I used to sand my forge welds for an hour now I just pay attention to heat

Back when I started smithing about 4 years ago at my uncle's shop in Boise, I would grind and sand every weld for at least 45 minutes to hide the line. Now I just watch for the right color and spark at 2100 degrees and tap it right the first time. My welds still aren't perfect but they're way cleaner than the ones I spent hours hiding. Anyone else waste way too much time finishing stuff that wasn't even welded right at the start?

3 comments

3 Comments

wells.olivia25d ago

So you stopped caring about hiding bad work instead of fixing the weld?

sarah81824d ago

...but what's the line between hiding a weld and just cleaning it up? Because I've seen guys argue they're just blending the bead so it doesn't snag on stuff, and other guys who grind damn near the whole joint away. I'm wondering where you personally draw that line, like at what point does cleanup turn into coverup?

emery_white24d ago

Nail that point further. The whole sanding thing is just polishing a turd basically. It's like spending all your time making the paint job look good on a car with a blown engine. I see guys at hammer-ins all the time who will spend an hour on the grinder after a weld that was already 50% cold shut instead of just taking an extra 15 seconds at the anvil to set the weld right. You can't fix a bad weld with sandpaper, you just make it look like a bad weld with shiny scratches over it. Getting the heat right and the tap right is the only thing that matters, the rest is just covering up mistakes.