Plenty of Welding

I am currently welding the roof to the sides and adding a D section to the top of the cabin side.

The weld length is 12.4m each side and the average gap to be filled is 5mm wide 4mm deep and 3 sections of metal need bringing together and finished flush with the curve of the roof.

From left to right there is the D section,
at the bottom of the gap is the top of the side panel,
then the roof.  Tacked in place.

To get good penetration and fill this gap is very slow going but in 3 days (not solid) I have completed the port side.

First, loads of weld blatted in

 Next, grinding back and finishing

Griding back is a 3 stage process.  First it gets a heavy grind with a 9" grinder, heavy but careful as its easy to over grind and end up with an undercut which would need filling with weld again.  Next stage is polishing with a flap wheel, followed by the third stage which is linishing with a belt sander.

I said at the beginning it was slow going.  Each 1.5m roof section is taking about an hour and a half.

I will not be welding the underside.  This will be finished with a special polyurethane sealant.  So to ensure the D section has another attachment I have plasma cut some spaces in the side so it can be welded from inside.  I will show this when it happens which will be when I weld the inside roof / side joint.  Below are the spaces cut.

Slots every 500mm

 The starboard side is next.