Check out @YesWelder - yeswelder.com/?ref=3kf2gdxg Get 10% off by using the code - SHIPHAPPENS Which welder are we using? YesWelder FIRSTESS CT2050 Powerful 7-in-1 Welder & Cutter
Gemma, I have seen really consistently bad welding from 'professionals' in the past, you have a natural talent, the techie stuff about materials, preparation and temperatures is all in books, you can look it up as you need it! Very well done, and well done to Simon for instantly recognising it.
Just an FYI. The green on the tanks is zinc chromate. It is used on aluminum parts on aircraft. Excellent anti-corrosive. Excellent welds for first time!
I may be wrong but I have some concerns about stainless steel bolts on the aluminium tank in a saltwater environment. Something tells me that you can't put those two metals together it will cause the aluminium to corrode
Have you folks ever done a video dealing with your backgrounds in building, or mechanical knowledge? Or even your background in financing all these boat projects, ie how you afford all the time spent and the cost of maintaining your home life and boat restoration life. For now, you have two major project boats to dump all your money into. I know I have been more than curious about this for a long time, so I am sure there are others as well. I truly love all the solutions you come up with, and I love how you admit that you both do not always agree on the methods you use to solve all these problems.
I’ve had an aluminum fuel tank issue before and found out that not only the bottom was compromised, but an inch or two up on all sides were also weak. The next owner of the boat found that out, not me. The whole bottom weld by professionals, blew out on the sides of the tank and left him with 60 gallons of diesel sloshing about his bilges. Imagine that nightmare of boat ownership😮😢.
Could I suggest getting some phosphoric acid and sloshing the tank before sealing it up. 10:1610:16 Phosphoric acid is what we use in the aircraft industry to treat alloy corrosion and if you find some chromic acid or 1200 alodine to follow up will create a chemical conversion to prevent further corrosion! If using phosphoric acid and good flushing with water after about 10 minutes of applying the acid, same with the alodine. I’ve been dealing with aircraft structural corrosion for over 50 years so I do know what I’m talking about.
I’m amazed this is cheaper than a new tank. I know it is, just stunned by it. Getting a supporter to provide that welder is wonderful. Good luck with it!
Diesel fuel has a sneaky way of finding the tiniest spaces in welds where water won't go through... something about the lubricity of diesel fuel...pressure tests might be a good idea...at least 5 psi in that big of a tank.
Great welding attempt Gemma 👌🏻I’d never mix aluminium and stainless as they react with one another, unless you use an insulator like a plastic washer or some other inert substance between them.
My motorbike luggage cases were aluminium with stainless rivets. Every rivet had a 20mm dia ring of corrosion cliff around it. Stainless bolts through aluminium block clamps seized solid. A good cost of copper anti seize stopped the bolt problem. The solution to the fluffy sheet was simple - aluminium rivets would have been fine.
For the first time welding TIG.. Very nice welds!!One advice about TIG welding: Bend the loose end of the welding-wire into a tight(ish) loop to prevent the risk of poking someone in the eyes
Sorry to rain on your parade but you had a leak, so now have some water between the original tank and the new floor sheet. Both old and new aluminium was bare so it will start to corrode and you will get a leak. I work on aircraft and the aluminium corrosion will make it look like Daz Dust washing powder Others have mentioned galvanic corrosion with the stainless and aluminium and they are right, you will get corrosion and the bolts will just seize up.
Maybe it would have been better to cut out the floor and weld in a new one? That would prevent the leak of water between the old and new floor. And resulting corrosion.
Gemma, brilliant first attempt. An observation by another commenter about turning the tip of the rod over to prevent accidents is important. If you are passing behind and the welder stops and sits up you get speared. Get a glove, light pigskin the best; as you will find the radiation from the weld giving you 'Sun Burn' on the inside of the wrist. It can be quite sore, a delicate area.
Better to leak test with acetone, could be a big mistake painting before pressure testing. If there is a leak, the paint may stop it for a while, open the hatch in the spring and have a bilge full of fuel
Actually the molecules of acetone (C3H6O) are much bigger than water (H2O), but acetone has a far lower surface tension than water (24.5mN/m vs 72mN/m) so it penetrates micro cracks and voids far more than water will.
