I second the qualified welder for the pitman arm.
Was just at a truck show and heard a story about someone welding two pitman arms together on a big truck. They ground them a little for the weld, but not all the way to a point. Then after welding ground the weld off smooth. The story ended with a wrecked truck and a dead person.
Remember the strongest welds are complete welds, with absolutely no unwelded portion at the weld joint. Make the first pass on one side, then grind from the other side until you get into the new weld all the way across, then continue welding.
Grigg
