Using 3 car batteries to weld (Video #1)

[NicSchumi]

Well done :-)

[sasop117]

i'm guess its going to fuck the batterys up pretty fast but its a awesome idea

[WheeliePete]

@sasop117 Doesn't hurt the batteries at all. The arc rod provides enough resistance to keep the batteries from discharding too fast. Go check out my other video on this subject where I I show before and after voltage readings across the batteries. Barely drops off the volts at all. In order to kill the batteries you either need to drain them all the way down (would take a LOT of welding) or you would need to discharge rapidly (ground out with a HUGE wire or path to ground.)

[sasop117]

46V i thought it would be lower than that

[ROCKNTV1]

good job bud, hope ya made it home

[WheeliePete]

@ROCKNTV1 Wasn't my rig, but the guy drove it out of there and then drove it 120 miles home. :-)

[Tevujin]

cool, i love welding

[WheeliePete]

I'm going to try and do a new video this weekend in the garage where I actually show you guys how hooking up the batteries and the power available for welding. It'll make more sense when you see it in a controlled environment.

[WheeliePete]

Definitions: Voltage is electric potential energy per unit charge, measured in joules per coulomb ( = volts).

The AMPere, in practice often shortened to amp, (symbol: A) is a unit of electric current, or amount of electric charge per unit time, in coulombs per second.

[kimsey0000]

Thanks a bunch for uploading this, this is one of the few places i found that shows how to hook the batteries up properly. Also, thanks for the tip on using welding rods only... i was about to waste time screwing around with using 1/8" plain steel rods till i read that...

[bellkxboy]

Voltage is the pressure not the amount of electrons, amperage is a rate of electron flow (coulombs per second). Welding uses amps not volts, most welders work at 9v 150 amps.

[WheeliePete]

Voltage is the amount of "Potential" energy available (I clarified my earlier statement about amount of electrons in the line). With over 600 amps of available energy (Most car batteries are over 600 CCA) you don't need any more freakin amps. What you need is a big load of energy to make the jump from one material to another in a constant, stable arc. TRUST ME, YOU NEED 36 VOLTS TO LIGHT A 1/8" 6011 WELDING ROD WHEN YOU'RE OUT ON THE TRAIL. (24v will kinda work but it's a bit weak.)

[WheeliePete]

Remember we are talking about STICK welding here, not shielded mig welding. It takes a lot of energy to burn up a 1/8" thick welding rod in a constant stable arc. Please just go try this. You won't get shit for an arc with a 1/8" 6011rod with 3 batteries wired in parallel...promise.

[bellkxboy]

Wire the batteries in parallel so you have 12v but many MANY amps, should have some nice sparks.

[WheeliePete]

It won't work in parallel. You need voltage to make this work, hence the SERIES wiring to obtain 36 volts.  Each battery by itself is capable of producing many HUNDREDS of amps so amerage is not lacking at all. Full size optima red-top batteries produce 1000 cold cranking amps...

[sz42781]

Do you think it would be hard to weld something with a coat hanger instead of a welding rod?????

[WheeliePete]

A coat hanger will not work for arc welding because it has no flux coating. In order for a weld to work you have to remove the oxygen from the weld, that is what the powdery coating on the welding rod does-remove oxygen from the weld. You could use a coat hanger for oxy-acetelyne welding as a filler rod though, but that requires an oxy-acetelyne torch.

[sz42781]

I saw on history channel they used to wrap paper around the rod, pre flux I think and the flame produced would eat up the oxygen or something.COOL VID.

[xXEastSideRoyalsXx]

in ur diagram it shows u hooked a negative wire to a positive wire how the FUCK does that work

[WheeliePete]

It's called wiring in SERIES. When you wire in series you are increasing the voltage (Voltage is mostly a measurement of 'potential' energy available, not necessarily how much is actually used.

) while retaining the same amperage (pressure)hours rating.

[deltaalpha21074]

Hillbillie welding OH yeah---Now I know !!

[vze27mym]

Sweet!

[hvguy]

I have 4 6v trojan golf cart batteries on my trailer with a forklift plug for my winch. I also wired up an adapter with a ground clamp and electrode holder.

This is legit! works great, but not really good for small stuff.

[WheeliePete]

True that on the not good for small stuff.  3 car batteries produce a VERY hot arc even in DC- configuration. Penetration is NOT a problem...

[thepaashaas]

we once tried to weld with a suziki alto, wile it was running, in nuetral and stationiari for al dumb people, and when i tried to strike an arc, it stalled, that was funny

[loscrudos26589]

hes not even wearing a helmet. goggles are meant for brazing, grinding, cutting, and oxyacetylene welding. not arc welding.

[WheeliePete]

Yes, they are brazing goggles, but I swapped in a #10 shade lens which is MORE than enough to arc weld with. Let me stress, this is EMERGENCY WELDING TECHNIQUE. There's not enough room to pack a full helmet when you're wheeling so you just take a pair of brazing goggles and put in a #10 arc lens in them. Works great, just pray you don't have to do any overhead! ;-)

[RHEAD100]

You tell um wheeliepete; Just because we are red necks does not mean we are STUPID.

By the way; Dirt is everywhere and now a days some bodys always got a bottle of water around. Mudd pack makes a great over head welding mask. And OOOHH how much better your skin looks when the job is done. ME thinks, wifie gives BIG hugg. You just saved the day and did not hurt your self. Ask loscrudos26589 how much he paid for his wifes last mudd pack. THEN WHAT did HE get for it.

ME THINKS you the man.

[WheeliePete]

Well, that's why the batteries are covered with coats or a blanket so sparks don't fall on the terminals. The only way to truly "explode" a battery is to ignite excess hydrogen gas being given off by the batteries. Even then, blowing up a battery is it's pretty damn hard to do. It's a total non-issue when using dry-cell batteries like Optima's (which is all we run in the 4x4's.)  This is emergency on-trail welding...it's either this or hiking out.

[tsport100]

TIG runs at 16v under load and between 10 - 160 amps so with a TIG torch you can weld straight off an alternator.

[hool10]

Not a good thing to do. Could blow up the batteries which is not that bad but the acid burning you is the really bad thing.