Splicing a small I beam together

[jwmorris]

I spliced one together with a 30' span in my shop for the same thing. I also welded plates in the flat although I doubt it needed it.

 

[Gary Fowler]

No

Rather the engineer err on the "overbuilt" side of things instead of the "it's good enough" side of things.

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The stats for loading of beams already have a fudge factor of about 4 built in. When an engineer then adds in his own fudge factor you end up with this situation. I recall a pipe rack built on a construction site once. Most had 6" I beam verts but this one had about 10 or 12" extra heavy beams. I commented to an engineer about how this rack must be heavily loaded and he said no, just one pipe on top. I laughed and said why such massive beam weights and he said a new engineer designed it and they failed to check the design properly by a veteran engineer. It got fabricated that way so, it got installed. Not a big % of $$$ over-run on a couple hundred million dollar project, but if this had been a one of installation, it could have tripled, quadrupled or more the cost to build.

Just like doctors, it pays sometimes to get a second opinion.

 

[ericher69]

So a bit of a snag; may need to scrap project or get a matching piece. (I'm doing this for my fathers shop)

As you can see from the pics one piece is just a little taller than the other; same thicknesses.

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[ThomasH]

So a bit of a snag; may need to scrap project or get a matching piece. (I'm doing this for my fathers shop)

As you can see from the pics one piece is just a little taller than the other; same thicknesses.

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You could weld a spacer on the shorter side without sacrificing much in the way of strength as long as the splice place on the top is nearly the same width as the top flange.

 

[Renze]

Theres all kind of engineers some so full of hot air you could poke a hole in them and do some plastic welding.

I just HAD to quote that on my facebook page, keeping it in style with the plastic welding is hilarious

 

[Sodo]

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

Well ericher you know your 3 choices

1) give up
2) spend your time looking for more steel
3) level out the trolley track and keep moving. That little offset in the flanges will weld up nicely with filler plates

 

[ericher69]

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing: Well ericher you know your 3 choices 1) give up 2) spend your time looking for more steel 3) level out the trolley track and keep moving. That little offset in the flanges will weld up nicely with filler plates

Option 3 it is!

I found out a few things welding this beam together;

1. My Lincoln welding gloves are inadequate for high amperage mig work

Yes that's a second degree burn through the glove!

2. I know the on demand fan on the 252 functions (never had it kick on in the last year of ownership)

Here are some pictures; not my best work but -here comes the excuse- considering I was getting burned while welding and had to remove my glove a few times during I think it turned out ok!

Shouldn't fall apart anyway

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[Arc weld]

Since you posted pic's, I'll comment. For 500 lbs. it will hold. Forget excuses, that's a water blister, a minor inconvenience as far as welding goes. As far as quality it has has some rather obvious flaws. Did your experienced welding friend inspect it and what did he say?

Why didn't you do a better job cleaning it up before welding? You burned hot but maybe too hot. It looks like you may have been going a little too slow for the heat and putting too much filler in one pass. Were you weaving or going in circles while welding? You left unfilled craters and undercut and worse is you left them on the edge of the beam. Great place for a crack to start.

I hate to be so critical but you've got good equipment and asked for advice before proceeding, did a good job lining/clamping everything up properly and in the the end it looks like you got in a hurry and scrimped on the most important details. Shouldn't fall apart??? That's just another way of saying good enough. Sorry, I don't understand.

 

[Sodo]

Arc your paragraph 2 is good, it's the kind of feedback members appreciate, will draw more members to post pics. I understood "shouldn't fall apart" as a joke.

 

[bob722]

I concur with this post. Bevel the .125 gap on the 1st pass to the backer plate, then fill the groove. Make the bevel 45 deg. on one side. Blade Breaker says it correct. I have done this type of welding many times before on other pieces of similar construction.

 

[ericher69]

Since you posted pic's, I'll comment. For 500 lbs. it will hold. Forget excuses, that's a water blister, a minor inconvenience as far as welding goes. As far as quality it has has some rather obvious flaws. Did your experienced welding friend inspect it and what did he say? Why didn't you do a better job cleaning it up before welding? You burned hot but maybe too hot. It looks like you may have been going a little too slow for the heat and putting too much filler in one pass. Were you weaving or going in circles while welding? You left unfilled craters and undercut and worse is you left them on the edge of the beam. Great place for a crack to start. I hate to be so critical but you've got good equipment and asked for advice before proceeding, did a good job lining/clamping everything up properly and in the the end it looks like you got in a hurry and scrimped on the most important details. Shouldn't fall apart??? That's just another way of saying good enough. Sorry, I don't understand.

Check 500lbs capacity; perfect

Yes he looked at it and he realizes that I don't do this for a living and realizes that nobody will come back to sue if it breaks; which I doubt it ever will.

Having said that yes I should have spent 4 hours
that I don't have cleaning it up.