You can buy an attachment for your sawzall that you can put a spray can on it and the reciprocating of the sawzall will shake the paint can very well. It’s actually pretty cool.
I'm not a welder, but have watched countless videos of those that are accomplished welders and those that try it for the first time. Doesn't make me an expert by an extremely long chalk, but it gave me enough of a hint and made it very, very obvious even to me that Gemma has talent! As for Simon, he has that good old-fashioned work ethic and a positive attitude that quietly gets things done and much achieved.
Gemma, great job for a first go. Just leave the torch there at the end of the weld till the post flow stops. Also, stainless and ally don't play well together. You'll end up with galvanic corrosion on the ally. Galvanised bolts are the way to go there, zinc and ally do play well together. The green stuff you were sanding may have been zinc chromate. Great for corrosion protection. Terrible for your health when turned to dust. Use chemical stripper for removal, not mechanical.
That new welder is a terrific bit of kit ,I wish they had them in my day.Fantastic work guys .Good job and as usual great to watch and great entertainment Thanks !
Too late now, but since you had the wood disk on the lathe, you should have trimmed one side down past the holes to the diameter of the large hole in the tank, then you could have just set the wood template into those holes, marked or drilled pilot holes in the tank, then done the threading. And use the same template like you did to put holes in the cover plates. So that way you have centered caps and the bold holes are all identical.
Pressure testing is best because you skinned the bottom any water that gets between the skin and the bottom will be a prick to get out and cause problems when trying to seal any leaks. Anyway good luck.
With TIg ,the important part is not contaminating ,the electrode .if you do that you have to remove it from the gun and grind the impurities off it ,before reinstalling in the gun .
I probably would have let Gemma weld the tank the two welds that you showed are very good better than some professionals also good at painting rapper I didn't see any over laps .... Great job guys 👍👍
Simon, your practicalitly and ingenuity reminds me of me Dad .... left school at 14, but was great with his hands always curious and willing to tackle anything and never stopped learning.
You are making a lot of work for yourself with the tank caps, what about using rivet nuts in the tank then you only need to use a rivet nut and bolt for each hole.
I have to say, Gemma seems like a natural with the welding. And I also agree that you can take welding courses, but you can also read and read some more and practice on your own with scrap metals and become pretty proficient and very good as well. Once you understand the true basics about welding different metals, the rest is practice anyway... Thumbs Up!
great work Gemma (and Si) will have to start calling you Jack, 'Jack of all trades' i hadn't realised the tanks were aluminium, the welder looks like a great piece of kit, and its a plasma cutter too, excellent damn Chinese are clever boffins eh! good plan adding the extra panel Simon, there are chemical fixes you can get, that will line the entire tank with a plastic coating, and sure there are companies that would do it, think there is one near Basingstoke that makes all kinds of plastic boat fuel tanks, using a rotary moulding system, sure they could easily use your tanks as the mould, but no idea on what it might cost, worth a call
Couple of spray painting tips, NEVER change direction with the gun without releasing the trigger first or you get a double thickness of paint which is liable to sag or run. Go in one direction on the first coat and 90 degrees to that on the next coat and start with a very light coat and build up thickness in subsequent coats. Like the look of your new welder! Looks the bees knees!!!
So good technology, I'm a boilermaker welder in Australia. I will be definitely researching this welder. As I have bought a flat pack, aluminium tinnie.
I wonder if you're making a moisture trap by welding that plate covering the bottom, it looks like you've still got small leaks on the original bottom and given water will naturally settle to the bottom it might find those small holes and gradually fill up the gap between the two plates, thus causing them to rust even worse than they normally would. There is stuff you can get to coat the inside of the tank to seal up small holes, you might want to do that just to be safe.
I would have pressure tested those tanks at 3 or 4 psi before painting, static water is not a reliable telltale. I would be very surprised if you only had one little leak.
Those poor ole Detroits are going to ❤ you! Trying to run with all that crap in the fuel has to have some serious impact on performance. Curious your first video was "We Stole It" .... still feeling that way? I still think you did well just to bad your plans haven't been quite as smooth, missing out on a lot of planned water time this season. 😢
At the end of a weld, after the arc turns off, you should hold the torch on the weld for a few more seconds to allow the shielding gas to cool the weld a little.
