Welding a trailer jack on?

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I do a lot of volunteer work in Louisiana, and I have some of my personal equipment I use down there, namely a Bobcat 751 on a dual-axle trailer. Said trailer was bought by my cheap-@$$ grandfather, thus it came equipped with the standard POS jack. Finally gettings sick of putting full body weight on it to crank it up, I ordered a 5000 lb jack from Northern which attaches with a pipe mount (tubular piece that a pin drops through). I'm very confident I could weld it on no problem with a MIG, but I'm 99% sure I won't be able to procure a wire feed welder. So I'm stuck with a stick generator-welder Miller. I can weld fairly decent flat, and I did some practice vertical up and vertical down welds today, which turned out quite good. I was using a 6011 rod.Is this something that a 'pretty good' weld is sufficient for? The skid-steer weighs in around 5000 lbs. If so, what rod should I use? Voltage?edit: the piece to be welded on is .25" wall thicknessthanks!Last edited by jknight8907; 05-19-2006 at 09:36 PM.
Reply:I ordered a 5000 lb jack from Northern which attaches with a pipe mount (tubular piece that a pin drops through).
Reply:Originally Posted by SandyShort tube sticks out to the side, when the weight is off the jack you pull the pin rotate it out of the way and put the pin back in??  Those are nice. Get a little sloppy with heavy use but still better than cranking an old rusty screw drive all the way up or leaving it down to get ripped off. That'll be just fine. 6011 or 7018.
Reply:If that doesn't last too long, get a short style "handyman jack". Weld the carriage to the tongue. When not in use,slip a 3/8" bolt w/ nut thru a slot in staff just above carriage, then wrap a rubber snubber around staff and handle to secure the handle. Works great and lasts a long time. And being welded on nobody can "borrow" it!!                      MikeOl' Stonebreaker  "Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes"Hobart G-213 portableMiller 175 migMiller thunderbolt ac/dc stick Victor O/A setupMakita chop saw
Reply:Originally Posted by jknight8907So I'm stuck with a stick generator-welder Miller. I can weld fairly decent flat, and I did some practice vertical up and vertical down welds today, which turned out quite good. I was using a 6011 rod.Is this something that a 'pretty good' weld is sufficient for? The skid-steer weighs in around 5000 lbs. If so, what rod should I use? Voltage?edit: the piece to be welded on is .25" wall thicknessthanks!
Reply:If you can bolt it, I would just do that.  The jack will probably fail eventually, they all do.
Reply:If it is meant to be welded, then weld it on.  If there is a bolt on option, then bolt it on.   As stated it will eventually have to be replaced.  Also, if you forget and drive off with it down, then I'd rather stretch/break some bolts than to find out I did a great job welding and bent my trailer.Side noteI met a guy today who had a  new miller engine welder in the bed of his truck.  I asked him what type work he does.  He said he was a auto/diesel detailer (worked truck stops) and that was the best 10000 watt GENERATOR he ever had.  He could run several electrical machines off it at once.  He did not even have cables to weld with it.  Wouldn't a 10000 watt generator be cheaper?  There was a bbq trailer/place that used a large Hobart for a Generator.
Reply:If only buying a decent generator was that easy.    Miller and Lincoln do have a bit of a reputation of building good quality generators.     The question them becomes who would you go to for a 10,000 watt generator?     Sure there are options but with a Miller you have something designed for traveling around on trailers and pickups.I thikn we just highjacked this thread, so imaigne a jack under that generator.Dave Originally Posted by tapwelderWouldn't a 10000 watt generator be cheaper?  .
Reply:jknight didn't say whether his miller is ac only or ac-dc. if it's ac  only , his options are slim. if it is dc; he can use any kinda rod. if it's dc , then forget that 6011 crap.  it's a poor substitute for 6010 , as much as i hate ALL splatter  rod. if its a c only , i suggest a root pass with 6011 as hot as he can run it , without burnthrough, then a cover pass with 7014 . if that's not too advanced for him .
Reply:If it's Miller and has a 10,000W genny, than it has to at least be a Bobcat, so he definitely has DC welding capability.  Being a generator is what a Bobcat does best anyway.  It just has the capability to be an okay welder, too.
Reply:Thanks guys, that helps a lot. I can't bolt it on because there's no flat plate, just the piece of thick 'pipe'. Here's what it looks like: http://www.ableindustries.net/images...ailer_jack.jpg The piece seperate from the jack is what gets welded on.It's not my welder so I don't know yet if it's AC only or AC/DC. Thanks again!
Reply:6011 will work with AC or DC current, but works better with AC. I use it a lot and it's hard to run a nice bead and makes a big mess. Most of the time I just use a weave pattern and it turns out good, but 6010 looks a lot better and is easier to use IMO.RD 1984 Chevrolet C30 welding truck1966 Lincoln SA200 Continental F162 1942 Lincoln SA200 Hercules IXB-51991 Lincoln LN25
Reply:I just got a brain wave (STROKE ? ) !  if i can invent a modified 5-p  or 5p plus , that has NO SPLATTER !  wow!  what a concept !   (too bad it's not possible. ) or maybe 6011 thats as good as  6010  ?  yeh, it's the "impossible Dream".    I'm tired , gotta rest .