MIG Welding on a Tractor L2800

[FrankA]

Is it OK to MIG weld on the tractor frame? In particular I want to weld a hook to the rear of the FEL to hold my 8 ton come along. I'm worried about electrical arcing in the wiring.

 

[Daren Todd]

Just disconnect the ground on the battery

 

[vickark]

Is it OK to MIG weld on the tractor frame? In particular I want to weld a hook to the rear of the FEL to hold my 8 ton come along. I'm worried about electrical arcing in the wiring.

There's no problem at all. Have the ground clamp close to the area to be welded as possible. I never have weld current going through any bearings or bushings also. Clean the weld area as good as possible.

 

[Tooljunkie]

Have welded on everything with wheels, never disconnected battery. Unless i have to weld near battery then i remove it. Disconnecting neg cable does nothing. There is some sort of surge protector you can connect, will arrest spikes to electrical system. Most tool dustributors carry it.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

Removing the ground connection from the battery will keep arcing and current from flowing threw diodes and other electrical components.
#1 victim would be the voltage regulator or the alternator.
MIG welding is one of the least likely to cause any damaging surges and arcs, Old AC arc welding is the worst as the amperage and AC current can damage just about any electrical component.

 

[Tooljunkie]

If a person wants to play it safe, if machine uses an electronic processor or an ecm, best to disconnect it.

 

[ibunker]

Welded two hooks on by FEL with MIG, worked great, did not unhook anything, ground close to work.

 

[Daren Todd]

Most of the time with a good clean ground close to where your welding, you'll be fine. But I strongly recommend that if it's got an ecm, to disconnect the ground. I've had a couple pieces of equipment come through the shop with fryed ecms due to welding. One was caused by a bad ground. You could see where the ground cable was wiggled back and fourth till it scratched through the paint. In both cases the bill was over 2000$

 

[FrankA]

Thanks for all the responses. I cleaned off a spot close to the weld and disconnected the battery. No issues after I was done.

Thought I would post a pic of the project. I like to carry a log chain and a come-along when back in the woods. I added a piece of 1" flat stock to the bucket, a copy of the bucket level indicator.