pot aluminum

[tnjind]

Anybody ever have any luck tiggen pot aluminum?
I have not been very successful.
Tim.

[Anti-GMAW]

I'de recomend using somthing like Camando or Aladin rod instead. It's generaly easeir and better to braze pot metals instead of weld them.

[FusionKing]

Depends on what you are calling pot aluminum. For me so far if it's aluminum I weld it just like normal and have always triumphed.
If your talking about ''pot metal'' that ain't aluminum.

[tnjind]

Not pot metal, maybe it is cast aluminum, this piece in particular is an automotive auto shift piece.

[SignWave]

What does it shift? is it a linkage peice? Are you sure its cast? could it be forged? im no expert but i think that the metal needs to be REALLY clean to even think about getting it to stick to itself. I cracked a motorcycle tranny case one time (playing stuntman Joe) and I was told by my shop teacher that the Aluminum contained alot of Silicon and may be difficult to weld for that reason. That was a long time ago and I dont really remember much else... anyway.. Good luck.

[tnjind]

It goes up on the steering column of an older ford truck.

[SignWave]

make sure its really clean. get rid of all oxides and grease etc. perhaps you might need to grind it a bit to make a channel for weld to go into. ITs hard to tell what to do when one isnt there to see the part that requires attention.

[Brianstick]

Pot Aluminum

Pot metal IS aluminum. It's a poor grade of aluminum with lots of impurities.Tig welding it could be quite challenging.

[paulrbrown]

Brianstick, 'potmetal' is usually the name give to cast Zinc products. And that too can be tig wilded with enough care. I guess depending on where you are and what it is that is cast, you could call lots of stuff pot metal. Hope this helps, Paul, here is a definition from wikipedia...

Pot metal refers to an alloy of inexpensive, low-melting point metals used to make fast, inexpensive castings for toys, tool parts, phonograph and Gramophone components, and automotive parts and accessories. There is no scientific metallurgical standard for pot metal (which is a slang term), but it is also known as white metal, die-cast zinc and often derisively as monkey metal.

Pot metal is known for its instability over time, as it has a tendency to bend, distort, crack, shatter, and pit with age. The low boiling point of zinc and the fast cooling of the newly-cast part often allow air bubbles and zinc oxide to remain within the cast part, weakening the metal. Many of the components of ‘pot metal’ are susceptible to corrosion from airborne acids and other contaminants, and the internal corrosion of the metal often caused the decorative plating to flake off.

The primary component of pot metal is zinc, but often the caster adds other metals to the mix in an effort to strengthen the part, improve the flow of the molten metal, or to reduce cost. With a low melting point of 419° C (786° F), zinc is often alloyed with other metals including lead (melting point 327° C), tin (232° C), aluminum (610° C) and copper (1084° C). Alloying metals often can completely alter the individual attributes of a single metal. But zinc also has an extremely low boiling point of 907° C (1664° F), lower than the melting point of many of the metals with which it is alloyed. The boiling zinc produces zinc oxide which is often responsible for the porosity of the die cast part.

Because of the internal degradation of the metals within the alloy, gluing is often not satisfactory due to lack of strength, and the low melting point precludes traditional welding or brazing. Low-temperature soldering has not proved satisfactory because of the incompatibility of flux to zinc and the inability to prevent oxidation, which inhibits the solder's ability to flow and bond.

[edit] See also

[Aerometalworker]

Brianstick, 'potmetal' is usually the name give to cast Zinc products. And that too can be tig wilded with enough care. I guess depending on where you are and what it is that is cast, you could call lots of stuff pot metal. Hope this helps, Paul, here is a definition from wikipedia...

Pot metal refers to an alloy of inexpensive, low-melting point metals used to make fast, inexpensive castings for toys, tool parts, phonograph and Gramophone components, and automotive parts and accessories. There is no scientific metallurgical standard for pot metal (which is a slang term), but it is also known as white metal, die-cast zinc and often derisively as monkey metal.

Pot metal is known for its instability over time, as it has a tendency to bend, distort, crack, shatter, and pit with age. The low boiling point of zinc and the fast cooling of the newly-cast part often allow air bubbles and zinc oxide to remain within the cast part, weakening the metal. Many of the components of ‘pot metal’ are susceptible to corrosion from airborne acids and other contaminants, and the internal corrosion of the metal often caused the decorative plating to flake off.

The primary component of pot metal is zinc, but often the caster adds other metals to the mix in an effort to strengthen the part, improve the flow of the molten metal, or to reduce cost. With a low melting point of 419° C (786° F), zinc is often alloyed with other metals including lead (melting point 327° C), tin (232° C), aluminum (610° C) and copper (1084° C). Alloying metals often can completely alter the individual attributes of a single metal. But zinc also has an extremely low boiling point of 907° C (1664° F), lower than the melting point of many of the metals with which it is alloyed. The boiling zinc produces zinc oxide which is often responsible for the porosity of the die cast part.

Because of the internal degradation of the metals within the alloy, gluing is often not satisfactory due to lack of strength, and the low melting point precludes traditional welding or brazing. Low-temperature soldering has not proved satisfactory because of the incompatibility of flux to zinc and the inability to prevent oxidation, which inhibits the solder's ability to flow and bond.

[edit] See also

Yeah thats it all right,
I have done a few repairs to pot metal castings....its not fun. So far the most adaptable method is the torch with zinc filler and flux designed for zinc castings. TIG has too focused and too hot of an arc temperature and seems to lead to a lot of porosity etc. Also you need to be able to float out all sorts of garbage in the molten pool, not doable with the TIG as the arc tends to like the puddling iron more then the pool. Being a steering part hopefully its cleaner then the engine parts I work on. If its rare, save it, if not, maybe its better practice to machine a new part from barstock.

-Aaron

[tnjind]

It was from a mid 80s bronco, not rare yet, give 10 years AMERICAN MADE will be rare, it was more of a challenge on my part. Zinc, dirty, all possibilities. It did float trash bad.
Could not control arc.
Thanks, Tim.