Archive for April, 2009

The Next 100 Days

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

A buddy of mine sent me a copy of a letter he has written to President Barak Obama, and with his permission, I’m posting it here. Dan Allford from ArcSpecialties in Houston, TX I first met Dan when he came to San Diego to do a technical presentation at the local AWS section meeting on behalf of Arc-Zone.com. At the time our Sales Manager was Mr. John Dimock, who knew Dan personally and invited him. Dan came in and put on an outstanding presentation about automated welding systems and related equipment. His company builds some highly engineered equipment and since that time he has been gracious with his time, helping several of our customers improve their operations.

presWhen I read Dan’s letter to the President I was impressed that it clearly tells the story of a real person trying to build something of value, and it includes facts — no emotion, no negative attacks — about the shift that has taken place in the American economy, a shift which clearly is not working.

Thanks Dan for taking the time to put your thoughts in writing — I hope you get a response, and more importantly I hope we as a nation can get back to building things of value — preferably out of metal!

You too can let President Obama know your thoughts. The White House website is easy to navigate– and you can use the easy Contact Us email form, or go old skool and write a letter.


LETTER FROM DAN:

President Barack Obama
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

I am writing today to express my belief that the bail out of financial
institutions with tax payer dollars is wrong. Private liability should
not be covered by government debt. I believe failure should be
punished. I encourage you to cease such payments and instead prosecute those in the financial sector and government who have committed fraud and embezzlement.

I have watched with dismay as the US GDP swapped from 25%
manufacturing 11% financial services in 1978 to 21% financial services
and 13% manufacturing in 2008. I believe that industries such as
manufacturing are essential to a healthy economy. What our government is doing is shifting money from industries which CREATE wealth such as manufacturing, mining and agriculture to sectors which simply TRANSFER wealth specifically financial services.

I own a small company which builds robots and other industrial
machinery. I just paid the corporate taxes for my company for this
quarter. An amount many times larger than my salary.
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See No Evil, Breathe No Evil

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

We’ve modified the common saying a bit in order to adequately describe the following press release.

Lincoln Electric is helping to guard your eyes and lungs better than ever with these new products:

station

Lincoln Electric Introduces New Modular Fume Extraction Hood and Statiflex® Filter Banks
Modular extraction hood and filter banks provide solution for weld fume control

Cleveland – Lincoln Electric has introduced a new modular extraction hood and filter bank system, designed for the removal of welding fume and grinding particulate during welding, cutting, arc gouging, grinding, plasma cutting and finishing operations in manufacturing plants, job shops and training environments. 

These units may be adapted to most applications, including robotic welding, hard automation welding, semi-automatic and manual welding.

breathe

The system’s modularity makes it easy for users to assemble, with the option to hang the hood in place from the ceiling or deploy as a free standing unit with the support of optional leg mounting kits. The sleek and lightweight design of the system makes it easy to mount and set up, and it’s available in a variety of sizes to fit your work station footprint.

The Modular Extraction Hood features semi-transparent welding strips (non-transparent curtain strips are also available), which keep the area contained to prevent cross drafts and control airflow direction to maximize extraction effectiveness. The hood’s unique double panel roof configuration acts as an in-line baffle, deflection plate and spark arrestor to prevent sparks from entering the duct work. Lincoln perimeter pull technology maximizes fume extraction efficiency at lower airflow rates for reduced energy consumption and equipment costs while enhancing overall safety performance. 

 CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

Modular v. Micro

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009

The other day when I was asking Joe Welder which TIG torches I should recommend when writing about the Nascar welders, and he could not stop talking about these two specific ones: the Modular and Micro TIG torches.  I was confused.  “So what’s so special about them?” I asked, naïve as I was.  In response I received what was, quite possibly, the longest answer in the history of welding and now feel like I know just about as much as anyone could ever know about these two torches.

The Micro TIG torch
? It’s just like what its name implies; it’s tiny.  And that makes it perfect for any job where you need to get into a tight space.  It’s even capable of welding inside of a 5/8” diameter pipe.  It also has three interchangeable heads to choose from (45º, 90º and 180º angles) which make it almost impossible to find a job that this torch cannot do.

The Modular TIG torch?  Joe Welder’s FAVORITE.

He calls it “the most versatile torch on the market”.  Why?  Because you can choose from so many different torch heads at different angles and different amperages that it’s just about mind-boggling.  And you can also choose between air-cooled (WP-150) and water-cooled (WP-225) set-ups.

