[A-BodyFan]

I went to a garage sale this morning and picked up this welding rig for 50 bucks. Problem is I don't know what the heck I'm doing. I've never welded before. I only welded a line about 18" long, and the tanks ran out of gas! Went and refilled them, and tried again. This time I only got a bead around 2 feet long and ran out of gas again! Before I go run out again for more gas, could someone tell me what's going on?

[oldred]

What are you using to weld with? Do you have a welding tip, that is a cutting torch pictured. Those tanks are really small and may be ok for plumbing and such but you need bigger tanks, also better get the Acetylene while you can-read the Acetylene thread!

[timothale]

The tanks don't look very big, when you refill them.. check the CU ft Capacity. ..also do you have any leaks ?, keep them shut off when not being used, check all the possible places with a spray bottle with soapy water, some dollar store shampoo will make a lot of bubbles mixed in with the soap.

[A-BodyFan]

I got my neighbor down the street, ol' Shorty, to come down and check it out. He also pointed out I was not using the right tip, and so he brought over the correct tools, but I still run out of gas! Shorty's a real character, has been a metal worker for years. He's the one that tipped me off on this deal.... Dude's about eighty but he still is out in the yard bangin' metal most days.

And-- talk about scrappy! Ol Shorty thinks the problem might be in the gauge fitting, that there is a small leak that gets worse when you turn the handle. He even tried swapping out one of his own tanks to test it. (You're right, those tanks are pretty small.) You know his advice to me??? "Kick it!!" Yeah, sounds nuts, but he says that a good swift kick on the gauge will probably fix it. Before I even get a chance to question him, the old guy jumps up and gives a karate kick to the gauge!!! What the ---?!?! Dude cracks me up...LOL. My wife managed to snap a shot of it with her with her cellphone but unfortunately she had to leave. I will post a pic after she gets home.

[A-BodyFan]

Wow. Would you believe ol' Shorty's flying karate kick actually worked??! Now its working just like Shorty said it would... And to top it off-- my wife is now home and she didn't just get a snapshot-- she got VIDEO!

Check out ol' Shorty's crazy kick here-- the guy's amazing!
Shorty Fixes with one Kick

[A-BodyFan]

It turns out that the problem was my tanks were only about 8" tall! Thanks, all for checking out this silly April Fools Day gag.

[deadbodyman]

HAHAHA ,I thought that welding outfit looked like a toy....