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DIY
Welding
Rod
TIME: 1 HOUR
72
Rod Research
» My first step was to look contact with the rod. The elec-
MATERIALS
» Silica gel packets (2–3) usually
up patents, which lay out the trodes are then dried out. labeled “Desiccant: Do Not Eat”
and packaged with electronics,
crucial core of a technology.
» The rod is the electrode and shoes, and other things that
Often, the making process is hate dampness
filler; the paper/sodium silicate
laid out as well, protecting the » Lye, 100% sold as drain cleaner
wrapper spews out shield-
inventor’s rights to the means, » Steel wire or coat hanger, 2'
ing gas upon combustion and or more to cut into welding rods
as well as the ends. This keeps
provides a path of plasma to » Newspaper
patent attorneys employed, » Plastic cups (3)
guide the arc. The rod does not
and provides a nice step-by- » Nitrile or latex gloves
deposit a protective ceramic
step for writers to rip off. » Stir sticks, plastic or wooden
slag like modern welding rods,
TOOLS
» I dug up the patent “Electrode but, as Mr. Smith stated in the
for Arc Welding,” filed in 1918 patent, “I have found, also, that
by Reuben Stanley Smith, a the coating of slag produced by
» Digital pocket scale
prolific inventor and resident the use of known covered elec- » Hot plate to cook the lye and
of Milwaukee, Wis. Basically, trodes is not essential to the silica gel into sodium silicate
a steel rod is wrapped in cellu- production of eminently satis- » Pliers
lose (paper) soaked in sodium factory work.” I tweaked the » Safety glasses or goggles
» Cooking vessel, tempered
silicate, and the wrapping patent procedure a little to use glass or nonreactive ceramic
is crimped to maintain close commonly available materials. don't use metal or Bad Things
might happen
» Toaster oven to cook the rods.
A rod oven, or some time in the
sun, should do the trick as well.
» Mortar and pestle, or scrap
of metal round stock
makezine.com 73
PROJECTS DIY WELDING ROD
C D E
F G H
I J K
Heat the water, then slowly add the lye 2. Prepare the rods.
while stirring (Figure C). If you just dump the Straighten the coat hanger, then cut pieces
lye in, you’ll get a solid, hard lump of a caustic of welding-rod size: about 1' long will work.
base at the bottom of your heating vessel. The Hangers are usually covered with paint
only way I found to remove it was neutralizing or clear varnish, likely to avoid leaving your
it with some decently strong hydrochloric clothing stained with rust (I’ve never used a
acid. It totally looked like Science, but was hanger for the intended purpose). Sand away
an annoying waste of time. the varnish or paint until you’re left with a
Heat and stir until you get a clear but shiny rod of steel (Figures E and F).
ominously thick solution. Be wary, but not Cut paper strips a little shorter than your
too afraid — it can smell your fear. rod. Each strip should be wide enough for
This next part can be tricky — add the silica 8–10 wraps around the steel (Figure G).
gel powder to the lye/water solution, but just Paint a layer of sodium silicate onto the
a little bit at a time. Take the solution off the paper (Figure H). You want the paper to be
heat when you add the powder, then return it as saturated as possible. I found that painting
to the heat while you stir. If you leave it on the both sides allowed the sodium silicate to soak
heat for too long it will boil over in an instant. in nicely and evenly.
If it gets too cool the silica gel won’t go into Roll the saturated paper around the steel
solution, and will clump at the bottom. rod; again, 8–10 layers will do. Try to get it as
Done right, the result will be a gummy gel, consistently tight as possible. It’s harder than
sodium silicate (Figure D)! you’d think. Smooth the layers as you go, and
smoosh the trailing edge into the rest of the
74
L M N
O P Q
R S T
wrap (Figures I, J, and K). the rod burned almost as well as an off-the-
Use pliers to crimp the gooey paper tightly shelf rod (Figure O). Tons of smoke, though,
and uniformly onto the rod to prevent the and the arc was not super stable.
coating from disintegrating faster on one side Then I welded with the homemade elec-
than another. trode (Figure P). It was splattery and ugly
(you can partially blame user error and a bit
3. Bake the rods. of a learning curve), but it definitely looks like
Cook the rods in a toaster oven at a low heat a weld (Figure Q). Notice the lack of ceramic
for about 15 minutes. This drives out moisture, slag — just some ash.
and also makes a carbonized shell that keeps I then brushed it to see the glory of my weld.
the rods intact when stored. You want them to Looks OK, in parts. The weld side is not pretty,
be totally dry and golden (Figures L and M). but the backside shows good penetration
(Figures R and S).
4. Weld. I chopped the weld up for a closer look,
You’re ready to test. I guess for maximum and success! No pitting, no craters, and total
punk-rock DIY points I should have tested fusion of the metal (Figure T). Welding, from
them using a car-battery welder, but the arc home-rigged rods. Take that, zombies.
welder was right there.
I used the recommended settings for a
r" rod: DCEP, around 100 amps (Figure N). Hackett is a teacher (adjunct professor at New York University), artist,
Striking an arc took a couple of tries, but once founder and director of the Madagascar Institute (madagascarinstitute.
I figured out the correct distance and angle, com), and television presenter (most recently on Stuck with Hackett).
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