Good News for People Who Hate Bad News

Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

In case any of you are wondering, the above title hearkens back to the Modest Mouse 2004 album “Good News For People Who Love Bad News”, but I can’t think of anyone who wants to hear any more bad news right now.  I’m sure that all of you know someone who’s been laid off in the past couple of months; I certainly do, and it’s… disheartening.  So once in a while, it’s good to see that someone’s doing well right now.

So, if you hate bad news, these articles are for you.

North Omaha company steeled against bad times

BY ERIN GRACE
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

The beep-beep-beep of forklifts in reverse, the clank-clank of steel parts coming off a press and the hum and whir of all matter of machinery are the sounds of job security at a north Omaha plant.

Distefano Tool & Manufacturing Co. just wrapped up its best month ever, in February, giving its 94 employees the comfort of knowing there’s still plenty of work to do.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->
MORE GOOD NEWS–>
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Northwest Technical Institute Sponsors Scholarship Competition in AR

Monday, April 27th, 2009

In Arkansas, students arrived by the busload to compete for scholarships ranging from $1,500 to $3,500 for agricultural mechanics and electrical work this week at Springdale High.  The welding students showed their stuff using torches fueled by oxygen and acetylene as they raced against the clock (and each other) to weld the three plates of cold-rolled steel together.

SPRINGDALE : Students wire, weld in scholarship contest

Posted on Saturday, March 7, 2009

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/WILLIAM MOORE Randon Ritchie, a senior at Springdale High School, lights his welding torch during the Agricultural Mechanics and Electrical competition Friday at Northwest Technical Institute in Springdale.

Down the hall at the welding contest, nine students are handed three small plates of cold-rolled steel and torches fueled by oxygen and acetylene.

“The first two plates will have a flat weld,” the Northwest Technical welding instructor, John Martin, tells the young men, meaning they must place them horizontally on the surface of the work table. They are to attach the third plate to the other two while leaning the plates vertically against some masonry blocks.

Randon Ritchie, 19, of Springdale High School is among the students to fire up a torch and complete the assignment.

“I’d like to weld for a living – but not this kind,” Ritchie said afterward.

Martin said this kind of basic torch welding helps build skills for other more commonly used styles of welding such as tungsten inert gas welding (more commonly known as TIG), the metal inert gas welding that Ritchie favors, or stick welding.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

Joe Welder, Meet Joe Bike

Saturday, April 25th, 2009

If you live in the Portland area and are a bike fanatic, do I have the job for you.

Posted by BikePortland.org

Job: Framebuilder (Joe Bike)

Company/Organization
Joe Bike

Job Description

Framebuilder(s) needed immediately on a contract basis to modify steel frames and to build rack systems and other attachments that mount to the frames. Both TIG welding and brazing are needed. This would be for several bikes (4-8, e.g.) at a time. You would be working off of existing CAD drawings and a working prototype. Blasting and powdercoating also needed. Photos can be seen at www.joe-bike.com.

How to Apply

Email info@joe-bike.com or call 503 309-6631 to set up an appointment.

A Bicycle Built for YOU

Friday, April 24th, 2009

When I turned 18, my mother bought me a bike… it was probably the most expensive birthday present I’d ever received, and it cost over $300.

Reading this article, I learned that that was hardly anything.  If my mother had chosen to buy me a custom-made bicycle (which she wouldn’t have, because that just wasn’t in the budge), it would have cost upwards of $2000 when fully constructed.  The frame alone normally costs at least $1000.  But, evidently, it has to be worth it, because there are many, many custom bicycle shops out there, and they still appear to be doing well, even in the midst of this economic climate.

Handmade Bicycles: The Custom Experience- Meet The Aluminum Frame Builders

March 10th, 2009 by Guitar Ted

Editor’s Note: In this series, Grannygear introduces us to some custom frame builders and takes a closer look at the process of making and delivering a custom, handmade bicycle to a customer. In these e-mailed interviews, you will learn a lot about some of the best frame builders in three different materials.

We continue our series on the Custom Framebuilder Experience with a talk with two of the premier builders in aluminum. Aluminum….it is not just for beer cans anymore.

The Aluminum Guys:

The Master – Paul Sadoff of Rock Lobster Cycles.

“Let’s see if we can get America building stuff more than importing stuff from far away places.”

Twentynineinches.com – So, who are you? Please introduce yourself.

Paul – Who am I? My company is Rock Lobster and I am Paul H. Sadoff. I built my first frame in 1978 and went fulltime in 1988 as a framebuilder in Santa Cruz, California. At the time I started I was racing on the road and was working in a bike shop as a sales/service person. I wasn’t much of a racer but I did win one race in 1980.

TNI: Who is your typical customer?

