Welding the Big Ring c1904

This film shows the process of welding a large piece of metal before the advent of the industrial electric welder. Note the foreman overseeing the work. Check out the muscles on those guys, the average weekly wage for such hard labor was $3 to $5. This film was made at the Westinghouse plant where electric generators were made.

Accidents were probably plentiful - none seem to wearing gloves or More.. eye protection of any sort.

A group of men weld one area of the large ring in a fire. They lift the ring, which is hanging on chains, out of the fire. Four men hammer the hot area into shape while the remaining men hold it. They put the ring into the fire again, take it out, and over to a machine which hammers down on that area of the ring. They then take it away from the machine and hammer it themselves into shape. The ring is presumably a piece of a generator.

This looks like Really Hard Work

Source: Live Leak