Can we talk about how a 3/8 inch plug weld took me 6 hours on a mud drum in Gary, Indiana?

Rowan Knight · 2026-10-09T18:30:07.261981+00:00

I used to think plug welds on tube sheets and drum stubs were simple work you just knock out, until I hit one on a mud drum at a plant in Gary, Indiana, that ate up 6 hours of my shift. First pass looked fine, but a dye pen check showed a tiny hairline crack hiding under the cap. I ground it out, ran another pass, and the same thing showed up. Turned out my heat input was too low on the root and the drum metal was soaking heat away faster than I planned. I bumped the amps, preheated the area a little longer, and held a tighter travel angle, and the third pass came out clean. A 3/8 inch weld that should have taken 20 minutes turned into a whole afternoon, and it taught me more about heat sink on thick drum steel than any shop class did. Has anyone else had a plug weld on heavy plate fight them like that, and what did you change to get it to lay in right the first time?

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Can we talk about how a 3/8 inch plug weld took me 6 hours on a mud drum in Gary, Indiana? | Boilermakers - HW Forums