welding in a vise

[waltmcq]

What would happen if I welded a stud on the base of my vise, then I could just clamp the piece in the vise and put the ground on the vise? Why won't this work?

 

[Bonehead]

Why not ground clamp the work, and save the arc passing through the vise?

It will however work fine. Just like grounding vicegrips.

 

[waltmcq]

18 to 20 oz. copper sometimes bends under the weight of ground clamp. working an artsy stuff

 

[Bonehead]

Ah, I do the artsy myself, I know how it is. Do you have smooth jaws in the vice? A steel table works good with swivel pad vice grips. So are you welding TIG then? How is that working for you?

 

[waltmcq]

Ya TIG, a test in patients. I have good days and bad days but I know if I won't so lazy and did it more often it would be easier.
I do have plans in my head for a small steel work table (maybe tomorrow (ha))
Hope this picture shows well enough

 

[Bonehead]

I work in a lot of copper, it is never easy.

The first is steel and copper, and the crummy picture is a copper vanity base made to look like a tree stump

 

[shizzy]

the last shop I worked in had all the vises set up like that. I never crawled under to see how it was connected. I assumed they hooked the ground to one of the mounting bolts underneath the bench. it sure was nice to be able to clamp something in any vice in the shop and grab the torch and zip away on it.

 

[motomech]

my bench vise is bolted to my welding table i then put my work in the vise and clamp my ground to the work bench seems to work fine to me

 

[Bonehead]

That's the way I had my welding truck set up years ago. The bed was grounded all the time, and vice was mounted on the bed.

 

[waltmcq]

that tree trunk is unbelieveable.

Just when I think I've come up with the idea that will change the world I find out it's been done for years.

 

[Dirty's Hot Rods]

I use a vise welding almost everyday, no problems