Attex Welding Questions???

[terra tiger crazy]

Has anyone ever done any plastic welding on an Attex? If so do you have any tips or pics. I have been welding on my Attex Trainer off and on for months. with varying results. It has cracks about every two inches it seems. I want to finish welding it up, then use olive drab rhino liner on as paint and armor(lol). I know that the liner will cause drag in the water and mud, but the trainer will mostly see grass and snow. For the wet stuff I will use my terra tiger, after I figure out my outboard mount for it. any help would be great.

[Beeman]

Love the beer bottle Christmas tree!!

[LarryW]

Hey Terra Tiger Crazy,
That will be a sweet ride when you are done! HydroMike welded his up real nice. You could probably search and see if he had any tips and look at his gallery. I have played a little with the welding but I ended up just making the abs repair goop and going that route. That seems to be a tricky route also. Sometime it works, others it cracks again. Racerone3 embedded fiberglass cloth in the abs but I havent heard how it turned out. As for the rhino lining, I bet there is something you could spray on top of that to give it a gloss or take the texture out at least. I have never heard of it done but seems like there would be something. That may be an idea. Looking forward to seeing it completed and what you came up with.

[azz7772]

here is a couple links

Tips on how to plastic weld.


http://www.6x6world.com/forums/conte...c-welding.html

[Stonewall]

As for the rhino lining, I bet there is something you could spray on top of that to give it a gloss or take the texture out at least. I have never heard of it done but seems like there would be something. That may be an idea.

I know a guy from Michigan that has a spray-in bedliner in his truck that is slick. It's almost like a hard plastic, but it's still a little pliable. I have never seen anything like it around here, all the spray-ins down here (including mine) have small chunks of rubber in them.

Making a HDPE skidplate would be a good way to go. If you made it to run up the sides of the machine a foot or so, it would both protect and add some structural integrity.

[terra tiger crazy]

Thanks for the links they were some what helpful. I think I might be using the wrong tip on my welder. I also am going to try different thickness of rods. The skid plate is a good idea, as this plastic body is very brittle. I was also wondering if anyone has ever re-bodied any amphibious 6x6s. There is one in my area that claims to be a Hustler with a custom aluminum body. I seems to me that a new stainless or aluminum body would be stronger and easier to make. Then to repair the bodies in some cases.

[coosaridgerider]

There are a lot of video's on youtube about plastic welding.

[terra tiger crazy]

I just visited HydroMike's gallery. His trainer is ah-some. Mine is cracked and split in the same spots. If he was able to fix his, I should be able to fix mine. Mine of course will not have a diesel. I haven't decided what engine to use yet. The original is locked up bad.

[LarryW]

I think a rebody would be cool but I wouldnt recommend it on the trainer since it is a rare classic. I suggest getting something more common if that is what you want to do. And if you have the fabrication skills to do a rebody you might as well build your own frame. Then you can space your axles out to run the tires you want to run. Then get a T-20 and engine of choice. I think it would be fun to build.

[racerone3]

I coppied a lot of Hydromike's ideas in the rebuild of my tank trainer, and as Larry mentioned I also tried the ABS goo/ fiberglass cloth hybrid repair. It seems to be holding up really well. If you dont already know, GOO is just scraps of ABS melted down in Acetone over a few days. Mike and I also did full Poly skid plates on our bulds ( yet another thing i coppied) which seem to stiffen the body up quite a bit. The frames on the Tank Trainers could also use some beefing up in my opinion. Sadly I didnt formulate this opinion till mine was built and I'd had a chance to drive it. Here is a link to my build thread and gallery. Let me know if there is anything I can help out with. Combat Vehicle Simulator Build Combat Vehicle Simulator - Amphibious ATV Pictures