Welding on a shock absorber?

Has anyone here ever cut the spring perch off a strut and welded another one on without blowing through to the shock absorber innards? Curious minds wish to know and may have a Challenge build idea.

I welded some on the Q45 shocks. Actually was surprised at how thick the shock metal was. 

I think it could be done, but I wouldn't weld directly to the tube.  The penetration of the weld might cause issues with the seals or could cause warping.

I'd cut the perch and leave a flange and weld to that flange

Yup. I modified some Protege5 Bilsteins to fit on a GTX. I wrapped the shock in wet towels to keep the interior temps down and took breaks. Worked a treat. As Stampie said, they're pretty thick steel. I was just worried about damaging seals.

Thanks gang ! Now we'll see if this idea can be made to work.

It should be as simple as welding sheet metal...as long as you keep the heat down and are careful I doubt you will have any problems...chance are though the thickness is probably closer to header tubes than standard sheet metal

Twin tube or monotube?  If twin tube, lay the shock down and only weld on the side facing up. This should allow the oil to be kept away from the welding area by the gas inside (think water bottle laid down and the air pocket is on the top). And like others said keep it cool. 

If monotube, I don't know. The gas is in a chamber below the oil and usually the spring perch area.

In reply to PMRacing :

I don't know yet.