Old foreman's torch tip about preheating finally hit home

My foreman back at the BP refinery in Whiting kept saying to preheat the plate an extra 15 minutes before welding. I thought he was just stalling for coffee breaks. Then last month on a 2-inch thick repair job, I skipped it and got a slag inclusion that took 4 hours to grind out. Has anyone else found that extra preheat time really matters on heavy sections?

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wadeyoung26d ago

Three cracked track links on a loader bucket last spring did it for me. I was in a hurry, figured the torch time was for old-timers who liked to burn coffee, and got a bead that looked fine until it cooled. Two days later, that same spot split right along the fusion line, and I had to gouge the whole thing out with an air arc. The foreman at that shop, guy named Sal, just shook his head and said the metal needs time to soak, not just surface heat. He was right, and now I set a timer on my phone, even if it feels like wasting daylight. It costs me 15 minutes with a rosebud but saves me the whole afternoon with a grinder, so yeah, I believe it now.

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