cheap, free, or trade for weld help. WA

[cid fits]

i have no welding experience and little money so i am looking for someone local that might be willing to help me put my wagon back together after i chop it up. i would like it to look someting like this

 

(no idea who car this is, just found it on old thread. i dont have pics of my own wagon to photoshop, so i just used this one.)

 

i have been considering doing it myself my dad has a tiney arc welder, but like i said no experience, i dont mind learning but my dad only used it 3 or 4 times an really knows little more than i do. so i figure if i can find someone experienced who would consider doing it for fun, or cheap. i buy the materials an the beer or whatever, you bring the skills and equipment.

wont be very soon, just planning ahead. i have the front stripped(lights, bumper, engine, radiator) getting ready do the back(side windows, lights,tank,bumper,interior)then start measuring,an drawing cut lines. then i have to do the cutting, that and it is at my parents house, new baby and been workin more since summer. i probly wont be ready to put it back together for another month or 2(im kinda slow as well as busy)

 

if anyone thinks they may have some free time later this summer for a fun fab project, or even if you want to throw me some price estimates, i got plenty of time to save up. thx

[woundedbrat]

The back is probably do able but if you chop the front you will not have room for the radiator or fans. I have seen the radiator mounted on the under side of the hood on wagons with a 6 cylinder conversion but I beleive they were also lifted so they had more room. welding sheet metal is tricky you have to do it in small sections to keep from warping the thin metal. You should think about taking a class at a tech school then you could do it yourself.

[cobcob]

Ooops... hadn't noticed the front chop earlier... Definitely would have to re-locate the radiator also, as mentioned, a Top Mount radiator could work but you would lose storage space for your spare wheel.

[cid fits]

for the radiator i was gonna mount it above like you said, where the spare tire usually sits kinda, get a hood scoop, an a fan that will pull when i am sitting still. i have a radiator from my old scirocco that is really short and wide. i planned on building an enclosure around the radiator to channel the air coming in the scoop over the radiator an back out but we'll see. i may have to cut the middle out of the hood an bump it up a to have enough room for it.

[Scott in Bellingham]

looks good , I could help only if cars at my shop in Bellingham zzz zzz zzz

[SuperBrat]

That my friend looks like a 4 door Gremlin:grin:

[82glsw]

That my friend looks like a 4 door Gremlin:grin:

 

Reminds me of a ea82 Justy

[GeneralDisorder]

That is photo-shop job, and a quick, or poor one at that.

 

It would be VERY difficult to do something like that, and without many thousands of $$ to pay someone who can weld properly, this isn't something you are going to make happen unless you do it yourself.

 

For example - where's the front of the engine going to go? The radiator?

 

How about the fuel tank?

 

Hard lines for tank venting, fuel supply and brakes?

 

Wireing?

 

A "tiny" arc welder is going to be worse than pop-riveting it together. It's a highly skilled welder than can do sheet metal with stick. You need a small MIG with gas or better a MIG/TIG setup with gas, a little instruction, and a LOT of practice. Trust me. It's not just sticking metal together - things change shape and size when they are heated to welding temperature - there's a lot of technique involved in jigging and tacking thing properly so you don't end up with a car that crabwalks down the road.

 

The project you are contemplating is GIGANTIC. You probably won't believe me till you have a pile of peices that you can't put back together again. The uni-body construction makes a job like this very difficult. The whole thing will have to be carefully reinforced to prevent it from just tearing apart.

 

I sugest you go buy the car you want. Building one such as in that fantasy image posted above is ridiculously complicated and annoying. Especially as a first venture into fabrication. If you try this as a learning experience, you'll ultimately have NO car.

 

BTW - an EA82 is worth about $50 in raw scrap steel. I've cut a few up and hauled them off.

 

GD

[cid fits]

That is photo-shop job, and a quick, or poor one at that.

ya took a total of 2 minutes to create, wasnt goin for beleavable, just an idea.

 

It would be VERY difficult to do something like that, and without many thousands of $$ to pay someone who can weld properly, this isn't something you are going to make happen unless you do it yourself.

guy i went to highschool with, started workin in his uncles welding shop in 10th or 11th grade, so ten years welding experience or so said he would do it for $800 if i had it all cut and mounted where i need it. but he say he doesnt want to try and teach someone to weld so i was kind of looking for a more hands on approach.

 

For example - where's the front of the engine going to go? The radiator?

the pic is just an idea, obviousely im not going to cut off more than is physically allowed by the engine, as for the radiator i was planning on mounting it where the spare tire usually is, as mentioned above

 

How about the fuel tank?

10 gallon fuel cell as mentioned earlier.

 

Hard lines for tank venting, fuel supply and brakes?

brakes i dont think would need anything done to them, i dont know for sure but i dont think the lines would go back any further than the axle/hub assembly everything being cut would be behind that. as for fuel an tank lines/fuel supply, these things can be rerouted, or even replaced as i had to do in my 68 caprice.

 

Wireing?

probly the easiest part for me, wireing is like math. it only works one way.

