Welding!

[rustynova]

can you weld mild steel to cast iron????

[AntB]

In a word, NO !!!

[rustynova]

In a word, NO !!!

I thought u could mig weld to cast iron

[SimonT]

Not sure but am i right in thinking you are trying to weld a turbo flange onto your existing manifold?

I know a lot of Ford boys used do this (before you could buy a purpose made one) to turbo zetecs. Not sure what materials they were working with though.

[rustynova]

Not sure but am i right in thinking you are trying to weld a turbo flange onto your existing manifold?

I know a lot of Ford boys used do this (before you could buy a purpose made one) to turbo zetecs. Not sure what materials they were working with though.

yeh thats exactly what i want to do ive got a turbo manifold for my engine but the flange on it is for a T-25 turbo, the flange on the turbo itself is nearlt double the size so i want to weld an adaptor flange onto the manifold so it will fit the turbo

[SimonT]

It can be done. Here is a Q and A from the FAQ bit of a pro welding companys site

Q/
I'm welding some mild steel shims to an old cast iron frame... good preheat long post heat slow cool and hi nickel rod.... is this suficient or are there any other precautions I should take.

The Tin Man Respondeth:

Clean the parts with wire brush and solvent. NIrod will do it. Tack evenly to balance the stresses. Peen carefully. Postheat OK. Preheat the iron.

Slow cool, no chills

[rustynova]

so i have got to clean up the cast iron and pre-heat it with a blow torch then tack the new flange to it, then weld it all the way around then let it cool by itself

[Brian_S]

No, in answer to your first question, MIG welding to cast iron is a no-no. You need, as they say, to use a high nickel filling material. Your MIG welder will be armed with only mild steel wire...

To cool it down slowly enough you should preheat an oven and place the part inside after welding, and then slowly reduce the oven temperature to off. Leave until cold ( over night )

The best thing to do is to take it to someone local who works with this kind of stuff all day, they'll TIG weld it on with the right filler and cool it properly for you.

[rustynova]

No, in answer to your first question, MIG welding to cast iron is a no-no. You need, as they say, to use a high nickel filling material. Your MIG welder will be armed with only mild steel wire...

To cool it down slowly enough you should preheat an oven and place the part inside after welding, and then slowly reduce the oven temperature to off. Leave until cold ( over night )

The best thing to do is to take it to someone local who works with this kind of stuff all day, they'll TIG weld it on with the right filler and cool it properly for you.

ok cheers fella i will get the adaptor made up and then have a look see if i can find some local welding firms

[SimonT]

(double post)

[SimonT]

There are quite a few backstreet engineering shops that do excellent welding. One i use is run by a couple of old boys but they are sh/t hot. Their tig welding wouldn't look out of place on a ferrari chassis. I'd expect to pay about £30-40 for a top job.

[omega 2.5v6 cdx]

It is possible to weld and metal to any metal - Aly to brass, copper to steel ect.. Should only be done by a very reputable welding company though - most non matching metals can only be gas welded, using very specalist rods.

[Mark T]

can you weld mild steel to cast iron????

Yes.

You need some Eutectic Welding rods (I use Castolin 680s).

If the cast item is sizeable then you need to heat it to prevent it cracking as the weld cools.

[rustynova]

cheers for all the help lads i will phone round a couple of local welding companies and get an adaptor plate made up

[Mark T]

Here's one I prepared Earlier:

XE Stainless downpipes, on an Ecotec Cast manifold flange.
SIP 140 and Castolin Eutectic 680 2.5mm electrodes
~95 Amps for filling, ~110 Amps for penetration.

[cavgsi]

edit - didnt read it properly

[Mark T]

is that with an arc welder ?

yes