k0ua
Epic Contributor
One, thing I can say about my welding skills (or lack thereof), I have learned them ALL by myself, without a bit of help from anyone........well, maybe a little from Jody on Welding tips and Tricks on you tube... 
Front loader bucket has some holes in it and might need welding?
- Thread starter draku007
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Big Barn
Super Member
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2013
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- Victoria, B C
- Tractor
- More than 40 over the years. Ten at any one time. Mostly Ford and New Holland
One, thing I can say about my welding skills (or lack thereof), I have learned them ALL by myself, without a bit of help from anyone........well, maybe a little from Jody on Welding tips and Tricks on you tube...
Same here. I have learned MORE about welding ( courtesy Jody and others) since I retired ten years ago than the entire previous 45 years of welding regularly on the farm.
True story. Sad but true. Only had a 230 AMP buzzbox. I had no clue as to what DC welding was.....
Egon
Epic Contributor
Weld a complete new sheet to the bottom of the bucket and then add some wear strips to that. Also make sure the cutting edge material is thick and not worn out. Adding some cutting-edge to the vertical sides of the bucket will also help.
Stitch weld some flat bar to fit the affected areas. I cant tell from photos what size you need, you might get away with 2,3 or 4 inch x 1/8 thick mild steel. One piece along the whole length might do it. Looks like you will be welding to Swiss cheese. Apply thick paint liberally and when you park your bucket dont let water accumulate anymore.
If the existing bucket welds and bends are corroded badly I wouldnt waste too much effort in patching. Keep an eye out for a used replacement bucket.
I’m the DYI guy who’s trying to possibly justify the cost of welding machine as part of this project. I did some welding years and years ago. Is that something an inexperienced handyman can do or should I look for some help with more experienced welder?
Where can I buy sheets of metal for such project?
Where can I buy sheets of metal for such project?
duffer
Platinum Member
Many on the board will scoff at me for saying this, but I bought a $150 mig wire feed welder @ Harbor Freight to do my "occasional" welding needs. I don't rebuild cars, I am not a farmer with a multitude of implements and equipment that need constant repair. I have a tractor and a few hobby farm implements. Once in a great while I need to weld something. Hadn't welded since I was 18, but somehow it comes back to you. Patience is the key. (and getting the right settings on the welder for heat, wire feed speed, etc.)
I went to a local welding shop and they charge me $30 to weld 2 pieces of steel tubing together. About a 6" long weld. I went to the store and bought the welder the next day.
k0ua
Epic Contributor
I don稚 have a welder yet and I知 trying to convince myself that I need one now
Ask a dozen people and you will get maybe 20 answers.
BUT I can tell you what I have. I have a DC inverter stick welder good for 160 amps. I have never found anything I couldn't fix or fab up with it. Also very very cheap to run. Sticks are versatile and are instant to change for size and purpose. A stick welder is NOT the easiest to learn on though, Everyone will recommend a MIG for the ease of learning. And yes we can argue all day about the best welder to get for your first, your second and so on and on. A good DC stick welder, can easily and economically be transformed into a TIG welder too. Sure it won't have HF start, and you will have to learn how to scratch start, but you can do the light low amperage work that you will find difficult or impossible with just stick alone. But others will say, "yeah, but I can do most of what a TIG will do with my properly set up MIG" And it is true to a point. But I can weld copper and brass with my DC stick welder and just a simple 17V TIG torch and a bottle of argon. Low cost, no drive rollers to futz with or wear out, no birds-nests ever, and all it takes to run it is skill and practice. With a DC stick welder, the results are all about YOU and NOT about the machine. Do MIG machines have their place? You bet they do. Can you learn to make pretty welds fast? You bet you can. All three of the common processes, Stick(aka SMAW Shielded Metal Arc Welding), MIG (Metal Inert Gas) and TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) have plus points and negative points. JUST like everything else in life. There is no such a thing as a free lunch, and there is no such a thing as the best welding process.
If anyone can prove me wrong, I am listening.
chim
Elite Member
One, thing I can say about my welding skills (or lack thereof), I have learned them ALL by myself, without a bit of help from anyone........well, maybe a little from Jody on Welding tips and Tricks on you tube...
On the inlaw's farm in the early 70's I taught myself enough to build a couple truck snow plow mounts, an 8000# winch mount and a utility trailer. Many years ago I bought a Millermatic 175 MIG and have used it with gas and fluxcore. That machine was used for a number of various projects.
It was with this machine that I built a tractor cab in late 2012. I did the build in our shop at work and had some of our certified welders give me pointers. A couple years ago I added a Hypertherm 30AIR just for fun. Early this summer I bought an Everlast Powerarc 200STi inverter welder. It hasn't seen much use so far because of the current backlog of projects that don't require welding.