Well done bit late i know hope these welders come on sale for uk and love the fuel transfer system found the pump cant find the filter point me in the right direction if ya would keep it up big john out
Can I make a suggestion, I'd most definatly finish off with a Tank SEALER and that will give you a bullet proof end solution with an internal rubber type coating, it stops any chance of oxidation getting into the metal. Br Peter
Always wear two gloves with tig. The uv given off will toast your skin in minutes. Also leave the torch on the weld till the gas stops flowing to cool and prevent oxydisation.
We should start calling simon patches robins best bit of repair work ive seen for a long time. Gemma you never know till youve tried it keep going crack on be safe
Great video guys, very interesting. Your ingenuity never ceases to amaze me. And those welds whoa, Damien from project Brupeg, king of welding, would be impressed. Cheers
you both have a good time with your creations, which is how it should be, you must have some satisfaction with the end product, I think the tanks are spot on, oh by the way I almost forgot, nice wrist action the both of you, lol, naughty,
Nice job . They look a lot better than they did. You have definitely got the right attitude. Have a go your self and save money. 👍 great channels keep up the good work
I'm not welder or anything to do with welding but if you put a whole plate over the bottom can't the metal sweat between when they get cold then rust, just my way of thinking?. Great videos and such a nice family. Paul from High Wycombe
You two are amazing,,,as my father said to me ,,have a go and if you bugger it up your`ve only got your self to blame .....and half the battle is having the right tool`s for the job ....i`ll turn my hand to anything ...Thanks Dad...Cannot wait for the next instalment..👍👍
Check out @YesWelder - yeswelder.com/?ref=3kf2gdxg
Get 10% off by using the code - SHIPHAPPENS
Which welder are we using? YesWelder FIRSTESS CT2050 Powerful 7-in-1 Welder & Cutter
Prewarning should you ever do stainless steel wielding, use a BA equipment the fumes are toxic
NO DISCOUNT IN THE UK ??? That’s not fair 😢
Another win for Gemma the wonder wife.
If they have an Australian distributer I'll order one at full price tomorrow, seriously.
Gemma’s first run of TIG is stunningly good. She’s a proper talent.
Gemma, I have seen really consistently bad welding from 'professionals' in the past, you have a natural talent, the techie stuff about materials, preparation and temperatures is all in books, you can look it up as you need it! Very well done, and well done to Simon for instantly recognising it.
Jemmas handwriting is probably awesome looking at that weld. Not as easy sticking stuff together, but that's a helluva start!
Just an FYI. The green on the tanks is zinc chromate. It is used on aluminum parts on aircraft. Excellent anti-corrosive. Excellent welds for first time!
I came here to post this 👍
Yeah the US Military adds a couple hundred pounds of that stuff to every airplane to preserve it for as long as possible
I may be wrong but I have some concerns about stainless steel bolts on the aluminium tank in a saltwater environment. Something tells me that you can't put those two metals together it will cause the aluminium to corrode
There has been a stainless bolt in the tank for 34 years, so don't think we need to worry!
One of the many things I love about your videos is that you don't do anything "half-ass", as we say here in the U.S..
Have you folks ever done a video dealing with your backgrounds in building, or mechanical knowledge? Or even your background in financing all these boat projects, ie how you afford all the time spent and the cost of maintaining your home life and boat restoration life. For now, you have two major project boats to dump all your money into. I know I have been more than curious about this for a long time, so I am sure there are others as well. I truly love all the solutions you come up with, and I love how you admit that you both do not always agree on the methods you use to solve all these problems.
I’ve had an aluminum fuel tank issue before and found out that not only the bottom was compromised, but an inch or two up on all sides were also weak. The next owner of the boat found that out, not me. The whole bottom weld by professionals, blew out on the sides of the tank and left him with 60 gallons of diesel sloshing about his bilges. Imagine that nightmare of boat ownership😮😢.
Could I suggest getting some phosphoric acid and sloshing the tank before sealing it up. 10:16 10:16
Phosphoric acid is what we use in the aircraft industry to treat alloy corrosion and if you find some chromic acid or 1200 alodine to follow up will create a chemical conversion to prevent further corrosion!
If using phosphoric acid and good flushing with water after about 10 minutes of applying the acid, same with the alodine.
