Great Resources and Rules of Thumb

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As a newbie who is trying to learn I wanted to ask for help with two items that I am sure would help a lot of new guys just starting out.  So I am trying to tap the collective to help.1) What are the must have books for welding and fabrication?                I already have Metalworking - Sink or Swim, Math to Build On and some others.  I want to build a solid basic library2) What formula's or rules of thumb, or time saving tricks are helpful in day to day work when dealing with measuring, layout, fabrication etc?Thanks for helping me not have to re-invent the wheel.
Reply:For number 2, pay close attention to the people who are teaching you how to fabricate things, ask questions and learn how to read a tape measure. You can't get into short cuts until you know how to do it the proper way. I've seen it too many times where a new guy figures he has a better, faster, easier way of doing something but in the end it won't work and ends up taking even longer. Don't worry at all about short cuts. The biggest rule of thumb is to do it right the first time and don't cut corners. It's also not a race. I worked with a guy once that did think it was a race. He was always the first one done when welding large oilfield skids. No one was quite sure how he was so much faster so 1 day one of the other welders kind of spied on him to see what was up. On the I beam connections the blueprint called for a 3 pass fillet weld, 1 pass covered by a 2 pass cap. No wonder he was faster when he was only doing the 2 pass cap and didn't bother to put in the first pass which would penetrate deeper into the inside corner. I'm sure if his welds were tested, they'd show lack of penetration in the root. As far a book, order the "Procedure Handbook of Arc welding" directly from Lincoln. It is MUCH cheaper direct from Lincoln. It used to be about $15 or $20 if I recall and is a big hard cover book. It gets upgraded pretty often as well.
Reply:Measuring, Time saving trick I use a lot is layout sticks. They can be as simple as just two pieces of wood, but I have a nice set one guy made for me that has a slot routed down one piece and two bolts with wing nuts so they slide in and out easily. Pretty much lay both sticks side by side so they overlap and the ends touch what you need to measure between. Then either clamp them together, or draw a line where they cross. Put that on the stock to be fitted, line up one end of your sticks with the end of the stock, match lines, and mark the other end. For doing outside measurements, a piece of angle on each end to form a "hook" works well. A guy I used to know who did a lot of tube work had a set made up with a piece of coped tube on the ends of a length of steel bar stock. To find dimensions for lacing, he'd side the coped ends until the matched and fit tight, then marked the distance. In his case he knew the exact length of the coped segments ( 6") so all he had to do was measure from end to end on the coped pieces and add 12" to it to have an exact fit. His coping jig was marked for exactly where 6" was, so all he really needed was to cope one end and mark where that 6" end was, then add the measurements from the sticks cope to cope, mark it, and line that up on his coping jig and it automatically added the extra 6" to the other cope. He usually oversized them slightly and ground to final fit just to make sure, but he didn't need to fit by very much..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:One rule of thumb is 1 amp for each .001" of steel. it gets you in the ballpark to start.Millermatic 211Everlast 200DX Thermal Arc 181iKlutch ST80i lunchbox stick welderLincoln Weld-Pak 100Century Stick welderPowermax 30 plasma cutterHenrob 2000 torchLogan 200 lathe (60 years old)Clausing 6339 Lathe (for sale)
Reply:^^^isn't that a bit on the optimistic side?
Reply:Originally Posted by yesindeedOne rule of thumb is 1 amp for each .001" of steel. it gets you in the ballpark to start.
Reply:Originally Posted by big wormThat's for the size of the electrode.
Reply:The machinery hand book. I think I have the 23 addition. I have heard that the newer versions have excluded some of the older things. I would want the older version myself. They are an expensive book but there are a lot of used ones out there to be had.  I have an old text book called math for the trades and it is very good.
Reply:Originally Posted by danmcphAs a newbie who is trying to learn I wanted to ask for help with two items that I am sure would help a lot of new guys just starting out.  So I am trying to tap the collective to help.1) What are the must have books for welding and fabrication?                I already have Metalworking - Sink or Swim, Math to Build On and some others.  I want to build a solid basic library2) What formula's or rules of thumb, or time saving tricks are helpful in day to day work when dealing with measuring, layout, fabrication etc?Thanks for helping me not have to re-invent the wheel.
Reply:If you plan on doing any sort of sheetmetal work pick up a book called  "The Key to Metal Bumping" by Martin Mfg. There's stuff in there that could apply to straightening heavier stuff too so it might not be a bad idea to get it anyway.
Reply:The 3 4 5 triangle is your friend when you need to make something square without using a square.My "collection":Homemade Stick WelderVictor O/A TorchAC 225Ideal Arc 250HF 90 Amp Flux CoreHF Mig 170Solar 2020 Plasma CutterPower i-Mig 140EHarris O/A torchHF Dual Mig 131140STAlpha Tig 200x
Reply:http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...References-*** "The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get rich quick theory of life." -Theodore Roosevelt