Pipe Welding Clamps & Pipe Welding Tools Achieve Perfect Welding Alignments
Welders know that welding metal pipes without the use of pipe welding clamps could be challenging mainly because it’s very difficult to align two perfectly circled metals without leaving any gap. These clamps are part of the pipe welding tools that welders use in the alignment not only of pipes but also elbows, flanges and any metal connector that you can weld on a pipe.
There are different types of pipe clamps for welding and they come with various designs and diameter holding capacities. Some of them can hold up pipes from up to 14-inch (25 mm – 355 mm) diameter and some are made of stainless forged steel while the cheapest ones are made of basic iron steel. Sometimes called pipe alignment clamps, these pipe clamp varieties can help welders be more productive in welding metal pipes of different sizes.
The best thing that you can do with the pipe fitting clamps is by using it for centering and aligning steel pipes prior to welding. These are most efficient in fusing stainless steel, alloyed steel pipes and duplex pipes. But not only that. Some welders use these clamps whenever they want to join together solid rounded metals that tend to roll over during welding such as metal rods. Being only simple contraptions, pipe welding clamps have become very versatile with their usage.
Pipe Fitting Clamps Main
The most obvious reason why welders and plumbers need to use pipe welding clamps is to prevent committing errors in the fusing alignment of two pieces of metals during welding.
In the metal fabrication workplaces, employers also urge their welders to use these clamps not only to achieve perfect metal alignment but these can also prevent injuries to workers especially when fitting large and heavy metal pipes. Back injury is most common to welders that attempt to fuse heavy metal pipes without assistance. Aside from that, it takes a lot of labor time trying to weld metal pipes without the use of pipe clamps.
The other uses of pipe clamps for welding is to aid welders in reforming or repairing the misalign sides of the pipes that were previously welded. So you can also use these clamps in aligning and reforming elbows, flanges, tees and other fittings that were incorrectly welded. For orbital welding, pipe welders also use pipe fitting clamps in holding tubes to have that perfect alignment while the machine automatically weld the pipes in circular motion.
It is very easy to learn how to use pipe alignment clamps and once you get to use it you can also do full circle welding without removing the tool. You can also use the pipe clamps on a variety of metal pipe products such as stainless steel and steel alloys that are commonly used for piping.
How Pipe Welding Clamps Can Boost
Most welding shops that have pipe welding tools also keep their pipe welding clamps and there’s no question these can improve workers’ productivity. While the old method of metal pipe clamping involved the use of gripping tools like the C clamps or bench vise or table clamps, these tools are not designed to help workers achieve the full alignment for pipes. Also, these tools have limited grip size and a small movement during welding can produce gaps in between the joints.
Pipe welding clamps can speed up the process of fully aligning pipes for welding while it can also eliminate welder’s fatigue. Having these, you don’t need to use other contraptions that could be unsafe while you could lessen the use of cutting and grinding equipment that can add labor time to your work. Technically, a worker can weld pipes without the need for assistance if he or she is equipped with a pipe fitting clamp.
Even in the industrial settings, pipe fitting clamps have become part of the pipe fabrication process like in the case of orbital welding. Orbital welding involves the use of machines and computers that can be programmed to weld pipes that are securely being held up by specialized pipe fitting clamps. This kind of pipe clamping and welding technology has a large contribution in the rapid fusion of pipes and can ultimately produce excellent welding results even without much human intervention.
Types of Pipe Welding Tools That Are Most
There are various types of pipe welding tools that are being manufactured by different companies and these clamps come in different designs and sizes. But although they do differ in features they have only one purpose. To secure the metal pipes in place and hold them in the right position while welding is going on.
Some of these clamps seemed complicated to use because these are equipped with lots of arms and screws while there are only the basic pipe fit-up clamps that are very portable and yet perfect for holding up and aligning round pipes and flanges up to 5.5-inch (140 mm) in diameter. Very compact, lightweight and best for quick fit-up of any round pipes, such pipe welding tool models have easy-to-use design for quick and repeated loading and unloading of metal pipes or rods.
There are also the pipe alignment chain clamps that have chains with adjustment levers for securing pipes and the pipe alignment dogs that are angled iron clamps with metal pins and screws to secure the metal pipes tightly in place. These types of clamps are also versatile and have varying holding capacities and are now common tools among home workshops and large industrial pipe setting enterprises.
Uses of Pipe Alignment
The pipe alignment chain clamps are designed to help pipefitters and welders in securing their pipes using the clamps’ strong chains and metal supports. Such clamps are very useful in aligning and reforming large pipes that would not fit into the portable type clamps. Mostly preferred by pipefitters because of their adjustable chains, you can use them in aligning pipes into fit-up elbows, flanges, tees, end-caps and other pipe fittings.
If you will be looking for pipe alignment chain clamps choose the type that have chains and screws made of stainless steel and alloyed with zinc to prevent weld spatter, rusting and corrosion. It must also be capable of high-tensile pulling for a safer pipe alignment. Don’t settle for pipe fitting clamps that are made of brittle metals because these can break in the middle of your work and therefore are unsafe.
Following safety standards, all pipe welding clamps should be made of forged steel so that these can provide excellent clamping force and can be used in a wide variety of pipes with varying diameter sizes. Even the balls of the thumbscrews should also be made of forged stainless steel. This is very necessary when aligning and reforming pipes regardless of their weight and sizes. And this is where the pipe alignment chain clamps can become an excellent choice.
The Advantages of Using Pipe
So called pipe alignment dogs because of their dog-shape appearances, these are simple tools that you can weld on pipes and screw to secure and pin the pipes in place. Also called weld-on alignment dogs they are very useful in aligning and reforming not only pipes but also metal plates. Their versatility makes them a perfect choice for out-of-round conditions like pipes while it also allows the welder to adjust and weld metal plates that have misaligned surfaces.
The pipe alignment dogs are usually preferred by pipefitters, rig welders, structural fitters, boiler makers, and pressure welders who have to deal in aligning metal pipes and metal plates. For example, if one part of the metal plate is raised over the other part and needs to be welded in place to produce an even surface, the weld-on alignment dogs should be the right choice to address this issue.
These types of pipe fitting tools come with screws to hold and push the metal plate in position before tacking and welding the metal plate in place. In other words, these pipe welding clamps can also be used on both world, pipe and metal plate alignments.
Conclusion:
Pipe welding tools have been here for a long time and they have become very useful tools not only for welders but for all workers who are dealing with pipe welding, metal sheets fabrication and alignment. And although they are simply designed as simple tools, their usefulness is a lot because of their unique features.
If you need affordable pipe fitting clamps that are affordable and dependable, you can find ones online that can aid you a lot in your welding activities especially for pipe welding. Good examples of these are the straight vise welding pipes or the chain vise types that are highly portable, lightweight, can fit into your work bag and most of all these never loses their grips.
Or if you prefer the basic fit-up clamps that I have discussed earlier, this is much easier to use and more handy and perfect for home workshops and you may also need for your plumbing needs. It’s easy to fuse metal pipes but the problem is the possibility of not achieving the perfect alignment you need. But with pipe welding clamps, this problem can easily be resolved.
