Technical Am I mad

[numan43]

Just spent £300 on welding for a car worth around £600 for mot ...do I have a screw loose?

Rob

 

[fingers99]

The madness isn't in getting the work done, but in not buying a MIG welder so you could do it yourself.

 

[David Dawson]

Definitely, but you fit right in here.

 

[dave]

Just spent £300 on welding for a car worth around £600 for mot ...do I have a screw loose?

Rob

its better to fix a car you know is good than buy a newer one and then finding out it needs a lot more doing.

 

[AndyRKett]

Well

A mk2 X-reg like the one in your sig could be worth at most £600 if in good condition but if you told me for its last MOT it had to have £300 of welding you'd probably be lucky to get £300-£400 for the car

I'd go with Fingers on this one should have bought a mig welder and learnt how to weld will come in handy for the next MOT

 

[oldhammer]

Just spent £300 on welding for a car worth around £600 for mot ...do I have a screw loose?

Rob

(Re: Am I mad)


Why for spending 300 sov's

What is the cheapest? spending 300 or buying new car,and have the messing around too do,changing insurance over and all that borlox,

no your not mad

 

[numan43]

can always rely on this forum to lift my spirit, showing the upside has cheered me,


thanks guys

rob

 

[numan43]

Dont see myself as dishonest andy but I might not be as upfront as that...I do have a years MOT with no advisories

 

[AndyRKett]

Fair point lol

At least when you spend the money and know the car, you know where you stand. Buy another car and it can be a whole different can of worms

 

[Numptey]

Just spent £300 on welding for a car worth around £600 for mot ...do I have a screw loose?

Rob

I've spent best part of a grand on our Punto in the last 8 months ensuring I don't have any issues with it in the future. Still things to do but it pays us back as it's cheap to run, tax and insure and starts every morning without fail and that CVT gearbox is something else, amazes me everyday

 

[RexCar]

Spent £370 on welding on my 2001 micra (which I scrapped 2 weeks ago) to get her through the MOT for one final year last year, before getting my Punto.

You only spend that kind of money on a car to get it through the MOT, despite the actual value of the car, if you love it - so no, you're not mad

 

[oldhammer]

its 14years old so anyone shouid expect welding on acar this age, ithink,..
not only that ithink the tyre fitter monkeys dont help, they jack them up any where,this can cause..rust to get in and eat it away once theyve folded jacking points back etc, :bang:

get it up in the air, tar it up underneath with good old underseal,
and it will keep it good for years,

 

[Ziggy122]

its 14years old so anyone shouid expect welding on acar this age, ithink,..
not only that ithink the tyre fitter monkeys dont help, they jack them up any where,this can cause..rust to get in and eat it away once theyve folded jacking points back etc, :bang:

get it up in the air, tar it up underneath with good old underseal,
and it will keep it good for years,

Even if i was tyre fitter - since they jack up and trust trolley jack - i'd be using subframes / rear axles
Why?
Car can go up a hella lot quicker vs a sill

Also on a rough ground - a trolley jack and sill = sill folds
On a subframe, either trolley jack moves - or the car does

You shouldnt do this - but i often have the car out of gear and handbrake off while jacking, means the car can roll if needed, but beaware of runaway and cars still falling off jacks

ziggy

 

[atom0007]

Buying a mig welder and learning how to weld after failing an mot is a bit of a stretch for many folk, mainly for time.

Plus you'll need a mask, get enough skill so you're not blowing holes through the thinnish metal, buy some thin mild steel, maybe seam sealer, have the tools to cut it and maybe shape it a bit.

Let's say you buy the welder new, doesn't have to be a huge one, mask, steel, underseal, .... You're not going to have much change out of £150.

How much do you value your time at? You would be at it for many hours.

For me, you made the right decision.

 

[fingers99]

There are all kinds of ways of skewing the results to match one's POV.

The skill (and not a lot of skill is involved in MIG welding!) is there forever. So is the equipment.

 

[atom0007]

There are all kinds of ways of skewing the results to match one's POV.

The skill (and not a lot of skill is involved in MIG welding!) is there forever. So is the equipment.

The costs are relatively speaking fairly sound facts.

It's hard to make a proper assessment without knowing the ops poisition.

He may be a complete novice with limited hand skills, he may be hugely experienced.

And having equipment lying round forever that you may (or may not) ever use again can be a blessing and a curse.

 

[Numptey]

I'm gonna get some one day and I don't have a clue how to use it, I'll weld anything I can find even if it shouldn't be welded

 

[dave]

just dont get one of them crap happy shopper gas less things, many people think they are crap at welding when in fact its the maching they bought that is crap, cheap migs is where you can blame the tool.

get some thing used on gumtree

 

[Numptey]

just dont get one of them crap happy shopper gas less things, many people think they are crap at welding when in fact its the maching they bought that is crap, cheap migs is where you can blame the tool.

get some thing used on gumtree

I'll check with you Dave before I buy one. I might create some art out of chopped up Pandas

 

[fingers99]

Yep, avoid the no gas ones. You can now get a cheap DC TIG set for less than a MIG! (But it'll be too slow for welding up auld Puntos.) Still, Woj has been practising with one:

(details on the Cento section).

For MIGs, if buying new, everything that Machine Mart sells will do, but you really don't need anything big for cars.