I’ve been dealing with aircraft structural corrosion for over 50 years so I do know what I’m talking about.
That is a SERIOUSLY good weld, you’re a natural.
I’m amazed this is cheaper than a new tank. I know it is, just stunned by it. Getting a supporter to provide that welder is wonderful. Good luck with it!
Next time using a spray gun, run the air line over one shoulder. Your arm and wrist will be way less tired.
Best regards from Indiana, USA.
Simon is a lucky man! Great couple! Terrific work team!
Diesel fuel has a sneaky way of finding the tiniest spaces in welds where water won't go through... something about the lubricity of diesel fuel...pressure tests might be a good idea...at least 5 psi in that big of a tank.
Gemma: Best way to learn something is to do it.
I agree, same with raising that first kid.
You're an expert by the time you get to the second one.
Stainless steel has a galvanic reaction with aluminium so you may have to take precautions.
Great welding attempt Gemma 👌🏻I’d never mix aluminium and stainless as they react with one another, unless you use an insulator like a plastic washer or some other inert substance between them.
My motorbike luggage cases were aluminium with stainless rivets. Every rivet had a 20mm dia ring of corrosion cliff around it. Stainless bolts through aluminium block clamps seized solid. A good cost of copper anti seize stopped the bolt problem. The solution to the fluffy sheet was simple - aluminium rivets would have been fine.
jeezo that Simon has got some skills , fearless.
Make sure you vacuum the tanks for metal shavings after all the drilling and tapping
For the first time welding TIG.. Very nice welds!!One advice about TIG welding: Bend the loose end of the welding-wire into a tight(ish) loop to prevent the risk of poking someone in the eyes
Sorry to rain on your parade but you had a leak, so now have some water between the original tank and the new floor sheet. Both old and new aluminium was bare so it will start to corrode and you will get a leak. I work on aircraft and the aluminium corrosion will make it look like Daz Dust washing powder Others have mentioned galvanic corrosion with the stainless and aluminium and they are right, you will get corrosion and the bolts will just seize up.
Maybe it would have been better to cut out the floor and weld in a new one? That would prevent the leak of water between the old and new floor. And resulting corrosion.
Gemma, brilliant first attempt. An observation by another commenter about turning the tip of the rod over to prevent accidents is important. If you are passing behind and the welder stops and sits up you get speared. Get a glove, light pigskin the best; as you will find the radiation from the weld giving you 'Sun Burn' on the inside of the wrist. It can be quite sore, a delicate area.
Thats very good welding for a first try well done...
Nut inserts might be a better idea for the access plates. Keep up the good work 👍
Better to leak test with acetone, could be a big mistake painting before pressure testing. If there is a leak, the paint may stop it for a while, open the hatch in the spring and have a bilge full of fuel
As someone said you should have used acetone to check for leaks as molecules of water are bigger and won't get through small pin holes.
Actually the molecules of acetone (C3H6O) are much bigger than water (H2O), but acetone has a far lower surface tension than water (24.5mN/m vs 72mN/m) so it penetrates micro cracks and voids far more than water will.
Excellent! Full marks!@@sab2713
We have left the full of red diesel for 2 nights before taking them to the boat.
Hope Sarinda is okay with all this stormy weather!!
With 15 anchors she is going nowhere
Some holes in the plate to allow plug welds to the original metal would have been added strength.
Great job Gemma and Simon the tanks have turned out really well 👍
Thank you! 😀
WOW look at you 2 getting fancy with the editing lol, good job
You can buy an attachment for your sawzall that you can put a spray can on it and the reciprocating of the sawzall will shake the paint can very well. It’s actually pretty cool.
That sounds awesome!
I'm not a welder, but have watched countless videos of those that are accomplished welders and those that try it for the first time. Doesn't make me an expert by an extremely long chalk, but it gave me enough of a hint and made it very, very obvious even to me that Gemma has talent! As for Simon, he has that good old-fashioned work ethic and a positive attitude that quietly gets things done and much achieved.
Gemma, great job for a first go. Just leave the torch there at the end of the weld till the post flow stops.
Also, stainless and ally don't play well together. You'll end up with galvanic corrosion on the ally.
Galvanised bolts are the way to go there, zinc and ally do play well together.