 

A "tiny" arc welder is going to be worse than pop-riveting it together. It's a highly skilled welder than can do sheet metal with stick. You need a small MIG with gas or better a MIG/TIG setup with gas, a little instruction, and a LOT of practice. Trust me. It's not just sticking metal together - things change shape and size when they are heated to welding temperature - there's a lot of technique involved in jigging and tacking thing properly so you don't end up with a car that crabwalks down the road.

good info thank you. these are exactly the type of things i wont learn if i pay someone to do it, or dont try at all.

 

The project you are contemplating is GIGANTIC. You probably won't believe me till you have a pile of peices that you can't put back together again.

gigantic doesnt scare me, and i do beleave you, i in no way think this will be easy, and if it doesnt work, oh well. but then again what if it does.

 

The uni-body construction makes a job like this very difficult. The whole thing will have to be carefully reinforced to prevent it from just tearing apart.

i hadnt thought of that, but i had already planned on putting a roll cage in it, im sure i could tye that into the unibody and make it stronger an more rigid than it was untouched.

 

I sugest you go buy the car you want.

i dont think they make the car i want, thats why i would like to attempt building it.

Building one such as in that fantasy image posted above is ridiculously complicated and annoying. Especially as a first venture into fabrication. If you try this as a learning experience, you'll ultimately have NO car.

thats where i was b4 my friends mom gave me this one. so no loss.

 

BTW - an EA82 is worth about $50 in raw scrap steel. I've cut a few up and hauled them off..

even better, if i fail, i make $50

[GeneralDisorder]

Again - I commend you for you enthusiasm, but if you intend to do something like this yourself, you need to start with a dozen smaller projects and work your way up.

 

Step 1 - get a welder. Get a DECENT welder. A MIG setup with 75/25 gas and .030" wire. Do yourself a big favor and get a 230v machine and install a circuit for it. Get a #9 darkness helment with a large veiwing area - don't bother with the fancy auto-darkening stuff.

 

Step 2 - Practice welding. Start with scraps.

 

Step 3 - Build yourself a welding cart for the machine and the gas bottle. You'll need one anyway and it's a great functional first project.

 

Step 4 - Do many, many more projects. Learn about how metal pulls when it's welded, how to flow your welds properly, and how to run a decent looking bead on different types/thicknesses of material.

 

Steps 1 through 4 will take about 10 years. So stash the Subaru in a safe place for later.

 

GD

[thecarman]

I personally use .023 wire for sheetmetal work in my 220V Miller MIG. I use .035 for thicker stuff. My MIG came with .030 out of the box, but I found it was too big for sheetmetal. I'd use .023 on most (or all) of that project, and see how it works on the thicker uni-body structure stuff. I'm not sure how thick the Subaru structural metal is in the uni-body, but I wouldn't guess it's very thick.

 

And you could get by with a cheaper 110V MIG, since you wouldn't be welding anything thick enough to need the 220V machine. If you can afford the 220V machine though, it would be nice to have, as it likely has a longer duty cycle than the 110 (you can continuously weld longer without overheating the box, tripping the internal circuit breaker, and waiting for it to reset), and would be there for thicker stuff if you need it. But I have plenty of friends who do fine with only a 110 box, and some are even flux core wire, not MIG.

 

And I second what GD said about the arc welder - would *NOT* work well for all the sheetmetal work.

 

Oh - one more idea. I got an auto-darkening helmet a while back, and I *love* it! No more flipping the mask up to see and then "head nodding" it down to start welding. No more guessing exactly where my wire is before the arc - I can see it! But everyone has their own opionion about it. Mine is an expensive Miller one - was about $200.

[Qman]

...Oh - one more idea. I got an auto-darkening helmet a while back, and I *love* it! No more flipping the mask up to see and then "head nodding" it down to start welding. No more guessing exactly where my wire is before the arc - I can see it! But everyone has their own opionion about it. Mine is an expensive Miller one - was about $200.

 

I must agree! The only thing better is a good pair of gloves and leathers!

[3eyedwagon]

Yeah. The auto darks are hard to beat. I have had some real good luck with the cheapo "Astro" brand ones. It is a mass produced auto darkening solar powered welding helmet that Astro Tools just puts their name on. You can find the same exacts helmets under a multitude of names. You can pick them up for $80 now. I have two of them that I've had for over 4 years. They don't take any batterys, like some of the more expensive Autoshades do, and I've found them to be every bit as durable. Plus, it just doesn't make sense to me to have to turn a welding helmet on, and replace batteries when they run dead.....

[GeneralDisorder]

I don't like them cause the veiwing area is small, and they are expensive. I find a large viewing area and a price of $25 to be more suitible. To each his own though.

 

And if you do a LOT of welding they can still burn you - there is a small fraction of a second before they "go dark" where some UV gets through.

 

Which brings up another good point - don't weld in a t-shirt or shorts for very long or you'll end up with a wicked sun-burn from the UV.

 

GD

[3eyedwagon]

 

Which brings up another good point - don't weld in a t-shirt or shorts for very long or you'll end up with a wicked sun-burn from the UV.

 

GD

 

 

Oh come on! That's the only way I can get a tan around here in the winter!!!