Please critique the weld quality (photos enclosed)

[plowhog]

I appreciate all the replies. For the record, my dad was a pipefitter welder who worked as a welder on large jobs such as nuclear power plants. He was a very good welder. Welds in that environment were xrayed after welding to ensure a proper weld. I wish he had taught me about welding before he passed.

The company owner brought his in-house fabricator to my property. This particular fabricator is the person who built the gates-- and the many welds on the gates look good to me. Over a period of two days, he ground off all the hinge welds in the photos, plus ground off all the hinge welds on the rear gates. Re-did them all. They look much better.

The job should be finished soon, likely first of the week. I'll post more pictures after completion. I'm really glad I had this re-work done. Given the weight of these gates, a weld failure could cause a really bad day ....

 

[davisjt1977]

Glad that it is working out!!!!

 

[ray66v]

A good rule which is too often violated, but can easily forestall disaster is:

If you are welding, painting, cutting, etc., and it's not coming out correctly, STOP!

Take some time, do some more practicing, testing or, research, and fix it before continuing.

Continuing when they job isn't coming out, can often result in a much bigger, more costly, and labor intense error.

 

[ljjhouser]

Looks like cold welds - not enough heat to pentatrate or flow. Very bad. I would guess many of these welds would crack with weigh applied in the first couple of years, if that long.

THIS is the reason I always say when buying a new trailer, be sure the company uses certified welders.

it appears this company does not. Those are the most consistent, obvious and worthless (WELDS?? hate to call them that) I have ever seen from any company.
They shouldn't have wasted the paint on them.

 

[scootr]

Sounds to me like the owner is a stand up guy. Be sure to tell him that you appreciate him making it right.
That could have gotten ugly.

 

[California]

I definitely agree with all the comments. Very poor, non- professional welds. Potentially lethal if they fail.

You might call the local Boilermakers union hall and see if they can recommend a welding inspector to provide a professional opinion to back up any legal action you might consider.

Best suggestion I've read so far. Do it!

 

[Mcdust]

I am having fencing/gates installed. Steel material that is/was powder coated.

The photos are for hinge welds for heavy gates. 6x6 steel posts and steel gates to cover a 16 foot opening.

Before approving the job, I'd like to make sure the weld quality is sufficient for long term reliable use. Except I do not know how to evaluate the quality of a weld. Does this work look right to you?

Garbage. Find a good welder

 

[DGZRT]

My instructor in High School always said the ground has to be good In order to get good welds . He taught me to find a good place clean it down to bare metal. Then place a piece of copper grounding wire In between my clamp and the cleaned spot to make better contact. Then prep both pieces your going to weld and you will have better results. That tip was 45years ago. And I still do that way today . Any other tips people can pass along ??

 

[California]

...place a piece of copper grounding wire in between my clamp and the cleaned spot to make better contact....

I just learned something, thanks!

This will help make a good ground on something impossibly rusty, like this scrap of angle iron I used to strengthen a back blade modification.

 

[Mholdeman]

Old man raised on a farm here. We used old lincoln buzz box stick welders to weld rusty steel and I would NOT let that guy get a way with that. I see you got it corrected BUT he should have STOPPED and corrected. welds don't always have to look good to be good, BUT they should not look like that. If I were paying that guy in a fab shop I would definitely do some research on what he has done in the past...