Agreed.

 

Perfect, thanks cggorman! Experience trumps opinion every time.

 

Common sense rules. I knew I had a fuel system in good condition (no leaks, wetness, or open caps/covers/hoses/etc.) and made sure I wasn't throwing sparks or slag on anything flammable. Wet blankets were thrown over most of the bike.

I was welding on the backbone, seat perch, swingarm, and upper shock mounts.

 

Yup, more than a few times


Ghost

 

Not sure why some want to disconnect the battery.. Even with the ignition off, there is power to the ECU, If that wire is open, any high voltage across it could kill the ECU. Tig High frequency start is high voltage. The battery acts like a big capacitor to keep the voltage from getting too high.. It can handle a 200 amps no sweat.. It does so when cranking.. Not sure about the new AGM batteries but the old flooded ones will blow up if you get sparks around the vents. Hate to admit it but I've blown up 2.. While grinding tho.

The area of protection can vary depending on the welding type. Tig typically don't throw much metal sparks but mig or straight arc will throw a bunch.. Gas works fine a long as you get the tip right.

Used to straight arc weld XL350 kickstands back onto the frame with 3/32 6013.. Drain the carb and lay the bike over.. Probably did 5 to 10 of them.. Set one on fire when the guys prepping the bike didn't drain the carb..