The green stuff you were sanding may have been zinc chromate. Great for corrosion protection. Terrible for your health when turned to dust.
Use chemical stripper for removal, not mechanical.
That new welder is a terrific bit of kit ,I wish they had them in my day.Fantastic work guys .Good job and as usual great to watch and great entertainment Thanks !
First time TIG welding, that is awesome work 👌👏
Thanks 👍
Great result with the welder
The tanks look great
that really really good wicked you rock ship mum
Too late now, but since you had the wood disk on the lathe, you should have trimmed one side down past the holes to the diameter of the large hole in the tank, then you could have just set the wood template into those holes, marked or drilled pilot holes in the tank, then done the threading. And use the same template like you did to put holes in the cover plates.
So that way you have centered caps and the bold holes are all identical.
Thanks guys great job.
Just awesome!!! Love your work and your sense of humour!!!!!!
Thanks so much!
Pressure testing is best because you skinned the bottom any water that gets between the skin and the bottom will be a prick to get out and cause problems when trying to seal any leaks. Anyway good luck.
With TIg ,the important part is not contaminating ,the electrode .if you do that you have to remove it from the gun and grind the impurities off it ,before reinstalling in the gun .
I do love watching you two work and laugh together. ❤
Well done. That’s a ton of work you two did and those tanks are looking good.
Thanks 👍
Good Job you two!!
Those tanks look great. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for watching!
you only need about 20 psi air pressure for paint spraying, saves a lot of paint over spray.
I’ve been watching you guys since you started Ship Happens and you’ve become rock stars. Well done!
What a fantastic video, you two are a blessing to watch. Gemma have you cut your hair?
Yes I have, but at the hairdressers and not a grinder accident 🤣
Looks good and thanks for the great shows. Love from Bournemouth.@@ShipHappensAdventures
I probably would have let Gemma weld the tank the two welds that you showed are very good better than some professionals also good at painting rapper I didn't see any over laps .... Great job guys 👍👍
Simon, your practicalitly and ingenuity reminds me of me Dad .... left school at 14, but was great with his hands always curious and willing to tackle anything and never stopped learning.
Pressure test the tank do not rely on water test fuel will leak out a defect before water will .Great first time welds.
Don't forget the turn the Gas OFF when your finished or not Welding
You are making a lot of work for yourself with the tank caps, what about using rivet nuts in the tank then you only need to use a rivet nut and bolt for each hole.
I have to say, Gemma seems like a natural with the welding. And I also agree that you can take welding courses, but you can also read and read some more and practice on your own with scrap metals and become pretty proficient and very good as well. Once you understand the true basics about welding different metals, the rest is practice anyway... Thumbs Up!
Brilliant work as always 👌
Thank you so much 😀
great work Gemma (and Si) will have to start calling you Jack, 'Jack of all trades'
i hadn't realised the tanks were aluminium, the welder looks like a great piece of kit, and its a plasma cutter too, excellent
damn Chinese are clever boffins eh!
good plan adding the extra panel Simon, there are chemical fixes you can get, that will line the entire tank with a plastic coating, and sure there are companies that would do it, think there is one near Basingstoke that makes all kinds of plastic boat fuel tanks, using a rotary moulding system, sure they could easily use your tanks as the mould, but no idea on what it might cost, worth a call
Well done on your first weld Gem xx❤
Gemma, you really are a gem!
Couple of spray painting tips, NEVER change direction with the gun without releasing the trigger first or you get a double thickness of paint which is liable to sag or run. Go in one direction on the first coat and 90 degrees to that on the next coat and start with a very light coat and build up thickness in subsequent coats. Like the look of your new welder! Looks the bees knees!!!
So good technology, I'm a boilermaker welder in Australia. I will be definitely researching this welder.
As I have bought a flat pack, aluminium tinnie.
Gemma 's gots skills!!!
I wonder if you're making a moisture trap by welding that plate covering the bottom, it looks like you've still got small leaks on the original bottom and given water will naturally settle to the bottom it might find those small holes and gradually fill up the gap between the two plates, thus causing them to rust even worse than they normally would. There is stuff you can get to coat the inside of the tank to seal up small holes, you might want to do that just to be safe.
Invest in a stainless steel brush. Aluminum welds best when clean, clean.
