Kind of custom tool box

[SR2dude]

Hey guys, I have an old tool box from a work truck I used to have and the tool box is laying around the side yard taking up space. A thought came to me, I want to put it in the Scout to hold all my un necessary over kill recovery equipment and water. Basically anything I feel like over packing.!the only problem is that it is to long. I want to cut it to fit but I have heard some things about welding aluminum and how its different from metal. Anybody know the difference or anything different I need to do? Or is it the same as welding metal? Any pre cautions I need to take? Thanks a ton guys! Any feedback would be great!

D

 

[Michael Dimock]

Aluminum welding is different from steel welding as aluminum and steel are both metals. If you have a mig welder, then you will have to change out the whip liner. For aluminum welding, you will need a nylon liner, but only use the aluminum wire in it. If you run steel wire through it, you can damage the liner and leave steel powder residue. You would then have impurities the next time you welded with aluminum wire. I don't know how much welding you'll need to do, but a 1 lb spool of .035 aluminum wire should be sufficient. Since molten aluminum metal looks the same a solid aluminum, it is kinda hard initially to tell what is happening. Once you've done it enough, you'll know by the feel of it how fast to go. I would advise you to buy/find some pieces of scrap aluminum and practice on those for a while. Once you feel confident enough, then you can go ahead and weld the box. Good luck!

 

[SR2dude]

Hey thanks for the reply, sounds good. I was planning on practicing before hand because I have only welded a couple of times so I am not all that great.