I have a part that is a collector from say 3" pipe going to two 1 1/2" openings on the other end. This part is made of .043 steel made in two halves then needing to be welded and metal finished to a smooth appearance. The length of part is about 4"

I do know of a few ways to maybe set this up, let me know of possible ideas for this, looks like 1,000 or more per year.

Here are some of my thoughts.

1) A fixture made of copper that would fit the back side of weld area with a very small gap in the two halves to allow for good penetration using mig process with .023 wire.

2) I could fixture and tig tack and then tig weld entire surface, maybe alwith a copper backing on weld.

Any thoughts here appreciated