Excellent work and extremely gratifying to watch...
Thank you very much!
I absolutely love your music in these videos!!!!❤❤❤
I'm so glad!
I would have pressure tested those tanks at 3 or 4 psi before painting, static water is not a reliable telltale. I would be very surprised if you only had one little leak.
Great weldig Gemma, And that for the first time?? I am amazed!
Thank you! 😃
Gemma's first weld looks great!
Thank you 😊
Fantastic watch! Really well done to both of you 👍👍
Those poor ole Detroits are going to ❤ you! Trying to run with all that crap in the fuel has to have some serious impact on performance. Curious your first video was "We Stole It" .... still feeling that way? I still think you did well just to bad your plans haven't been quite as smooth, missing out on a lot of planned water time this season. 😢
At the end of a weld, after the arc turns off, you should hold the torch on the weld for a few more seconds to allow the shielding gas to cool the weld a little.
Learnt that on the 2nd youtube video I watched 🤣
They sell sealers for fuel tanks. Simon you need to let gemma weld the tanks. Gemma your a natural on the welder.
Sealers are not recommended anymore due to the higher levels of ethanol in fuel, West System certainly don't advise this option any more.
Is there a galvanic reaction risk using stainless steel bolts/ washers/nuts on the aluminium plate? Maybe use a nylon washer spacer
crossed my mind when salt water could enter the equation
There has been a stainless bolt in the tank for the past 34 years where it connects the earth strap, so we're not worried!
Well done for shilling a product for non U.K W&?N"ERS
brass and aluminium is a not good
Well done bit late i know hope these welders come on sale for uk and love the fuel transfer system found the pump cant find the filter point me in the right direction if ya would keep it up big john out
Can I make a suggestion, I'd most definatly finish off with a Tank SEALER and that will give you a bullet proof end solution with an internal rubber type coating, it stops any chance of oxidation getting into the metal.
Br Peter
Always wear two gloves with tig. The uv given off will toast your skin in minutes. Also leave the torch on the weld till the gas stops flowing to cool and prevent oxydisation.
We should start calling simon patches robins best bit of repair work ive seen for a long time. Gemma you never know till youve tried it keep going crack on be safe
You did a good job!!
Your methods are so good
Glad you think so!
Great video guys, very interesting. Your ingenuity never ceases to amaze me. And those welds whoa, Damien from project Brupeg, king of welding, would be impressed. Cheers
wow great welding for first time but too much post flow on your shield maybe?
You need to use etching primer on aluminum or it'll just
Just what? And the primer we used is perfect for aluminium!
raptorcoatings.com/en/product/raptor-2k-anti-corrosive-epoxy-primer-aerosol/
well those tanks came out great cheaper than buying new tanks well done guys
Simon will using stainless bolts in the aluminium tank cause a problem in the future with the two metals reacting?
It's had a ss bolt in there for the past 34 years, so not overly worried
Those tanks turned out awesome
you both have a good time with your creations, which is how it should be, you must have some satisfaction with the end product, I think the tanks are spot on, oh by the way I almost forgot, nice wrist action the both of you, lol, naughty,
Awesome job, you make it look easy, although the magic of camera I know is involved.
Great welding , as they say practice makes perfect ,
Nice job . They look a lot better than they did. You have definitely got the right attitude. Have a go your self and save money. 👍 great channels keep up the good work
I'm not welder or anything to do with welding but if you put a whole plate over the bottom can't the metal sweat between when they get cold then rust, just my way of thinking?. Great videos and such a nice family. Paul from High Wycombe
please use eye protection at all times in workshop especially on a lathe.
I love the way you mixed the music and spraying together, u guys are fun to watch
Those are really good welds for a beginner!
You always leave me wanting for more
Good job it's Friday tomorrow so you have a Ship Happens video to look forward to 😉
You two are amazing,,,as my father said to me ,,have a go and if you bugger it up your`ve only got your self to blame .....and half the battle is having the right tool`s for the job ....i`ll turn my hand to anything ...Thanks Dad...Cannot wait for the next instalment..👍👍
Is it a promotion when you go from 'paint your boat', to painting a tank!
tanks look great
Si is very innovative and great with coming up with new ideas. A good engineer. ❤