TFS: 70 Year Old Welder - Will it TIG?

Recently we picked up an old Smith 2518 AC Arc Welder that is about 70 years old or so. The question on everyone's mind is: Will it TIG? Let's find out in this episode.

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[ChristCenteredIronworks]

Those are great machines in my opinion.. My mentor had one and got to use it that thing welded all day long on 1/2" plate..
Great video enjoyed it

[maynardjohnson]

I made a TIG welder using a tombstone Lincoln buzbox. I made what you could call a series wound Tesla coil by taking about 12 turn of welding cable and coiling it up. I think that i bypassed it with an rf mica capacitor or something.

Then wrapped three turns of just regular wire around or next to it. Made a spark gap out of flat ended tig electrodes mounted in a couple of aluminum blocks. That with another capacitor and a small 5000 volt neon sign transformer made up the primary of a standard tesla coil and there was my hf stabilizer.

Then I took a wah wah pedal and swapped out the pot for the correct value. Ripped out all of the other circuitry (which was already smashed). I used a telephone cord and RJ11 jacks to connect it to a box. That controlled what is called a picket fence thyristor trigger box. I got a couple of big honkin' hockey puck thyristors that once were used to drive a diffusion furnace in the semiconductor process industry and hooked all of that up with a dryer plug and outlet so that I essentially had like a light dimmer but one that you could dim a dryer or an arc welder with.

I actually welded aluminum with it on 60hz sine wave. I also made another box with a big bridge rectifier circuit, some electrolytic caps and a big transformer winding. I made a π network but found that the output caps needed to be removed so I changed it to an L network with a choke output and then I had DC. Phun, phun, phun.

I was living in a box truck at the time in an equipment yard with all manner of unsavory characters. I should have tried to do a video about it but was struggling to pay the rent and keep the theives, tweakers, recyclers and landlords at bay.

I still have everything but the hf stabilizer unit and the buzz box. I found a Westinghouse stabilizer on eBay that has current sensing, gas and water solenoid valves.

I was forced to move back to Michigan. My dad has another Lincoln box. All I need now is another argon tank that is in spec and I'm back in business.

There are still enough interesting part to do a video about. I lost most of my materials and hardware. Making another hf stabilizer might be fun to make a video about but there are no surplus stores here in Michigan.

The one that I used to work at in silicon valley just went belly up. Radio Shack is gone. The Steve Wozniak, build it in your garage days are gone. I thought that I was going to get in on the ground floor in California, but no.

Id really like to discourage this mentality glorified by TV shows like storage wars and hoarders that make fun of people who collect thing, especially if they do things with their things.

Example, I made a sandblaster out of a dishwasher. There is this commercial for Apple i-something. Everything that you need is on the cloud. Possessions are a sign of poverty. There is a guy with his i-thing, a futon and some expensive toiletries.

I can build a laser from scratch. That is what I think of when I think "tech". But now "tech" means writing some fart app for your iPhone. I'm not saying that writing apps isn't useful but if this country loose the ability to, not build an iPhone but to have individuals with the skill set and materials to do stuff with your hands. That is a bad direction to be headed in.
/rant

[chevelle]

My dad had a 50 year old Craftsman stick welder. It actually had knobs on it . That welder looks much older. Never seen one like that before.

[dustinr]

If that was made in 1940 and went for 200 dollars then, it would cost 3500 dollars today, with inflation

[JimbosGarage]

That is a crazy old machine! Very educational information though. I can't wait to see it restored!

[johnfry]

That is a very cool welder, I restored an old Craftsman AC welder from the 60's with same type of lug plugs on it . I actually had an old box of 7018 rod that was maybe 35 yr's old and fired it up, it actually worked pretty good, I am sure it wouldn't have passed any cut and etch tests but it didn't look bad .

[billmcyrus]

This is absolutely awesome! Please do make a video of it once you have it restored. 6011 on old AC welders is one of my favorite ways to weld, in fact it was how I learned.

[OriginalBrett]

Layers and layers of asbestos! This thing looks terrifying. Awesome video!

[Divne_]

7:57 Grinder and paint will make you the welder you ain't, Great content. Loving it keep up the great work

[hunterwallace]

Love seeing these old machines in working order, I have an early 40's Marquette ac welder that runs so damn smooth

[brianwelch]

My dad had one of these growing up, first welder I ever used. I think it was great granddad's old farm welder

[roberttraphagan]

I have one just like it. Use it all the time and love it. Works great.

[JayFude]

As soon as he started brushing, I thought about that wonderful taste of asbestos!

[victoryfirst]

So nice to hear that you are going to restore the great Art Deco style machine. Look forward to see it finished. Nice presentation and correct information on the grand old AC machine.

[paulz]

I used one like that 30 years ago on the farm. Quietest welder I ever used.

[adambergendorff]

look forward to the restoration of the old welder, love all your videos, but especially ones that involve an actual project

[tongod]

I am completely self-taught for the last 25 years. Other than what I've read and books and learned off of YouTube about welding and I never understood why you couldn't weld with a AC arc welder. Thank you. For putting it in layman's terms.

[popanollie]

awesome video and just as awesome of a machine cant wait to see it restored back to its original glory

[Stelios.Posantzis]

This is great. I hope you go more for a maintenance rather than a restoration. Leaving the patina intact with all the signs of usage, which are testaments to it's history, will ensure it retain its charm. They are proof it's had a useful life instead of just sitting idle and protected in a cupboard.

[weldor]

Try your 7018 on that machine, you might be surprised, some of the old buzz boxes run it very well although a little hard to start.