spider gears, clamp the axle tube and have your bearings arc?

 

HeHe not me I would never do something stupid like that I only blew every light bulb on the KW and 48' flat I was repairing the mud flap bracket on, even the dash lights Just keep the ground close and on the pipe and you will be OK

 

If your ground clamp is near your electrode and attached to the exhaust pipe it should be just fine.

As far as being careless... I've seen some doozies. One guy welded the bearings on an industrial sized roller setup. Another guy attached his ground to a conduit. He burned up all the wires that were inside of it. He wasn't well liked by the electricians for awhile.

On a side note.. One guy wanted to torch through a large section of plate and he didn't want to kneel on the ground. He raised the plate with a forklift to waist level. He cut through the plate and halfway through one of the forks.

 

We have a workbench that has a similar scar on it

 

Thanks for the confidence. It will make me feel better when I fix the damage repair from when the muffler and resonator were "KIA" haha

 

where was his head that day?

 

disconnect batts to be safe. (trust me)

 

I second that!

chaikwa.