laura211•1mo agoProlific Poster

Heard a foreman say he never uses a slag hammer on fins, just taps them off with his stinger

I was on a job last week over at the ethanol plant and this old foreman, must be pushing 60, was showing a younger guy how he cleans his welds. He literally just takes the stinger and taps the fin off while it's still hot before it cools. Said it saves him 20 minutes a day on cleanup. I've always used a chipping hammer and felt like that's the only right way. Tried his method on a few stringers and it worked fine, but I'm worried about messing up the weld bead. Has anyone else tried this or is it just a shortcut that'll bite you later?

3 comments

3 Comments

jade_hernandez1mo ago

Taps them off with his stinger" lmao that's a new one. I've seen guys use their boot to kick slag off but the stinger trick is wild. Honestly I'd be scared of messing up my tungsten or burning my glove off but I guess if it works it works. Probably great until you hit that one stubborn fin and end up gouging the bead with the electrode.

jake_hall881mo ago

Yeah I've seen that done plenty, especially on structural stuff where speed matters. @danielwhite is right though, if the old guy's been doing it 30 years with no issues it's probably fine as long as you're gentle and the slag pops off clean, but I'd still keep a chipping hammer handy for the stubborn ones.

danielwhite1mo ago

My 60 year old foreman has been doing it that way for 30 years with zero failures.