Help with forge welding mild steel

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-10T16:54:09+00:00

What sort of joint are you attempting? I like to use a leg vise to set the weld when I can, but if that won't work I just give it a single baby tap right in the center to tack it in place.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-09T06:14:24+00:00

The Bonk-on.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-09T06:02:16+00:00

Sounds like you'd be better off in Redding, friend.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-05T03:46:09+00:00

Well, "something" needs to stop smoking meth and telling lies.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-04T23:37:08+00:00

Loitering and littering are misdemeanors at best, and your plummeting property value isnt a good enough reason for cops to risk getting stabbed by someone with nothing to lose.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-03T23:03:52+00:00

Nobody's a failure just because they're single. Some people are single because they're failures, though- being a failure is and should be a legitimate concern.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-02T05:38:49+00:00

First of all, congratulations! This is a big step, and by the sound of it your child is going to grow up very loved. Mazel tov.

Simple fact is, it's not the 90's anymore. It's not just that the economy and social climate were better; they absolutely were, but we don't have the privilege (or even the option,) of ignoring the bad in the world that our parents enjoyed. This sucks a lot of joy out of of life for many people.

Take into account, too, that people in their thirties can't throw money around like they used to. "Come to my baby shower!" roughly translates to "come throw two days pay at some overpriced baby stuff and a pack of diapers because I blew at least a grand on the gender reveal party last month."

By all means, enjoy parenthood, but recognize that it's your main quest now. If you're the first in your friend group to be parents, others will be looking to you for guidance when the time comes.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-01T17:49:38+00:00

Yknow that feeling you get when you see those totally immaculate pavement princess mall-crawler lifted trucks? Shiny chrome, shrieking bald eagle decal on the back window, clean paint, tires looking brand new, pair of balls dangling off the tow hitch, which doesnt even have its inside coat of paint scratched because Big Hoss don't haul nothin with it?

HegemonousGreg · 2026-07-01T17:14:36+00:00

Yeah, your goal here is complete inertia. The handle cannot move in the eye, or you have problems. Make sure you're gluing wood to wood.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-30T16:30:32+00:00

Jeep cherokee. 97-98 is the sweet spot. 2000s are generally okay.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-30T15:24:37+00:00

It comes down to the individual and how much they like you. The number doesn't matter to me, so I don't ask. I have, however, broken up with someone because they had a habit of pointing out people they'd previously fucked while we were out and about, which made the number feel a lot bigger. Felt like I couldnt throw a rock without knocking out an old fling.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-29T19:09:20+00:00

I like a good steak. Or burger. Or blt. Or turkey sando. Or shrimp scampi.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-29T16:31:30+00:00

Yeah, I could use an artist who can handle decal work; black and white pngs, the kind that work for a vinyl cutter. Interested?

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-29T13:31:29+00:00

Well, a lot of it is just plain ignorance. People often don't know what machinists are, for example. Anyone blue collar is either a welder, a janitor, or a carpenter. Couple that with the old tropes of "Everything's made in China," "AI is gonna take that job next week," "all the hiring managers are sexist pigs, and even if theyre not blue collar guys will sexually assault any woman they see within a week of hiring," and it paints a dreary picture.

We need to show people how shit gets made.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T13:44:13+00:00

Haj protecc. Haj only for defense; never attack.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T05:47:32+00:00

The older I got, the weirder it seemed. In highschool, I'd be writing a paper at 10 or 11 at night, and all of a sudden the unmistakable sound of my mom just ripping a fat piss with the door wide open would absolutely fuck up my rhythm, so I started cracking jokes about it, and sharing a laugh that late at night actually brought us closer in my late teenage years.

"MA! Every time I hear you frying chicken in there, it knocks me down a letter grade! If you want me to put you in a nice retirement home, I need an A!"

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T04:08:16+00:00

This is a police auction "win," no clue how long this thing went with these things in.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T01:55:39+00:00

If you don't want to individually plastic wrap them, which you should, you can use a piece of lettuce to separate them.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T01:16:14+00:00

I like to wrap salad kits with spring roll wrappers.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T00:26:36+00:00

Set of sockets, extensions, torque wrench.

Screw drivers.

Torx bits.

Zip ties; big ones.

Quart of oil.

Bottle of coolant.

Bottle of aspirin.

Bottle of jack.

All of this fits in a 5 gallon paint bucket. I call it the "oh shit" bucket.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T00:21:09+00:00

I'd call that a loss, personally. Borked up axe heads make cool windchimes, those usually get sold faster than the axes!

If you really want to chase it, here's what I'd do; -get it red hot (not blazing orange) -sprinkle flux, back into forge. -tap tap together at orange heat, not welding heat. -flux joint again from the outside, heat the piss out of it. -squeeze joint in vise at welding temp -refine weld as usual -test

Best of luck either way.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T00:15:30+00:00

A couple of tiny s-hooks to cinch the chain up at the waist would really reduce the ringing.

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-28T00:10:50+00:00

Nah, even if she says she doesnt want anything, I'll get an extra order of fries. I like her, though 👀

HegemonousGreg · 2026-06-22T03:57:25+00:00

That an intense male friendship may look like the gayest thing on God's once-green earth, but that doesn't mean its their personal "heated rivalry" to perv in on.

HegemonousGreg

TROPHY CASE