by Jennifer Simpson

I first ran into Christina Sporrong online while searching for “women welders.”  Her business website for Spitfire Forge in Taos, New Mexico came up.  I bookmarked the page, and even exchanged a few emails with Christina.  One of the things that intrigued me about her was that she teaches welding workshops for women, so a few months later when I found myself in New Mexico I had the opportunity to meet her face to face.

Christina moved to Taos in a VW Van with four hundred dollars in her pocket and a toolbox.  Even though she had some skill as a welder, she started waitressing to earn money.  A lot of the girls she worked with thought it would be cool to learn to weld, so Christina started teaching them.  Back then she only charged $50 per person and used that money to buy more tools.

She’s now been in New Mexico for over twelve years and lives on Taos’ west mesa on 15 acres of land.  She built her house herself, putting to use her skills in construction and fabrication and her artistic aesthetic.  When she sent me directions and a description of the property via email I was sure I would get lost and I knew, in my low riding Volkswagen beetle, it would be slow when she told me to turn onto a gravel road and go for seven miles.  I was supposed to look for the tall ranch gate with an anvil and a dark house with gear teeth and lots of sculptural stuff in the yard.

“It should be obvious,” she wrote.

We were both right.  The seven miles took me about 20 minutes, skirting the western edge of the Rio Grande.  Christina’s description, however, didn’t do the property or the landscape justice.  The house itself is a rustic brown concrete looking structure, its shape reminiscent of a Quonset hut with the roof shaped like the wheel of a gear. Although it is industrial, it somehow feels organic, mimicking the shape of the Sangre de Cristo mountains rising above Taos to the east across the gorge. (more…)

One of the great things about online networking is that you have instant access all kinds of people.  Smart people.  So when my mySpace friend emailed and asked if I had any tips on welding zinc, I put the word out among my network:  mySpace and Facebook, and even emailed a few stellar welders I know.

And before the day’s end, I had an answer from my buddy over at Hell N Back Welding.  He writes:

Best link I’ve found for proper procedure on zinc is here:
http://www.allzinc.com/techdata/Tech_Brief_Joining_Zinc.pdf

Soldering iron is the best option. I found some technical manuals on welding with TIG that say it’s appropriate for everything BUT zinc and lead.

Also there’s a discussion of the same question ie countertops here:
http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/showthread.php?p=951749

Apparently, ZINC is all the rage in countertops…  I know this from This Old House magazine, it’s very French Bistro.

So, check out those links for welding up your own zinc countertop, or commission one from Debra over at The Metal Shoppe.  Or the folks at Handcrafted Metal…

Did you know that information about Arc-Zone.com can be found in more than one place online?  If you’re here, you know about CarmenElectrode.com. You may also know about JoeWelder.com…  but you’ll find Arc-Zone in lots of other online venues as well. Here’s a comprehensive list:

JoeWelder.com

The site is primarily written by industry expert Jim Watson, founder of Arc-Zone.com, Inc., a pioneering ecommerce company, and features informational How-Tos, reflections on industry news and events and showcases new and innovative products.The JoeWelder site also includes articles categorized as “Memory Lane” and “Motorsports” capitalizing on Jim Watson’s extensive history and knowledge of motorsports.

WeldLikeAPro.com

Archive of Arc-Zone.com Weld Liek A Pro(TM) e-zine.  News from Arc-Zone and Tips for TIG, MIG and Plasma Arc Welding and Cutting.

Arc-Zone.net

Behind-the-scenes News about Arc-Zone.com, including product additions and programming changes to the website.

TungstenElectrodesOnline.com

Powered by Arc-Zone.com, the Tungsten Electrodes Online site provides technical information and resources about tungsten electrodes used in TIG / GTAW welding applications as well as tungsten electrodes for Plasma Arc Welding (PAW) applications.

For custom pre-ground tungsten electrodes for automated TIG and PAW welding applications the site offers a form to request a quote.

RoxyFuel.com

The latest to join the Arc-Zone.com network.  Details coming soon.

If you’ve ever wondered about this website, and how we got started, you may want to check out this article:

Women in welding: One Web site caters to women in the industry
By Liz Sommerville

The welding industry is all too often thought of as a boy’s club. Although it may seem that female welders are uncommon, there are many women involved in all different aspects of the industry. The Web site CarmenElectrode.com reaches out to these women, giving them a voice in a male-dominated business. …CONTINUE READING ONLINE–>

The article was published online at the recently re-launched FFJournal.net, the online version of FF Journal Magazine, whose mission is:

to report on breakthrough technology and innovative
manufacturing systems from both a technical and creative point
of view. Each issue features in-depth articles that focus on product
development and innovation—two of the driving forces pushing the
limits of metal fabricating and forming worldwide.

