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I’ll start with the questions first and then the random thoughts.
When setting up to do oxyacetylene welding:
What size cylinders are other builders using?
What length of hose are you using?
Do you raise the outlet pressure to compensate for pressure drop?
The reason I ask is because my shop is small, it would be most convenient to mount the cylinders to the shop wall and use 25 ft. hoses. This would enable me to reach everything in the project, including outdoors in front of the shop where I will start practice work and small part fabrication.
Alternatively, I could use the 10 ft. lightweight hose and a cylinder cart if it really is best to be right next to the regulators, and if standard hose is too ungainly and pressure drop is unacceptable in the longer hose.
The equipment I have so far is the Miller Smith Airline AW1A torch and tips and a rudimentary welding table. Since I will have to wrangle the cylinders myself into and out of the car, they can’t be too heavy. On an EAA forum thread, somebody said 80 cu. ft. of oxygen is enough to weld more than one fuselage. Can that be true?
I imagine Bob still includes the photo demonstrating OA is good and TIG is bad in his booklet with the plans. But seems lately the debate over OA versus TIG has settled down a bit, both sides agreeing either method is acceptable when done properly. I’ve decided to pursue gas welding and am persuaded it is the easiest method for the beginner to start with. TIG will be an option if it seems necessary.
My go-to guide is the EAA, of course, with gurus Earl Luce and Budd Davisson leading the way. I have a book and DVD and have bookmarked many EAA webinars, tips for homebuilders, articles, and forum discussions. With the passing of Kent White, tinmantech.com no longer seems to be available.
There have been some good threads here on the forum also.
Locally, I continue to search for instruction. The community colleges and trade schools all want students to enroll in certificate programs. So far I have not found auditing to be an option. The college of Youtube of course has a lot of valuable information. General Air Service and Supply offers one-day courses in various welding methods. Hopefully in May there will be an OA course available. Talking with the guys at General Air about regulators and cylinders and such, they view OA as something you use strictly for cutting, and insist that what I am talking about is brazing.
My best bet is my EAA chapter where there are one or two old hands who may be of assistance. I attended a TIG workshop a while back conducted by one of our senior leaders. He’s also a Tech Counselor and presumably knows plenty about OA as well. Soon, when I have the basic setup assembled, I will make a public appeal to my chapter for assistance. I’d gladly pay for some one on one tutoring just to get me started on practice work safely and without bad habits.
When setting up to do oxyacetylene welding:
What size cylinders are other builders using?
What length of hose are you using?
Do you raise the outlet pressure to compensate for pressure drop?
The reason I ask is because my shop is small, it would be most convenient to mount the cylinders to the shop wall and use 25 ft. hoses. This would enable me to reach everything in the project, including outdoors in front of the shop where I will start practice work and small part fabrication.
Alternatively, I could use the 10 ft. lightweight hose and a cylinder cart if it really is best to be right next to the regulators, and if standard hose is too ungainly and pressure drop is unacceptable in the longer hose.
The equipment I have so far is the Miller Smith Airline AW1A torch and tips and a rudimentary welding table. Since I will have to wrangle the cylinders myself into and out of the car, they can’t be too heavy. On an EAA forum thread, somebody said 80 cu. ft. of oxygen is enough to weld more than one fuselage. Can that be true?
I imagine Bob still includes the photo demonstrating OA is good and TIG is bad in his booklet with the plans. But seems lately the debate over OA versus TIG has settled down a bit, both sides agreeing either method is acceptable when done properly. I’ve decided to pursue gas welding and am persuaded it is the easiest method for the beginner to start with. TIG will be an option if it seems necessary.
My go-to guide is the EAA, of course, with gurus Earl Luce and Budd Davisson leading the way. I have a book and DVD and have bookmarked many EAA webinars, tips for homebuilders, articles, and forum discussions. With the passing of Kent White, tinmantech.com no longer seems to be available.
There have been some good threads here on the forum also.
Locally, I continue to search for instruction. The community colleges and trade schools all want students to enroll in certificate programs. So far I have not found auditing to be an option. The college of Youtube of course has a lot of valuable information. General Air Service and Supply offers one-day courses in various welding methods. Hopefully in May there will be an OA course available. Talking with the guys at General Air about regulators and cylinders and such, they view OA as something you use strictly for cutting, and insist that what I am talking about is brazing.
My best bet is my EAA chapter where there are one or two old hands who may be of assistance. I attended a TIG workshop a while back conducted by one of our senior leaders. He’s also a Tech Counselor and presumably knows plenty about OA as well. Soon, when I have the basic setup assembled, I will make a public appeal to my chapter for assistance. I’d gladly pay for some one on one tutoring just to get me started on practice work safely and without bad habits.
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