Hot Rods how was this welded

this is the factory weld on the back corners of my '33 chevy coupe. it is a weld that joins the quarter panel to the back window panel. the welds look like they have a ridge that runs along side the weld as tho it had a fixture to keep the weld from spreading.
so how did the factory do this?

 

Whoever welded it looks like his first day on the job after dropping out of junior high.

 

really? it's perfect on the other side.

 

The factory welds on my 31 look the same.

 

yeah i have seen it before. look almost formed and poured.

 

Similar to the welds across my 37 Willys front fenders, always wondered about how they were done. JW

 

Welds run over the wood framing also. Must have been done from the outside. Butt welds and just some minor file marks on the surface

 

yes, they made a rabbet in the wood so the weld would not catch it on fire.

 

Ditto on the 31'. I have a 31 2 door and weld seams on rear look just like that...........

 

When the factory did that, they called it "electric welding"

 

What that looks like to me is the burn through from a damned good stick welder running DC with a 6012 rod. You would not believe the amperage and speed that they ran.

 

Yea, Ford had something like that around then too. There's a weld on my A coupe quarters that looks just like that.
I don't know how it was done, but I imagine it being similar to the process used to weld band saw blades. Both pieces forced together and heat added via electricity simultaneously( no filler rod). Just guessing.

 

My '29 Ford Steelback Fordor has the same type weld. I haven't taken the paint off to see if the outside had lead. I've always wondered what the setup looked like that held all the wire wheel spokes in place on the rim when it got sapped and became a wheel. Bob

 

That's cool, Kevin . Nice drawings of how those pieces were made.

 

My 37 Willys fenders are the same with all of the compound curves it looks like the fenders were made in 2 pieces and then welded together in this manner, but on my 38 Willys fenders they are stamped in one piece. Now on the outside of the fender it is leaded where the seam would have been, so i'm guessing that they still had to finish the fender so it would be smooth so they could apply the paint. When it come down to it they did some awesome work to build the older cars, which i think is pretty cool.

 

i think you are right the processes must have been the same. it described 3/16 slag which is about the max i see. very interesting!

 

I have seen welds that look just like that on early vw parts on the front side you can not see it .

 

http://aso.gov.au/titles/sponsored-films/building-a-motor-body/clip1/?nojs=
this may help answer the ?

the first part of the video could be your answer, I have noticed this seam on many old cars

 

electric resistance welding , like how they weld pipe seams its 2 big rollers one on each panel as the panel is forced together the welding takes place in the area between the 2 radiuses of the roller face only ( path of least resistance ) its a straight line across between the rollers

 

Neat how much interesting stuff comes out of these threads.

 

I got welds like that on the side of cowl on 35 Chevy.
Not sure if this has anything to do with this thread, but I had a 1929 Hudson Super Six engine, that was used as a welder in a mill.
There was a big ass handle at the back of bell housing, and behind starter motor. When pushed foreward, it engaged starter which powered up welder. Sold engine, but kept the handle.

 

It looks very like electrical resistance welding. The banana shaped tubular suspension arms on a Citroen 2CV are made in the same way. My understanding is that it was a process pioneered by Citroen for the 2CV

 

I dont see anything special about the weld?
It looks like when we put backing on the backside of heavy plate, and welded it from one side. Pulled the backing off and wire brushed it. Before we welded the rest up. But I might be wrong.

Do you have any more pictures?



You can get rods that can be re polarized, so you have + on car and ground on rod. That means your rod. Takes up a lot of heat.
And then you can stick weld thin plate.

 

Looks like burn through to me

 

it does look like it was backed up. that is the only photo.

 

Interesting question, I also have wondered how the welds were done. I have built a lot of Chevys and they have all been like pictured in orig post. I do know the wooden frame was constructed first and then the sheet metal was installed, which leads me to believe the welding was done with the wood behind the metal. The welds were very good, as I never any signs of lead on the welds.

 

I have wondered about those body panel welds myself, as they appear both my 33 Chevy coupe as well as my 54 Chevy Delivery where the roof panels are joined to the side panels. Whatever it was, they were still using the process 21 years later.

IMO, the welding was done before the panels were tacked to the wood frames on the 33, and the rabbet groove in the wood was just to clear the inside weld so it wouldn't interfere with fit up.

It sure has that consistent "electrical resistance" look to it, like joining the ends of a band saw blade, but maybe someone who's seen it at the factory will chime in and let us know.

 

I saw a video from 1934 not sure if it was GM or Ford but where they showed the sedan rear body panel being fused together with high voltage all in a couple seconds with shower of sparks. The worker jigged it up,touched the two panels together and arched them together. Sounds unbelievable ,I may be wrong but that is what I saw. No it wasn't the spot welds ,it was a continuous weld. Correct me if I am wrong.

 

I agree, Low Lid Dude. I've heard it referred to as a "flash weld" and is very similar to the method used to make band saw blades only on a larger scale. No filler metal is used, the edges are consumed as they are forced together when the resistance weld is accomplished. It is a "joint specific" process, peculiar to just that specific joint, expensive to tool for, but cheap considering the volume of bodies made in mass production manufacturing.