Well today was a big day. I now have one of the aux tanks welded up. I took the tanks over to Teds and his son Brian welded this up for me. I watched the whole process and leaned a lot. I didn't try it myself but I'm grateful I was able to watch a pro do it. I'd really like to try it myself (with some practice pieces!)
Brian used a tig welder. This is the first time I've watched tig welding and I'd really like to get one of these machines!
I did not drill and cleco the top and bottom to the sides but instead Brian tacked the sides before running a full bead. Starting on one side he tacked every2 inches or so then came back and tacked between and then back again until it was tacked every 3/4" or so. Between runs he would tap the edge with a hammer keeping the seam tight.
After all seams were tacked Brian ran a full bead. After running 2-3 inches he'd move to a different edge to allow for cooling. Every so often he'd have to stop completely and let it cool. Once a bead was started you have to continue in the same direction with that bead. In other words you can not start at the other end and come meet the bead at mid point. Brian described it like a ripple of water - if the ripple was coming opposite to each other it would form a bump or ridge when it met.
After the edges were welded the fittings were welded on. After it was all done we tested for leaks. There was only one which I though was amazing but Brian being the perfectionist was disappointed. The pin hole was welded to finish one tank.
Brian is an instructor and inspector so I'm really fortunate to have his help. He took the time to explain things to me as we went along. It was a real benefit to watch a master at work.
My fuel caps just happened to arrive from AviPro today too. I noticed in Teds shop today that he has a Bridgeport Milling Machine. Hmmm... wish I would have known that before!
