Jumping in, for the hope of a better jeep.

[wfochris]

I've welded maybe twice in my life, but bought this today:



In the hopes of turning this:



into something a little closer to this:


(ton axles)

I've only read a few threads on this forum but I can tell it's going to be a huge help.

I'll just go ahead and say "thanks in advance."

[soutthpaw]

Be sure to read up on proper joint prep and do lots of practice first before welding on your jeep, Where are you located? the second pic looks like one of the many old mining roads here in Colorado.

[DSW]

Hello. Looks like you picked a nice machine there. You'll be very happy with it.

A few things to keep in mind right from the start. You are a very long ways away from doing any sort of suspension mods on that Jeep. Projects like this are NOT begginer or learning projects. You really need to be able to make code quality welds in all positions as well as have a very good understanding of what sorts of things need to be done to make this wok, especially if this is a daily driver and not a strictly off road buggy. When thing like this fail, chances are you will seriously injure or kill someone. the "it's ugly but it holds" idea than many off roaders have is BS. Ugly welds are not good sound welds. Expect that this will take a couple hundred hours of practice on your own and a lot of wire and pratice material, to get where you look like you want to go. It's not something you can learn in one weekend for serious projects.

I'm not trying to discourage you, there are lots of projects for this you can do that won't endanger others. Rock sliders (just don't weld them to the frame, bolt them), light brackets, bumpers, winch mounts ( a mid level project), gear racks and so on.

If you are serious about learning, take a look into taking a night class at a local tech school. When you add up what the materials, wire, gas, electric and all would cost you, let alone the instruction, a classs is usually stupid cheap. Add in that you often have accesss to other tools like shears, plasma, torches, as well as other processes like stick and tig as well as mig. Most instructors are happy to help with projects once you learn the basics. It shows a student is interested in learning, not just taking up class space.

Good luck.

[wfochris]

DSW- you've hit the nail on the head.

I know it's going to be quite a while before I get there, and have already looked for local night classes. I also happen to work for an auto company in an engine plant, and we have some maintenance guys that are experienced welders that I talk to.

I appreciate the honest feedback