I cut these five blanks on my fretboard jig a long time ago. Now I finally want one, so I pulled one out at random, and it turned out to be the worst of the batch. By worst, I mean it was thin in the middle and thick at the ends, probably because it is not perfectly flat and and sat on the jig with a slight bow that I didn't notice.
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I was playing around with my new welder, and eventually, I did this. That is a 3/16" round attached to a 1/4" flat - a very common joint for a truss rod. It's not beautiful, but it is strong, you can see how I tried to pull it apart. Then I sawed the end off, and you can see it is solid - no slag inclusions, just two pinpricks at the 'corners' of the round. Welding is not as scary as I thought, but it is going to take a lot of practice. My welds seem to be a matter of luck, but my luck is improving.
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