welding with a car battery

[pontiacfieroguy]

i saw something cool on a tv show called "the colony" they wired 3 car batteries together and used a set of jumper cables and a thin steel rod to weld and did an ok job. i just thought that was pretty cool for emergency repair type stuff

 

[06RangerXLT]

never heard of it, sounds interesting!

 

[adsm08]

Yeah, def possible. Should be pretty similar to DC Arc welding. Heck, I've welded a few things (wrenches, screwdrivers, the like) with just 1 12V battery.

 

[gwaii]

used the method for trail fixes,i usually carry a few 7018 1/8 sticks with me,and jumper cables.two batteries in series work better(24v)but i've done it with one.

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

Yup, done it myself on more than one occasion to get someones rig back on the trail.

 

[gribly]

Yeah, I've watched someone accidentally touch the body of their truck with the wrench when putting the positive terminal on. Burns right through sheet metal real quick.

 

[crusin93]

Check www.Readywelder.com. In a pinch they are awesome. Not a Muscle Mig though.

 

[koda6966]

My father has done it in the quarry before, but usually only when in a pinch.

 

[ozziemo27]

Who needs welding rod when you have COAT HANGERS!

 

[heptofite]

Who needs welding rod when you have COAT HANGERS!

that's a clean weld...

 

[feellnfroggy]

Coat hangers do work with car batteries, but it is meant as emergency or temp fixes. Just remember when you hook your batteries (if more than one) up in series then your adding your voltage together, when parallel, is the amperage is added. 3 batts in series=36 volts, 3 batteries in parralel= 900 cca. Someoen double check i might have it backwards, but important to know.

 

[crbnunit]

You need at least two batteries to weld with a stick. 12V is just too hard to get and maintain an arc. Even then won't get much arc time. Three batteries is better. I have a Rediwelder. They rock for trail repairs.

 

[feellnfroggy]

FYI the average static cling spark is 30,000 volts. But its only like 1/4 or 1/8th of an amp.

 

[ThatGuy]

Have done it more than once to get someone off the trail. I've used both rods and coat hangers. Had to weld a steering box on the frame once and have welded tie-rods back together. It works, but should only be done in a must have situation.

 

[nate09]

that's a clean weld...

welding rod and coat hangers are made from essentially the same steel, its the flux that makes the difference.