correcting bent trailer tongue

[rankrank1]

...Just so you know, I am not bashing stick welders, I have one and LOVE IT, it is one of the most useful tools in my shop, I am just stating my opionions, so take it for what it is worth. (nothing)

No offense taken here. Just pointing out there are cheaper alternatives that do work. Just trying to educate people so they do not make the same mistake that I did in buying a Mig welder first as Mig was all the hype. Don't get me wrong as I do like the little Mig as it is great on thin metal, but it is not even remotely as versatile as a buzzbox stick welder is - nor as cheap to operate as the consumables on mig or fluxcore wire feeders do add up over time. If I could only have one metal tool it would be the buzzbox stick welder as it is 3 tools in one and is so cheap to both buy and so cheap to use. A small $150 investment in a buzzbox stick welder can really do a lot for you in a primitive backyard shop.

Oxy/Acetlyene is a great tool and worthwhile if you use it frequently enough to justify the immense expense of having it or if you have a business where you can simply pass the the immense expense onto the customer.

 

[2manyrocks]

After putting the trailer on a level surface, there is some twist in the frame. Spent a couple of hours trying to straighten it until it got too hot outside to mess with. Need to spend more time on it.

I started with a cheap mig, then found a Lincoln stick, then bought a better mig. I lean towards saying the stick is the more economical/better choice to start with and you don't have those high pressure cylinders. But for a job like this one, a torch would have been nice.

 

[rankrank1]

.... But for a job like this one, a torch would have been nice.

Seriously, try out the Twin Carbon arc torch link that I posted a couple posts ago. Simply power it from your Lincoln transformer stick welder. Even a hack like me can easily produce flames comparable to an oxy/acetlyene with a rosebud tip. Works great for straightening bent metal. If you make a torch from scraps lying around, we are only talking a $10 investment so you will not be out much if you hate it.

 

[2manyrocks]

Thanks for the link and the reminder. Funny you should bring up the carbon arc torch because I had thought about that a while back, but didn't know how to do it. Now I have a place to start.

Also, I am grateful for the suggestion to use a chain and jack to straighten the tongue. :thumbsup:

 

[deereman75]

why not rent a torch to straighten it the way shieldarc sugested

 

[Shield Arc]

why not rent a torch to straighten it the way shieldarc sugested

You'll find most people view heat shrinking as voodoo. I just had an out of work certified weldor bring me a replacement axle for his boat trailer to weld the leaf spring hangers on the axle. When he laid the axle on my welding table I said wow a lot of camber in that axle. He wasn't sure with that much camber that it wouldn't hit the bottom of his boat. I said well you can take some of that out. He replied how with a press? I grabbed some soapstone and started drawing ovals where to heat. He looked me right in the eye and laughed, said that won't work! :laughing:

 

[tcreeley]

If I understand it right, isn't the camber in the axle there so that the wheels make contact with the road at a specified angle and that causes the wheels to run true and straight. I know with carriage wheels the dish of the wheel and set of the axle combine to make a 90 degree spoke angle to the roadway. The trailers that pull one way and then another are the ones not set right.

 

[Shield Arc]

The guy bought a replacement axle that was about 3 times the weight rating that he needed for his trailer. You know the old saying? Bigger's better! :laughing:

 

[deereman75]

You know the old saying? Bigger's better! :laughing:

Except with tumors:laughing:

 

[Iplayfarmer]

Except with tumors:laughing:

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