Re: Welding aluminum ?
[Re: jeff karsten]
#7216046
03/14/21 10:40 PM
03/14/21 10:40 PM
|
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 16,150 Tennessee
Scuba1
"color blind Kraut"
|
"color blind Kraut"
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 16,150
Tennessee
|
What is a float pod asking for a friend Sticky outy bits on the blunt end of a boat that help keeping it up
Let's go Brandon
"Shall not comply" with morons who don't understand "shall not infringe."
|
|
|
Re: Welding aluminum ?
[Re: GritGuy]
#7216828
03/15/21 06:50 PM
03/15/21 06:50 PM
|
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 1,865 Huntingdon Co. Pa.
forestman3
OP
trapper
|
OP
trapper
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 1,865
Huntingdon Co. Pa.
|
Give us what your welding up for a better concise answer. There are many ways to weld Aluminum, they have been mentioned above.
Were me and you have no background, Mig is the way to go, you can turn it down and almost do as thin as a Tig can once you are practiced enough !
If your good enough with a Mig most cannot tell the difference between a Mig and a Tig weld unless they have good back ground in welding.
Mig is much better for structure work as well, but Tig really shines on pipe work and thin materials for getting it done nicely and appearance wise if needed.
Mig you will need a Wheel gun as Alum is a bugger to push thru most any other type of feeder, it's to soft to go very far with out being fussy and snagging. I`m looking at some rod holders for the boat and man are they costly. I mig welded for a living for eight years and I have a stick welder but I have never welded aluminum.I can already see I`m going to get more into it than I want to.I think I`m going to take some stimulus money and just buy the rod holders.
|
|
|
Re: Welding aluminum ?
[Re: Ridge Runner1960]
#7216889
03/15/21 07:52 PM
03/15/21 07:52 PM
|
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 1,497 Southern NJ
maintenanceguy
trapper
|
trapper
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 1,497
Southern NJ
|
order wonder rods off the net, they melt at 728 degrees ya use a propane torch, they work pretty well on aluminum alloys I've played with the aluminum brazing rods (probably the same thing) and they do work pretty good if the aluminum is really, really clean. I've even brazed two pieces of 1/8" aluminum flat stock together and then tore it apart with pliers, hammers, chisels, and a vice. The base metal failed before the braze did. But, I also tried to use it to braze a small pin hole in my little jon boat. Aluminum doesn't turn colors like steel to let you know how hot it is. When it reaches the melting point, it just melts. And that's what happened. Brazing was going well and all the sudden, a quarter sized chunk of boat fell onto the ground. I had gotten the aluminum too hot and melted a big hole in my boat. The stuff works but be careful.
-Ryan
|
|
|
Re: Welding aluminum ?
[Re: forestman3]
#7217123
03/15/21 10:17 PM
03/15/21 10:17 PM
|
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 8,857 Magna, Utah
GritGuy
trapper
|
trapper
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 8,857
Magna, Utah
|
Here is a tip for those brazing flat pieces for patching and worrying about temps and the hole getting larger from over heating.
Get another piece of Alum, the same size as your working with and place it under the hole and hold it there with some sort of force like a wedge or sawhorse , wood brace, no tape LOL won't work.
When your brazing the top will braze before the bottom piece gets hot enough to give out, if it does your using way to much heat, , wire wheel the area if you can for all brazing, best way to clean it short of a stainless wire brush.
Braze a bit, then lift the torch, let cool braze some more, let cool, easy once you get the hang of it, don't try to do the whole hole all at once, the metal is to thin to take all that heat.
Sorry if my opinions or replies offend you, they are not meant to !
|
|
|
Re: Welding aluminum ?
[Re: forestman3]
#7217267
03/16/21 01:43 AM
03/16/21 01:43 AM
|
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 11,928 Oakland, MS
Drifter
trapper
|
trapper
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 11,928
Oakland, MS
|
Tried that magic rod and had same results trying to do rivets in a jon boat. I even used a stainless wire brush before hand.
Some individuals use statistics as a drunk man uses lamp-posts — for support rather than for illumination.
Andrew Lang (1844-1912) Scottish poet, novelist and literary critic
Life member NTA , and GA Trappers assoc .
|
|
|
|
|