Burning Plates to Strap and Post
First clean all the surfaces which are to be welded together. Take your time in doing this because you cannot weld dirty surfaces together.
Plates which compose a group are welded to a “strap” to which a post is attached, as shown in Figure 5. The straps shown in Figure 5 are new ones, as made in the factory. Plate lugs are set in the notches in the straps and each one burned in separately. In using old straps from a defective group, it is best to cut the strap close to the post, thus separating all the plates from the post in one operation, as was done with the post shown in Figure 96. If only one or two plates are to be burned on, they are broken or cut off and slots cut in the strap to receive the lugs of the new plates, as shown in Figures 148 and 149.
Set the plates in a plate burning rack, as shown in Figure 96, placing the adjustable form around the lugs and strap as shown in this figure. Be sure to set the post straight, so that the covers will fit. A good thing is to try a cover over the post to see that the post is set up properly. The post must, of course, be perpendicular to the tops of the plates. If the slotted plate strap shown in Figure 5 is used, or if one or two plates have been cut off, melt the top of the lug of one of the plates which are to be burned oil, and the surfaces of the strap to which the plate is to be welded. Melt in lead from a burning-lead strip to bring the metal up flush with the surface of the strap. Proceed with each plate which is to be burned on.
If all the plates have been sawed from the strap, leaving the post with a short section of the strap attached, as shown in Figure 96, melt the edge of the strap, and the top of one or two of the end plate lugs and run in lead from the burning strip to make a good joint. Proceed in this way until all the lugs are joined to the strap and then run the flame over the top of the entire strap to make a smooth uniform weld. Be sure to have the lower edge of the strap fuse with the plate lugs and then run in lead to build the strap up to the proper thickness. Raise the flame occasionally to see that all parts are fusing thoroughly and to prevent too rapid heating.
When enough lead has been run in to build the strap tip to the correct thickness and the plate lugs are thoroughly fused with the strap, raise the flame straight up from the work. Allow the lead to “set” and then remove the adjustable form and lift the group from the burning rack. Turn the group up-side-down and examine the bottom of the strap for lead which ran down the lugs during the welding process. Cut off any such lead with a saw, as it may cause a short-circuit when the plates are meshed with the other group.