You may recall a couple weeks ago I mentioned we had Gone Hollywood….

Well, the initial results are in, and you can get your look at the folks behind Arc-Zone.com and CarmenElectrode.com and JoeWelder.com:

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Whether you’re welding in a business environment or in your own personal weld shop back behind the garage…. safety is important. ESAB is offering a free welding safety poster– a nice way to dress up your shop and post safety reminders.

ESAB produces consumables and equipment for virtually every welding and cutting process and application. More than 100 years of continuous research, development and manufacture have made ESAB the world leader in welding and cutting and also an international supplier of products, know-how and services that none can match. ESAB’s subsidiaries and distributors worldwide are ready to handle your requirements – large and small alike.

Welding safety is serious business. ESAB wants to support efforts to educate everyone in the welding workplace about simple safety procedures that can protect health and save lives. We are offering a safety poster to help spread the word or remind workers about the importance of safety procedures. If you would like a poster, just tell us where to send it.

More information on health and safety issues, including important safety data sheets, is available in the Safety Section of our website.

The hottest thing on the internet… in case you haven’t been paying attention… is video. It’s a great way to share information with customers, and Miller Electric has joined the party!

They just announced the addition of pipe welding videos on their website:

Miller Electric Mfg. Co.’s Pipe Welding Technique videos are now available for free downloading on the Miller Website at MillerWelds.com/education/articles/article125.html. These videos explain techniques and technology that increase pipe-welding productivity. On-line video topics include new advances in pipe welding techniques, preparation of the pipe joint, RMD™ on carbon steel pipe, RMD on stainless steel pipe and cap and fill passes with Pro-Pulse™. A free CD containing these videos can also be ordered by visiting MillerWelds.com/products/multiprocess/pipepro_welding_system/
CONTINUE READING PRESS RELEASE –>

AND just a note. The videos are available for streaming, not download! There’s some good basic information. Pipe welders may be interested in some of the purge gas equipment that Arc-Zone.com carries: purge bladders, weld tape, water soluble purge film and tape.

Arc-Zone.com® Inc., the first internet-only company to sell welding and cutting accessories online, has added electrode holders for Stick/SMAW welding to their ecommerce website.

In addition to the standard shortstub and tong style electrode holders, Arc-Zone sells Stick Electrode holders complete with DINSE connectors and leads – choose from 12.5’ to 50’ lengths.

Arc-Zone.com president Jim Watson says, “We’re really taking advantage of our new ecommerce site which lets us add products, responding quickly to our customers’ demands.”

Founded in June 1998, Arc-Zone delivers proprietary, brand name and OEM replacement parts and accessories for GMAW, GTAW and Plasma Arc Welding and Cutting applications to customers worldwide.

For more information, visit the Arc-Zone.com web site at www.arc-zone.com, call (800) 944-2243 or email sales@arc-zone.com.

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Although this is not related to welding in the least (unless some of these girlz are riding a custom chopper!) a friend of mine is a member of the San Diego Sol Sisters motorcycle club and they’re doing this ride for charity:

On June 21st, 10 women from San Diego will be firing up their motorcycles to make a 15-day trip through 12 states. Our main destination is Graceland and we plan to arrive on 6/25/08 for a 2-day stay. We will have a documentary filmmaker along for the ride, as this trip is about so much more than just getting to Graceland. It’s about our journey as women, a celebration of why we ride, and an homage to the rebels of yesteryear who saw the open road as an escape, a challenge, and a friend. The documentary will be submitted to the Sundance Film Festival in October 2008 for their 2009 season.

When we reach Memphis, we’ll be stopping at Presley Place, a homeless shelter which is supported by Lisa Marie Presley and the Elvis Presley Foundation. While the dozens of parents at the shelter attend a Life Skills class, we’ll be babysitting their children – taking photos on the motorcycles, providing them with biker toys and leading a cooking class on “How to Make a Biker Meal.”

READ MORE ONLINE–>

And if you see them on the road, wish them a safe journey!

Just in time to celebrate the fact that Arc-Zone.com has added a few Stick / SMAW Welding Electrode Holders to the webstore…..

Hobart Brothers Offers the Cure to Common Stick Welding Troubles (for free!)

TROY, Ohio. May 6, 2008—Hobart Brothers has created the fourth in an ongoing series of free educational welding posters, addressing the 10 most common welding problems and their likely causes and solutions. Using diagrams and concisely written explanations, the poster is a handy reference tool for both professional and educational welding environments.

The problems discussed apply to SMAW welding.

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