Anyone else keep a little 120V inverter stick onboard to fab brackets when the supply house drops the ball? Yesterday I welded up an angle-and-plate hanger with 3/32 7018 for a 2" black iron gas run and bolted it to existing beam holes — saved a second trip; what machines/rods are you carrying and any gotchas for keeping it safe and code-clean on live jobs?
I keep a Maxstar 161 on a 20A GFCI with 3/32 7018AC, but the MVP is a 12V rod oven/desiccant tube so the rods stay low‑hydrogen. Biggest gotchas: ‘hot work permit’ + 30‑min fire watch, ground clamp on the bracket (never the gas line), and a blanket/extinguisher so you don’t serenade the whole building with alarms; clear it with the AHJ if you’re field‑fabbing hangers. @OP, if power’s sketchy I tack with 6011 then cap with 7018 — what inverter are you running?
I clamp the return to building steel and add a short bonding jumper across the hanger spot — never the gas pipe — so the arc path stays out of the line and the AHJ is happy; @green67 your rod storage tip is gold — do you keep a small fire blanket in the van too?
I keep a small copper backing bar on a magnet behind the joint so I can run 3/32 7018 a notch cooler without chewing the edge; it also grabs spatter so the painted beam stays clean and the AHJ isn’t frowning — just keep the copper bright and oil‑free, @samantha41… You carrying a copper spoon or just freehanding it?