Basic Question

[joeyd]

I am new to welding and I have a basic question. I had the local metal shop cut and bend some adjustable skids for my 3pt snowblower from 3/8" material. They did the fabrication but not the welding. I have a 220v wire feed that I have been teaching myself to weld with. If I bolt on the brackets then clamp the bottom runners to the brackets is it safe to tack them together while the snow blower is mounted on the tractor? Then I will have a friend weld the pieces together after I have tacked the brackets in the right position on the skids. Will I do any harm to the electrical system of the tractor doing this? Do I have to disconnect the battery? All of my practice welding has been done on scrap on a welding table. My wire feed is only rated for 1/4" per the manufacturer.

P.S. It cost $20.00 to have them fabricated vs. $125.00 from the dealer.

[RoyJackson]

There's a lot of guys who do weld on their tractors with no problems.
However, newer tractors have a lot more electronics then an old Ford 8N (or even my 11 year old deere 4400).
Personally, I would disconnect the snow blower...

[Gary Fowler]

If you ground directly to the piece that you are welding on, you likely won't damage any part of the tractor. I have welded on trucks, cars and tractors and rotating equipment without disconnecting anything with no damage. You must have correctly placed the welding ground and have proper grounding of your home electrical system in order to do this without damage and experience in the procedure to prevent damage also helps.

To be on the safe side, I would reccommend that you disconnect the negative terminal on your battery and make sure the disconnected terminal is not touching the frame anywhere. That will prevent any backfeed into the electrical system should you have any grounding issues in your system. Stray current running thru the electical system on a vehicle can damage computer chips on the newer models if the ground is not properly attached from your welding machine. Better safe than sorry

[yomax4]

Wouldn't hurt to un hook the battery. I always do. (just in case). I have done some Mod welding on my FEL with no problems. I do believe in adding an extra ground from the tractor to a grounding rod or something else. (just in case)..

[blueriver]

If you ground directly to the piece that you are welding on, you likely won't damage any part of the tractor. I have welded on trucks, cars and tractors and rotating equipment without disconnecting anything with no damage. You must have correctly placed the welding ground and have proper grounding of your home electrical system in order to do this without damage and experience in the procedure to prevent damage also helps.

To be on the safe side, I would reccommend that you disconnect the negative terminal on your battery and make sure the disconnected terminal is not touching the frame anywhere. That will prevent any backfeed into the electrical system should you have any grounding issues in your system. Stray current running thru the electical system on a vehicle can damage computer chips on the newer models if the ground is not properly attached from your welding machine. Better safe than sorry

Yep and the way my luck is ... I would more than likely cause damage ... only takes a minute or two to remove the atatchment or unhook the battery.

[joeyd]

Thanks for the quick responses. I think I will put the snowblower up on some pallets so I can have room to adjust the skidplates and disconnect it from the tractor to be sure I don't mess anything up.

[LD1]

A 220v wire feeder should have no trouble welding them on regardless of what the MFG says is max.

If I were you, I'd give it a go anyway

[RPW]

Can't learn if you don't do If you're going to tack you might as well continue to weld. Just keep in mind that you run a bead for about 1in. then move to the another spot to keep the heat buildup to a minimum. One thing about welding that I like is if you make a mistake it's usually not that difficult to cut loose and re-do.

[deereman75]

it seems strange that a 220v mig would have a max capacity of 1/4 inch, what brand/model is it?

[joeyd]

Deereman - It is from HF, it was a hand me down from a friend so I couldn't pass it up. I tried to tack it up this afternoon, when I took the clamps off and picked it up one of the brackets broke loose. I guess I'll grind it smooth and try again.