I've done all this I'm going to say so....... My suggestions:
Your gap is too big, that may casue extra heat/welding to close up the gap.
I don't recommend those clamps. I bought those too, way back. They make too big of a gap. I did grind down the blades thinner. But it does no good unless you size the patch correctly. I now use vice grip clamps, vise grips, magnets, tape, my hands. The width of the gap has been discussed. From no gap to small gap to other. My results say fairly tight gap. I have also started, when possible, to tack the outside, then weld the inside, then back to finished the outside, then grind outside. This helps me prevent blow thru and is stronger. When you grind, you alway have places/holes yuo need to repair and regrind, So the back side welding helps again to prevent blow thru.
If a person wants a tight gap, like I do, you can not use those clamps you show.
Of course all this welding I speek of is done one dot at a time and I have a paranoid attitude and cool each dot. No matter how long it takes, warp is forever.
Last edited by bartamos; 02/14/2023 10:25 PM.
