What size tip for 1/16 thick tubing + ?

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So I had these stairs built with railing. (pic 1)  As the stairs have settled for 4 years the railing has split (2 places) and separated in (1 place)(pics 3-4).  Question 1.  I have a old small Rego torch with #1 (victor equivalent tip) or a large Victor 315 with #00 or #1 tip.  Which would work better for a beginner for welding railing?I haven't welded since High School 40 years ago. Looks like this railing is going to need upkeep so I purchased used setup with both torches off C.L.  I will practice welding with the same railing material.Question #2. Anything I need to know about welding the underside of Railing (upsidedown)?Question #3  Railing is galvanized, so I will wire brush. A magnet sticks to it. Railing was purchased at H.D. in chain link fence section. So will RG-45 Rod be a good filler material?All comments appreciated, THANKS Attached Images
Reply:Learn to walk before you try to run...Honestly you are trying to do just about as hard a job as you possibly can. Overhead and vertical welds are the hardest positions usually to learn on flat plate. Round tube complicates the job even more, and small round tube is exponentially harder for most. The galvi isn't going to make things any easier.Easiest route to go would probably be FC mig in this scenario, but it can be torch welded if that's the way you want to go.1st I'd suggest getting a bunch of flat mild steel plate to work on and start doing welds in the flat position, working on laps, T's outside corners and but joints. Follow this with the same joints on flat in horizontal, vertical and overhead. The key to overhead and vertical is learning to see and read the puddle. If you can't see and manipulate the puddle, you'll have no luck with round tube in awkward positions. Once you can manage flat well, then I'd suggest moving on to large diameter tube. With round surfaces, you have to keep changing your torch angle as you constantly maneuver around the tube. You have to do this even faster the smaller the tube is.As far as galvi is concerned, it really F's up the weld puddle. Your torch will burn off some of it, but your best choice is to break out the grinder with a sanding or grinding wheel and remove all the galvi and paint from the area of the weld. Wire wheels won't cut it. All it does is smear the contaminants and polish the galvi and rust, not remove them.If you are serious, understand this will take dedication and a lot of practice, even if you were a top notch OA welder years ago. It will take a while to get back in the saddle again. If you couldn't weld well, Expect that this will take more than a few hours to learn from scratch.You might have more luck with brazing vs welding. With brazing all you need to do is get the two pieces hot enough to melt the brazing rod rather than to try and form and control a puddle. You'll need some sort of internal tube to span that gap however or a sleeve to go over the joint instead..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:Victor Welding Tip Size Charthttp://www.arc-zone.com/index.php?ma...oducts_id=9365
Reply:I too would suggest brazing over welding for this using a common "low fuming bronze" filler and common brazing flux. Victor #1 equivelant would be fine. Since you wont be melting the base metal there is little reason to remove all the galvanizing before brazing, just remove all rust and paint. Practice practice practice.
Reply:DSWThanks for the lesson. I like jumping head first into new toys. I may be biting off more then I can chew. That's nothing new. Had thought about brazing a sleeve over the gaps. If I cut the sleeve length wise and heated it up to make it fit over railing, would the sleeve look alright? I'm not worried about the gap/cut at the bottom of sleeve once installed. Think there's a chance in hell I could find a sleeve/tubing that will fit over railing O.D. 1 5/8 .  So sleeve would need a I.D. of 1 5/8
Reply:KelvinThanks, I printed it out.MakomanAnother vote for brazing..Bet you have some nice pole-holders.?
Reply:So here is my first practice weld since highschool(40 years). Seems strong? Yes it is ugly. All thoughts appreciated, I'm here to learn.  Now fire away.  P.S. right side was first, left I got a little better.  Had a nice breeze blowing so I didn't bother to grind off galvanizing.Last edited by whitestroke; 03-25-2013 at 07:01 PM.