Paul: Most folks who come to my shop for a frame are avid riders and/or racers. I don’t get collectors or the folks looking to have some sort of ‘object du art ‘….trophy bikes as I like to refer to them. Arty bikes are really great and I initially thought that was what I wanted to build but the riding was much more important. The idea that I could build a bike that would put smiles on people’s faces when they rode won out. Fulfilling a need in your cycling community is the framebuilder’s first job and that is what keeps me employed.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

A Green Day for Metal Fabrication

Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009

Bring it On! California sets the standard again for innovation and job creation. I look forward to working with the contractors, engineers and fabricators that will build and maintain the new plants needed to produce alternative fuels of the future.

From facilities complete with tubing, piping, valves and more to the equipment needed to transport the finished product you are looking at a big opportunity for the metal fabrication market.

From Today’s LA Times:

As the state moves to reduce the carbon footprint of fuel, an engineer hopes to build a plant in Lancaster that will convert garbage into an alcohol-based mixture.
By Margot Roosevelt. April 22, 2009

Arnold Klann has a green dream.

It began 16 years ago in a sprawling laboratory in Anaheim. This year, he hopes, it will culminate at a Lancaster garbage dump.

There, in the high desert of the Antelope Valley, Klann’s company, BlueFire Ethanol Fuels, plans to build a $100-million plant to convert raw trash into an alcohol-based fuel that will help power the cars and trucks of the future.

It’s just the sort of improbable concoction that California is now demanding. On Thursday, the state is expected to adopt the world’s first regulation to reduce the carbon footprint of fuel. And, just as California created the first market for catalytic converters decades ago, this rule, a likely model for national and even global calculations, could jump-start a huge demand for new technologies.
CONTINUE READING LA TIMES ARTICLE–>

We’re ready… are you?

Joe Welder and the World of Outlaws

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

races_1Recently I headed up the road to the Tulare Fairgrounds for the World-of-Outlaws Sprint Car Race!

Tulare is located in the Central Valley of California, “the nation’s bread basket”. They call it that because of all the agribusiness. And I have some history in Tulare, my family farmed in the valley for generations — they had several big ranches and dairy barns, that’s where I learned to love the dirt.

I know it sounds strange, but growing up I always looked forward to going to dirt race tracks with my family. I began amateur motorcycle racing and that passion for competition ultimately lead me to build my own cars and form a Sprint Car Team. I still love the dirt and I ride my mountain bike at least 3-days a week in the local mountains.

I took Matt with me — he’s Arc-Zone’s Director of Video and Graphics. We brought all the gear to video the action. I wanted to share some of the things I love about motor racing and show how it relates to the welding/metal fabrication market.

At the track we met up with “Hollywood” Mike Sweeney my friend and former driver in the CRA Sprint Car Series (I talked about him on a previous post). We also met long time friend World of Outlaw driver Jac Haudenschild a superstar in the dirt racing world. Picture below: That’s me with Jac– Driver of the City Wide Insulation # R19 Owens-Corning Outlaw Sprint Car in front of his transporter (nice toolbox!)

races_2-1We talked about the new cars and old friends. Jac told me he is putting a winged Sprint Car team together for his son Sheldon and he has been fabricating some of the parts needed to get him on the road.

Jac mentioned our mutual friend and former driver– now TV personality (and part time welder) Brad Doty (also a Hall of Famer) was having trouble finding the right remote amp control for his Lincoln TIG machine. Jac suggested I contact Brad and get him dialed in… That will be another post!

And if you like fast cars look for the video of our trip– we’ll have that ready soon…

Chip Foose-Designed Auto-Darkening Welding Helmet

Tuesday, April 14th, 2009

Lincoln Electric Introduces the Chip Foose-Designed
Vista(R) Hemisfear(TM) Auto-Darkening Welding Helmet
Legendary Car Designer Models Helmet After His 500-HP Hemisfear(TM) Hot Rod

hemisfear1

Cleveland – Lincoln Electric has teamed up with Chip Foose – award-winning custom car designer and die-hard Lincoln Electric enthusiast – to introduce Vista(R) Hemisfear(TM), an auto-darkening welding helmet inspired by Foose’s 500-HP Hemisfear hot rod.

The latest edition to Lincoln’s Vista(R) series of welding helmets, the Hemisfear welding helmet captures the essence of Foose’s limited production hot rod, a classic car that gave Foose one of his initial claims to fame in 2006. The helmet features the hot rod’s three distinct colors: neon green, black and orange with a custom silver stripe on the side. Other embellishments to the helmet include Chip Foose’s signature and the Foose Design(TM) logo.
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