question about trailer welding

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This is my welder trailer. It was custom built about 15 years ago by a local welder who has a very good reputation.  He's also a personal friend. He drug this thing around for years and never had a problem with and a lot of it was lengthy trips out of town for jobs. Anyway I just noticed the tongue isn't fully welded. He welded it on the sides and not the top. Is there a reason for that? Or did he make a mistake? Here it is on the side fully welded, just hard to tell from the pic.And on the top here its not welded.Closer viewI was thinking about running a bead on the top more for peace of mind, but I don't want to if there's a reason for it. Whatbdo yall think?
Reply:If you think about how the stress and leverage are applied, the bead across the top isn't going to do a lot extra, IMO. Part of being a good welder is knowing when to stop. Not that I'm a good welder, mind you!Everlast PA160-STH... and that's about it!
Reply:I've read that one should never weld across a structural member - only along the member. This is most evident when welding spring/axle hangers to the frame.Welding where you are asking about will cause a HAZ zone that would increase the likelihood of failure.The old welder did not forget, he just knew what he was doing.
Reply:Leave it like it is.Having the weld running parallel to the length of the angles and staying away from edges distributes the load across a wide area and therefore prevents any tendency to bend/break "on the dotted line" (so to speak).If you do not see any signs of cracking (in the form of rust streaks) from anywhere in the existing welds, I'd have to say it is working perfectly.
Reply:Oh yeah its in good shape, no cracks.  The whole thing is 3X3X1/4 inch angle and welded with 7018.  I just found it curious
Reply:A good basic rule is never weld across a load bearing member.
Reply:15 years of use and no issues, sounds like it was done correctly.
Reply:A good basic rule is never weld across a load bearing member.
Reply:Originally Posted by Jason280Of course, this brings up the question, what should be the course of action if one has welded across a load bearing member?  Reason I ask, I have a 16' car trailer that I converted over to a 2 5/16" ball, which required me to weld on a new tongue coupler virtually identical to the one in the pic above.  I didn't know better at the time, and welded across the metal tongue.  Is this something that should be corrected immediately, or can I simply monitor it for cracks and fatigue?  It isn't used much, and never to haul more than 4k lbs (dual 6-lug axles, brakes, etc).
Reply:Weld quality is fine, used a Lincoln Power MIG 255 with .045 and 75/25.  I believe the voltage was around 19v, and WS around 180 or so (need to check to confirm).
Reply:As said above, you may indeed weld across a structural member (let's say a flange) if the welds terminate before reaching the edge.For confirmation of this you can look up the installation instructions for Hutch, and Reyco, spring hangers.  They generally attach to a beam in a flatbed application, and welding is the way to go if the trailer frame is steel.  All welds either parallel  within 1" of the edge of the flange, or in the case of "across the flange" welds they terminate 1" before reaching the edge."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:I just looked over a professional built trailer today. It was built with c channel and they welded across the top of the tongue.
Reply:Originally Posted by jamesyarbroughI just looked over a professional built trailer today. It was built with c channel and they welded across the top of the tongue.