Oxyturbo kits / lead welding

[baldkev]

Thanks for everyones input. Im going to get the turboset 200 kit and some spare oxygen. For my current project i have 5 trays to make up in the next few weeks, so I'll get it, have some practice runs and report back. I will probably only use it a couple of times a year, so im not looking to get big bottles etc, but it'll be a useful skill to have. I have previously used the propane, flux and solder to fix a tear in a lead tray to get a customer out of a bind, but ive got no idea how well it'd do over time. Luckily the tray is servicing a door in a well sheltered location, so not likely to get much weather

 

[Fergie 307]

I can see where you are coming from, but there is something not yet mentioned. Oxyacetylene may have a flame temperature of around 3000° but by using a small nozzle you get less heat so it is controllable. With a lot of lead welding not only don't you need flux but also in some cases you can have an autogenous weld, no filler rod. A lot of old lead waste pipes were joined like this, one end belled out and the other inserted and then the edge just melted together.

The other thing to bear in mind is that the very hot flame allows you to get the area you are working hot enough very quickly, so the heat doesn't spread so far. This is very important working on something with a very low melting point. If you use something less powerful then by the time your work area is hot enough, then quite an area around it won't be far behind and you risk ending up with a puddle!

 

[Spectric]

then quite an area around it won't be far behind and you risk ending up with a puddle!

aluminium welding where the oxide forms a skin containing molten ali, the skin breaks and you have a big hole where the weld was supposed to be .

 

[John Hall]

The Smiths Little torch is worth a look at if you have a good bank balance…
Mainly used for jewellery making, but great for small lead work..
Be aware that There are loads of counterfeit kits for sale, on both EBay and Amazon.
These look identical, but definitely are not,…the gas fittings do not fit UK regulactors etc..They run on oxygen and propane or acetylene.
Instead of using oxygen bottles, ..oxygen generators / concentrators are available for around £250..
Lots of info on YouTube

 

[John Hall]

 

[baldkev]

The Smiths Little torch is worth a look at if you have a good bank balance…
Mainly used for jewellery making, but great for small lead work..
Be aware that There are loads of counterfeit kits for sale, on both EBay and Amazon.
These look identical, but definitely are not,…the gas fittings do not fit UK regulactors etc..They run on oxygen and propane or acetylene.
Instead of using oxygen bottles, ..oxygen generators / concentrators are available for around £250..
Lots of info on YouTube

I havent seen those before.... for the amount I'll use it, I'll just buy the bottles i think. If usage increases, I'll think again

 

[baldkev]

Well today i finally got round to trying it out ( ive been very busy )
I needed to make 4 window trays and i currently have a roofer on site, so i thought I'd get on with it and if i ran into trouble ( i did ) i could ask ollie!

I set the kit up, it seems well built and easy to put together. My first couple of attempts were not great, so i got ollie to come and show me whats what. Setting up the flame for my liking turned out to be the most important factor. I knew i needed to clean the edges ( scrape them back a bit to reveal fresh lead ) but even so, on one weld, i somehow forgot i think i was rushing.

After discovering the best flame for me, things improved and after maybe 10 to 12 times of turning the torch on and setting the flame up, i had that licked.

I used filler rods of differing widths to see what worked well and found 5ish mm was good for what i wanted.

Ollie showed me a technique he uses where he lays up a raised bead of 'weld' and then goes back to the start, heating and spreading it as he goes, so it flattens over a wider area, so it doesnt make his slates kick up.

Ive attached photos, but im not claiming to be good at it. I welded the trays from behind first, then flipped them and ran a bead across the front face.
The first couple i did werent great visually, but are very well sealed and by yhe time id done the last one, it was looking more convincing ( i hope )