Welding method for a head pipe...
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Road Warrior
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1,570
Likes: 2
From: East Tennessee
Welding method for a head pipe...
I see a lot of posts on here about people who have modified their head pipe in some way or another and most think they have to have them tig welded back together.
The OEM head pipe is made out of hot rolled steel and requires no special method of welding.
Head pipes can be tig, mig, stick or gas welded. All methods require the same amount of heat and there is no one way better than the other.
Tig welding is nothing more than an electrical version of gas welding.
Tig does not spatter as much as the other electrical welding methods but you can spray or smear a little anti spatter on the pipe and eliminate spatter with any of the other methods too.
A good welder can lay a bead as smooth with a stick, mig or gas as they can with a tig...Just sayin
The OEM head pipe is made out of hot rolled steel and requires no special method of welding.
Head pipes can be tig, mig, stick or gas welded. All methods require the same amount of heat and there is no one way better than the other.
Tig welding is nothing more than an electrical version of gas welding.
Tig does not spatter as much as the other electrical welding methods but you can spray or smear a little anti spatter on the pipe and eliminate spatter with any of the other methods too.
A good welder can lay a bead as smooth with a stick, mig or gas as they can with a tig...Just sayin
Road Warrior
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 1,260
Likes: 44
From: Back woods of Maine
If you remove the pipe from the bike MIG TIG or stick will work. Although TIG would probably do the best looking job because the welder will have better heat control.
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Cruiser
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 108
Likes: 0
From: Clifton, KS
I have all three machines. I mig welded mine(OFF THE BIKE) back together, simply because it faster. You can't see any of it behind the heatshield anyways. .....and i'm way better with mig, but no way can people lay down a bead with mig, and look as good as tig! Not if i'm the judge anyways! A nice tig weld is a thing of beauty!!!
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Cruiser
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 147
Likes: 1
From: Alberta, Canada
I would use Tig as well, I would also fill the pipe with argon to protect the back of the weld from the atmosphere. But I was trained by the Air Force and mainly welded jet engine parts so that was the way I always had to do it.
