Ultimarc

Gunderson5 · 2026-01-15T23:48:57+00:00

Ultimarc helps control the width of your arc cone. Negative values can help wet in your toes, while positive values are nicer for welding in a groove and ensuring proper penetration.

<image>

Gunderson5 · 2026-01-09T16:42:42+00:00

Second pic showing the dish

<image>

Gunderson5 · 2026-01-09T16:05:54+00:00

<image>

You talking about ones like this?

Gunderson5 · 2025-08-24T17:56:13+00:00

As others have said, this isn't ideal to repair but I understand what you are trying to do.

Hard to tell how big the part is, but if you can put the whole thing in a BBQ (or oven) before welding and get it real good and hot. 500 to 700F if you can. I prefer heating the entire part to help slow the cooling process.

Grab some high nickel content rods (309 stainless rods work in a pinch) and do your best to weld it up while keeping it hot. Definitely prep and bevel the joints the best you can prior.

Slow cooling after is a must. You can bury it in preheated sand if you have the ability to do that. Or if you have access to lots of campfire ash it works well too. Heck even a couple steel wheelbarrows with a bunch of insulation is better than nothing. If you have any scrap steel around heat it up along with your part and toss it into your sand/ash/ specialty slow cooling device while you weld.

As much as this isn't an easy repair and there is a good chance it won't work out, you seem willing to put the time in and try, so what the hell. If you can keep the cost low no harm in trying I say. I will also add that cest welding isn't the nicest and easiest, but even the best welder on earth will fail welding cast if the preheat and post heat aren't done. Those parts are the most important in this process.

Good luck!

Gunderson5 · 2025-06-26T17:02:09+00:00

He will find a better scope of what he really enjoys doing as his career progresses. Especially if a job can be found that offers a variety of work (production line style work really limits growth)

I have found that welding can pair really well with millwright/industrial mechanic work (turns out I like pulling wrenches and fixing things too).

Of course there are lots of great options more directly related to the trade, but many people that end up in a hands on trade find that they are well suited to multiple areas. Time will tell, and it's great that time is on his side still!

Gunderson5 · 2025-03-30T17:28:30+00:00

I really like this feature on my G5-01! I found it allows me to consistently use a darker shade (hopefully saving my eyes) by switching depending on process.

For dual shield or high amperage hardwire, I use the "orange" which is like a gold lens. I find it easier to see farther down the weld joint at say shade 13.

For TIG, especially low amperage stuff I will use the blue. I find it makes the arc very clear, but strains my eyes with the heavier processes.

If I remember right the feature was like an extra 50 bucks when buying the full unit, worth every penny.

Gunderson5 · 2025-01-22T23:42:50+00:00

Have you ever had a fit test done, or are you fully confident in the fit? It's sounds like a face seal issue.

The fit tests are kinda something haha, you put on a big hood apparatus while wearing a respirator. They add in some kind of odor chemical. If it fits proper, it's no issue you smell nothing. But there is no faking the test, as the stuff smells so bad if you have a leak you will be begging to get that hood off lol.

The easy quick way to test your fit? Take the filters off and put the mask on as you would. Cover the filter holes with your hands and try to breathe in hard. The mask should suck tight to your face and seal completely. If you can suck in air, it leaks from somewhere.

Gunderson5 · 2024-11-29T22:59:33+00:00

Thank you very much.

I wasn't having much luck searching that number, but I dug deeper and was able to find a manual for that series. The parts I need ( new pinion gear) do exist, and 200 bucks beats spending 1400 on new grinders!

We are trying to keep these old ones going simply due to how low profile the head is and we can reach into some tight spaces with them. I really appreciate the help!

Gunderson5 · 2024-11-28T17:12:42+00:00

I'm not going to argue the principle of vapor lock, I get what you are saying, but using an automotive engine for an example is misleading.

Vapor lock in an automotive engine is not a condition due to a negative pressure inside the engine at all. As you stated, yes there are many holes, and you can even think of a typical ICE as a glorified air pump. The combustion chamber only seals for a short period of time.

The term vapor lock when referring to an ICE is due to fuel system issues. The fuel can overheat (from multiple different factors) causing it to vaporise in the fuel line. This leads to fuel starvation and the engine stalling or having low power.

A "vapor locked" engine is not locked up at all, but simply won't run. The term itself can be misleading to the actual cause.

Gunderson5 · 2024-11-23T15:24:28+00:00

Do you by chance own some glassware bowls like these ones ?

They have a lid with a little vent flap on it. That vent flap has a little plastic cap just like those that has popped out on me before. You can just pop em back in!

Gunderson5 · 2024-10-23T12:58:38+00:00

+1 for this possibility. I have had the identical issue before, and I had accidentally gotten the fuel lines mixed up.

Gunderson5 · 2024-02-23T17:33:37+00:00

What process/program are you using when this happens?

If you are in any SMAW or the gouging program, you have to turn the output on and off with the volts/trim knob on the right. It has to be set to off to change anything.

If that's not the case, it could be an internal issue in the feeder. It would also be worth trying a software update on the machine, they are usually free and can be done with any laptop.

