"welding is welding"

Probably thinking it wasn't necessary. I might tend to agree. Wanna minimize your time pouring heat into the frame.

 

Yeah, that he did mention. Keep in mind that I don't know anything about welding when I think he said that he didn't want to weld anything close to vertical when it wasn't really necessary and didn't add substantially to the strength. It was something like that. It was part of why he didn't want to go with the included gussets.

 

“Welding is welding”

Hahahaha. Yes. He’s not wrong. He was just being vague or stupid.


There are two types of welders who say that. One of them is amazing and has been doing it longer than you’ve been born, did it suspended, upside down, over a pool of hot lava...and one of them just started welding last week after he got laid off from quickie burger for not washing his hands. Choose wisely.

 

The problem is that the bottom is welded so now moisture that gets in there where it's not welded, has no possible way of draining out. Check your frame in a couple years and I'm willing to bet you've got some good rust behind there.


EDIT: I didn't even read the second quote you had quoted, I agree (obviously). Moisture will be a problem no matter where you're at. (That's meant for OP)

 

Exactly! The one I contacted first I think squarely falls into the first category. BUT the one I chose has been doing it for longer than I knew there was such a thing as 4x4 AND has been doing his welding on off-road vehicles, exclusively. So even if he is a worse welder I still think I got the better deal.

I'll get back to this when I have answers to the questions that arose (arised? aroused? have arisen?) English not first language of mine.

 

What is your first language

 

German. But I grew up in Switzerland, which has a language as dis-similar from German as Dutch is. Lived in the US for the last 25 years, but it still shows. Most people think I am Irish when I meet them face to face (the non-Irish people, of course!) I also got Russian, Swedish, Scottish and even Welsh. Never German though, to my everlasting delight!

 

Welding is welding as far as material and laying beads. There is no difference between sliders and making a tube table or a gate. There are levels of craftsmanship however.

 

Germans speak better English than most Americans anyway.

 

I am getting the feeling that this is not unlike the software equivalent of "programming is programming". To a big extent it is, but to a not insignificant extent it is not. Otherwise, there would not be any specialized programming languages. So while all the basic tenets of informational theory apply to anything you program on computers it's not like some script kiddy can think of himself as somebody capable of developing AI for a self driving car. Of course they do, anyways.

Since I am aware of the levels of craftsmanship that exist in programming and the kind of self-overestimation that people who barely know how to write a 100 line browser plugin display - I will leave my welding to anybody but myself, thank you very much!

 

Scandinavians definitely. Germans - even if they do - the accent is always a bit ... shall we say ... totalitarian. At least that's how it sounds to me. I am very glad to get mistaken for Irish instead.
Personally, I really like Russian accents. No better way to say "Do Not Fuck With Me".

 

All I can think of is Slav Squatting now.

 

My friend from Hamburg really sounds British - he speaks English better than most Americans I know as well - then again he is an English teacher haha

 

Do my booger welds count as welding?

 

A picture of some gopnik slav squatting on the hood of a Tacoma would be a worthy contribution to any thread!

 

Finally got around to visiting my off-road guy again. He cut the u-bolts to size after it became clear that I wouldn't need the overload leaf.

So he said he welded the gussets to the side of the tube because of
- accessibility
- better penetration (as mentioned)
- and mainly he wanted to use the longest / biggest gussets possible to minimize the leverage that an impact has on the slider tubes where they attach to the plates, i.e. keep them from bending up.

He also said that given my use of the truck the next thing I should think about would be better bump stops. Maybe invert the u-bolts. Skid plate he thinks I should wait with until I hit something.

 

Look into Durobumps

 

Wait till you hit something and buy skids then? Plus replace whatever you wrecked by hitting something? Skids are (relatively) cheap insurance. If you don’t think you’ll be banging on the bottom of your truck then that’s fine, but if you are just buy skids before you wreck something expensive

 

Yes. The OEM skid hasn't touched anything yet after quite a few hours tooling around off pavement - I'm not exactly aggressive but I've been warned that I'll go faster and bolder automatically the more time I spend off the roads. Just like with riding a mountain bike. And just like with a bike helmet he said "What protection there is can take one hit and then you'll know it's time."

We talked a lot more about knowing how I would recover being out by myself, potentially adding a winch etc. Bit hard to summarize the essence of a 1 h conversation, but all taken together it made a lot of sense.

 

Got it. Honestly going faster isn’t going to cause any need for skids. Playing with boulders or not paying attention will. I’ll tell you that the stock skid is not the same as a bike helmet. For real. One solid hit will crush it upwards. Also, it’s only a front skid. T-Case, transmission, and fuel tank are just as important. In some ways moreso. 99% sure they have next to no protection in stock form.