welding

[nicky79]

Hi I'm looking to get 4 windows plated and welded up and wondered if anyone could recommend anyone to use , the windows are 48 by 18 inches.  Many thanks in advance.

[philjw]

Where is the boat?

[nicky79]

OOps sorry Newbury

[dmr]

Thats difficult and skilled work. I see lots of boats where this is done and there is an obvious weld line/wobble in the shape of the old window. Maybe this always happens, or maybe some are done so well that the weld invisible.  Another option is to bolt a plate on with a neat row of bolts and maybe put a porthole in so that it looks sort of industrial and intentional.  Kev Kyte looks to be the main welder/steel worker on the K&A these days so contact him and ask his advice.

[nicky79]

Brilliant thanks . I will try to contact kev.

[Tracy D'arth]

I watched Mike Heywood  move a window opening in a new shell. He moved it half its width sideways and used the half piece he cut out to weld in to the original hole.

 

After he had finished and linished the weld, you could not tell once it was primed.  Impressive guy, he had had plenty of practice.

[ditchcrawler]

1 minute ago, Tracy D'arth said:

 

After he had finished and linished the weld, you could not tell once it was primed.  Impressive guy, he had had plenty of practice.

Why, did he make a habit of putting them in the wrong place ? 😋

[blackrose]

1 hour ago, dmr said:

Another option is to bolt a plate on with a neat row of bolts and maybe put a porthole in so that it looks sort of industrial and intentional.  

 

Yes that's probably what I'd do. Plate bolted on with a good PU sealant using stainless dome-headed bolts. You don't need any skilled services to do that. 

[David Mack]

25 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

After he had finished and linished the weld, you could not tell once it was primed.

I bet you could once there was gloss paint on it!

[Tracy D'arth]

11 minutes ago, David Mack said:

I bet you could once there was gloss paint on it!

Err, no, it was not at all apparent when the boat build was finished.  The owner had changed his mind on the layout mid build so the window had to be moved.

[Slim]

10 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Err, no, it was not at all apparent when the boat build was finished.  The owner had changed his mind on the layout mid build so the window had to be moved.

I'd be surprised if you couldn't see it in a certain light. The builder stiffened the sides of my shell with welded framing. Stand by the side of it, strip it back to metal for painting, look down the side of it or anything else it looks as smooth as the proverbial baby's bum. However catch it from a distance in a certain light and you can see the welds clear as day. 

[Tracy D'arth]

7 minutes ago, Slim said:

I'd be surprised if you couldn't see it in a certain light. The builder stiffened the sides of my shell with welded framing. Stand by the side of it, strip it back to metal for painting, look down the side of it or anything else it looks as smooth as the proverbial baby's bum. However catch it from a distance in a certain light and you can see the welds clear as day. 

Well be surprised then.

[blackrose]

Or don't be surprised that a certain amount of filler was used to achieve the effect! 

[blackrose]

53 minutes ago, David Mack said:

I bet you could once there was gloss paint on it!

 

It's amazing the difference between imperfections seen between a matt primer and coat of gloss paint.

 

My stern bulkhead looked like the craters of the moon in gloss but you can't see the contours and it looks fine after I painted it with a matt topcoat. The only trouble with matt paint is that it leaves an "open" surface finish which scratches very easily. 

 

 

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

1 hour ago, blackrose said:

Or don't be surprised that a certain amount of filler was used to achieve the effect! 

If there’s plenty of weld then there be no filling after, would there? Just grinding and linishing to tidy it up. 

 

 

[nicky79]

I will def be looking into both options but we will be putting windows in at a later date just moved slightly and slightly different shape we have steel window insets at moment.

[dmr]

17 minutes ago, Goliath said:

If there’s plenty of weld then there be no filling after, would there? Just grinding and linishing to tidy it up. 

 

 

 

If its the weld thats a bit proud then grinding and linishing should do it, though if its a little local dip in the weld then a bit of filler might be easier than putting in more weld. The trouble is that the repair insert panel itself might be a fraction below the surface of the surrounding panels due either to imperfect jigging or movement during welding. In this case a bit of filler is the best option. My boat has a few bits of filler where the steel sheets butt up to each other, especially at the bottom where they join the gunnel.sh

[MtB]

7 hours ago, dmr said:

Another option is to bolt a plate on with a neat row of bolts and maybe put a porthole in so that it looks sort of industrial and intentional. 

 

 

Our Kedian here makes "window-to-porthole" conversion kits, IIRC, rather like wot you describes.

 

 

[David Mack]

3 hours ago, dmr said:

 

If its the weld thats a bit proud then grinding and linishing should do it, though if its a little local dip in the weld then a bit of filler might be easier than putting in more weld. The trouble is that the repair insert panel itself might be a fraction below the surface of the surrounding panels due either to imperfect jigging or movement during welding. In this case a bit of filler is the best option. My boat has a few bits of filler where the steel sheets butt up to each other, especially at the bottom where they join the gunnel.sh

A good welder can get the sheet edges perfectly aligned across the joint. But he can't completely avoid the heat distortion which comes with welding, which will put a certain amount of bow or ripple into the steel sheets. Local filler can't deal with that - you would need to fill over a wider area and sand flat to cover up the ripples.