Burning too hot; didn't realize hotter was worst than cold lap...

Weaved the second pass and if anything I felt I was traveling too quickly. Don't believe I put down too much filler in one pass.

Will fill craters at edge of beam thanks for pointing out

For a 15ft span 500lbs is nothing! A simple 2x6 of wood will hold 500lbs!

Arc your paragraph 2 is good, it's the kind of feedback members appreciate, will draw more members to post pics. I understood "shouldn't fall apart" as a joke.

Arc Weld is giving feedback and will "encourage" me to do a better job next time. I realize posting pics that I would get it from someone but hey- I have thick skin and can take it.

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[MikePA]

I realize posting pics that I would get it from someone but hey- I have thick skin and can take it.

Posting pics should not result in 'getting it from someone' and nor should people have to 'have thick skin' and have the ability to 'take it'.

TBN is about sharing experience and learning from one another. I believe everyone knows how to instruct, help others and offer constructive criticism. A good rule of thumb is 'If I wouldn't say it to someone's face, I shouldn't type it.'

 

[ericher69]

Posting pics should not result in 'getting it from someone' and nor should people have to 'have thick skin' and have the ability to 'take it'. TBN is about sharing experience and learning from one another. I believe everyone knows how to instruct, help others and offer constructive criticism. A good rule of thumb is 'If I wouldn't say it to someone's face, I shouldn't type it.'

No but having said that I knew that I was rushing and not devoting the proper time required to the task and could have chosen not to post back the completed pictures like so MANY on this forum do!

My moonlighting job was teaching at the college level (not welding lol) but regardless I thought everyone including myself could benefit from what I did right, what I could improve on and what is all out wrong.

I welcome experienced professional weldors and enthusiasts constructive criticism as it will hopefully make me a better weldor in the end.

I do not believe that what I have done is unsafe bye any means. If I had any doubts I would personally cut the beam up myself so that it cannot be used by anyone else.

Fire away with your constructive criticism!

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[k0ua]

Keep in mind the rest of us learn from the constructive criticism too. I don't have much to say, because I have no experience welding something like this, but I can learn just by watching and "listening".

 

[ericher69]

Keep in mind the rest of us learn from the constructive criticism too. I don't have much to say, because I have no experience welding something like this, but I can learn just by watching and "listening".

For sure!

I did not post this on a dedicated welding forum like Miller, Welding web etc as I find the feedback to be mostly negative.

I think most people on this forum realize that people will sometimes tackle a project that they shouldn't because of;

Lack of experience
Lack of skill
Lack of space
Lack of equipment

I had no experience welding something like this prior to a few days ago but now do!

Does it make me a pro-no

Would I have tackled this with a borderline capacity MIG-No

Would I do it again-Yes

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[Sodo]

Hey you guys watch it or I'll loadtest one of my 120v spliced I-beams from 15 years ago!

I think most people on this forum realize that people will sometimes tackle a project that they shouldn't because of;
Lack of experience
Lack of skill
Lack of space
Lack of equipment
I had no experience welding something like this prior to a few days ago but now do!
Does it make me a pro-no
Would I have tackled this with a borderline capacity MIG-No
Would I do it again-Yes

But hey, thats the spirit! Except for the word "shouldn't".

 

[ericher69]

Hey you guys watch it or I'll loadtest one of my 120v spliced I-beams from 15 years ago!

This had to go there lol

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[Sodo]

Agreed 3/8" thick flanges (and the workpiece size) is beyond "borderline" for 120v, don't have to 'go there'. But ….what if a guy did it (on your beam size) , and it passed a load test. Would it convince you that your splice with your 252 is good enough ?

 

[ThomasH]

Ericher69 -

It will certainly hold 500 pounds, and considering all of the rust on the beam, the weld looks as good as you might expect.

If it were me, I would have spent 5-10 minutes with an angle grinder and ground off the rust within 1 inch of the weld area. That would have turned what was an acceptable outcome into something that high quality. Just a suggestion.

 

[ericher69]

Agreed 3/8" thick flanges (and the workpiece size) is beyond "borderline" for 120v, don't have to 'go there'. But ….what if a guy did it (on your beam size) , and it passed a load test. Would it convince you that your splice with your 252 is good enough ?

No need to convince me that the splice welded with 252 is good enough

Ericher69 - It will certainly hold 500 pounds, and considering all of the rust on the beam, the weld looks as good as you might expect. If it were me, I would have spent 5-10 minutes with an angle grinder and ground off the rust within 1 inch of the weld area. That would have turned what was an acceptable outcome into something that high quality. Just a suggestion.

Your right; had started and got into it next thing you know I was worried about warping therefore hurried.

Next time I will completely prep the weld area BEFORE starting the welding.

I had even ground down a spot to bare metal for the ground clamp but fell short in the weld joint area. An area of 1/2" was prepped but needed to go at least an inch.

Thanks for the suggestions

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