Antique cast iron clamp part fixed

[aametalmaster]

A guy at work dropped this part off and asked if i could weld it. Yup no problem i said. Fired up the MM185 with crown alloys .035 cast wire and 75/25 gas and tacked it together. Ran some beads and cleaned it up...Bob

[wb4rt]

A guy at work dropped this part off and asked if i could weld it. Yup no problem i said. Fired up the MM185 with crown alloys .035 cast wire and 75/25 gas and tacked it together. Ran some beads and cleaned it up...Bob

Good job, Bob.

Looks like he should be happy with that. I'm curious how you are able to mig it when everyone says it has to be heated and cooled slowly etc. ? Was it just this part and the way it was broken or will that work on other cast iron?

[JSFAB]

Bob, you've mentioned this wire before. I just looked up Crown Alloys, seems everything they offer is nickel-based. Exactly which product are you using? I do enough cast myself it is worth picking some up, I normally use nickel rod but I think the lower total heat input from wire (vs 1/8" stick) would minimize cracking problems afterwards in many cases.

Thanks in advance,

Joe

[walker]

It is the Crown Alloys. royal 44-30

[JSFAB]

Thanks.

What percent nickel is this? The website doesn't give a whole lot of information. I even downloaded the tech sheet, nothing.

I'm guessing the best place to order from is Indiana Oxygen.

To the earlier poster wondering why this works w/o preheat and postheat, you can use the same amps with wire, but reduce the total heat put into the work you would be applying with stick.

[aametalmaster]

Thanks.

What percent nickel is this? The website doesn't give a whole lot of information. I even downloaded the tech sheet, nothing.

I'm guessing the best place to order from is Indiana Oxygen.

I have the Crown Alloys catalog and it doesn't have the nickel content either. I think Indiana Ox had the best online price. I paid 75 bucks local...Bob

[JSFAB]

Thanks, Bob.

Turns out there was nobody local to me that carries Crown Alloy 44-30, or even had any interest in ordering it for me, ended up buying from Baker's Gas, the only online source I could find that was point, click, and pay. Ended up using it this weekend, on a couple stove doors. Almost impossible to preheat them without sticking the whole thing in an oven. Stick weld with nickel, it cracks somewhere else. Try brazing, it cracks somewhere else. With this wire, I was able to weld it one inch at a time (in the correct progression and direction), letting everything cool in between welds (I had other things to do in the meantime), no cracks.

[aametalmaster]

Good to hear...Bob

[kiwi]

Looks great Bob. How does the strength compare to the parent metal?
Thanks,
Nick

[kevin]

when ya go to buy stick cast rod, there basically 2 choices, low nichol content,w hich is machineable and the higher nichol content which is not machineable, mayby in the wording on the label will shed some light, the low nichol is less than 50 %

[kiwi]

Hey Bob,
"Looks great Bob. How does the strength compare to the parent metal?
Thanks,
Nick"

[aametalmaster]

Hey Bob,
"Looks great Bob. How does the strength compare to the parent metal?
Thanks,
Nick"

I have done other projects for myself with that wire and the strength is real good, but the projects have been small. Big stuff i still use rod on...Bob

[11b]

Cast

Cast is a nightmare for me. I weld it with the highest nickle you can find,,,, crack. Some times it doesn't even looks cracked, but when I dye penetrate it, I find all kinds of little hairline cracks. I usually tell people "I weld cast no guarantees though" especially if there is a lot of force on it. I thought one time I was winning on an old crank for a generator, heat up, slow cool in oven, Ni rod 55,,,,,Crack! I told the guy it would just be easier to make a new part which I did.

[walker]

low nickel is Ni55, and I'd Not machinable, as there is still way too much carbon. The high nickel is Ni99 and is machinable.