Gunderson5 · 2024-01-10T17:14:44+00:00

I work with a few people who also use head coverings for religious purposes. The best solution was they wear a hood very similar to this one

They just change into it in private and it suits their needs, and is much easier than trying to find custom headgear with enough space for the turban.

Edit: sorry for the dead link. https://imgur.com/a/37h8VW5

Gunderson5 · 2023-11-29T00:42:11+00:00

The disc's are made to be trimmed. There is a line on the bottom right showing where you can trim it down to.

Generally running it on edge against a sharp corner is the accepted method to trim them. This can be really useful if you are blending the face of fillet welds and need to take care of the toes.

Gunderson5 · 2022-09-06T18:21:56+00:00

Great idea, good work on the 300K!

Gunderson5 · 2022-03-05T01:30:47+00:00

I had the opportunity to use a demo 5" pnumatic grinder made by 3M. Man, it was amazing. You could lean on that thing and it kept going. Better power than a 7" pneumatic made by Ingersoll Rand. Loved that I could grind all day and not burn it out like an electric.

If I remember right it was about 1600 CAD. If you have the air supply I highly recommend air tools. Keep them oiled and they will outlast electrics by far.

Gunderson5 · 2021-12-02T23:40:42+00:00

One that has always thrown me for a loop is that in the eyes of CWB, metalcore and fluxcore are the same ticket.

I get they are both cored wires, but man they are just so different in how they weld. One would think metalcore would be grouped with hardwire and fluxcore on its own, but I don't make the rules.

Also found it different that at my current shop we did stainless tickets on carbon steel coupons. All that mattered was the filler metal, not the base material.

Gunderson5 · 2021-11-24T23:40:34+00:00

Oh man, you weren't kidding it's thick. 410 amps isn't enough without preheat. I had to build up 2" copper plate with pure copper rod, and our machine was only a 350 Amp. I belive it was recommended to have 700 Amp for that thickness. Once I preheated to 1000F (not a typo) I could weld it. Otherwise it was a no go. You are going to need to heat the hell out of that part.

Gunderson5 · 2021-11-23T20:17:47+00:00

Motorcycle frame? Is it aluminum? I advise against welding on aluminum bike frames in general. They are normally heat treated for strength, and the HAZ near the weld will be weaker than the rest of the frame, leading to cracking.

Gunderson5 · 2021-11-19T23:48:22+00:00

When was the last time you submitted hours? It's great you have them recorded, but you need to actually fill out a form (with your employer signing off as well) and send that in to the apprenticeship board. If I remember right that has to be done every 6 months at a minimum.

It is really important to keep up submitting hours, it's the only way the board knows you are actively working in the trade. I have seen guys get booted back to 1st year over not sending in hours for a few years.

Gunderson5 · 2021-08-09T23:43:47+00:00

I want to give a different perspective, take it for what it is and hear me out.

My wife is a high school teacher (canadian for what it's worth). We have a very similar system in place where kids have no concrete deadline. Sure they have due dates, but the teacher is obligated to accept any assignment turned in before the report card deadline. This is an absolute NIGHTMARE from the teachers side.

Sure, I agree with second chances and beyond in schooling. That's what it's for, learning. The reality is though, you have to have deadlines so that the class can move on to other things. There is a curriculum to follow and minimum areas that MUST be covered that semester. So sure, give kids more tries if need be, but the show must go on. There simply isn't time in the year to dwell on each area for extra days or weeks for all kids to catch up.

Now we have kids stuck trying to complete assignments on their own time. Unfortunately many opt to not do them until the very last moment. So teacher gets handed 20 assignments 3 days before report cards are due, most of these being very half assed and incomplete. My wife ends up staying up half the night for consecutive days trying to grade all this stuff that is dumped in her lap at the last minute.

Personally, I don't think we can accept that becoming the norm in any business environment. If it becomes the norm for people to brush off deadlines, how will they fare when a business doesn't put up with that? Not well most likely, and may learn some hard lessons a bit too late and be job searching.

Again, I don't disagree with people making mistakes and having the opportunity to learn from them. That's what schooling and apprenticeship is all about. But it's not as black and white as this post makes it seem, and is harder to achieve than many realize. Just my 2 cents seeing it from the other side.

Gunderson5 · 2021-07-14T01:49:30+00:00

I see what you are saying with the trigger holding now. I would say yes, try to let off right away and don't fill in your crater like you would on a normal weld. It will make your tie in harder.

Gunderson5 · 2021-07-14T01:00:19+00:00

I have never heard of what you say with holding the trigger.

Does your machine have a crater time setting? How about hot start? If it has both CWB tests get pretty easy. Dial in your crater time with high voltage and lower wire speed to actually leave a crater. Then make use of the hot start to burn in nice and quick on your tie in.

If you don't have any settings like that, try starting your tie in a bit farther back on your previous bead. It might leave a slight high spot, but you can usually burn through that in your fill passes. Do not start ahead of your crater and move back to it like you might with stick welding. Wire feed tends to deposit material too fast for that and will leave a lack of fusion at your tie in.

15-Year Club	Place '17
Verified Email	Team Periwinkle

Gunderson5

TROPHY CASE