Cast Iron Guttering

[roger64racing]

I've been loaded with a load of 150 year old cast Iron guttering to weld up. A good friend of mine suggested I tried TIG welding it using S/S filler rods, I've done a few short runs just to try it out and it seems to be OK? I was just wondering if anybody else has any success in using this method to weld simular cast Iron section, or stay clear of it and use MMA? Its just that this guttering isn't available any longer and I don't want to mess it up. Thanks.

 

[awemawson]

Cast Iron guttering of the old (usually OGee) style is horrid stuf to work. To get it to flow in the thin sections when cast it contains high phosphorous levels. When welded, usually you get a very brittle bit in the heat affected zone due to the inevitable rapid cooling. Normal advice is to pre-heat the entire item - weld - then cool very slowly - the old books used to say use fire ash.

 

[Engineer]

Done quite a lot of repair work on very old cast iron guttering, its pretty easy if you TIG braze using SIF No8.

You can use SS but cracking is very likely, and its not really worth using SS for that reason.

Best way to do it is vee out the cracks right through to other side, get a few tacks in at the root, then back step braze slowly and try to keep the heat down as low as you can.

 

[roger64racing]

Job finished (took hours), thanks for the help, ended up using cast stick rod welding for the most of it, TIGd a few parts with stainless filler to, never got the chance to TIG braze as could not get any rods in time. Also I had to fabricate 3 inches of section as the end of one of the channels was too dammaged to build up with weld.

 

[^neo^]

Good work!
Will be brittle as fook on those welds so treat them with care!

 

[Engineer]

Will be very brittle, and there is a good chance of snapping off unless installed very very carefully.

 

[hootchiecootchie]

Fronius magicwave 2000.

Done quite a lot of repair work on very old cast iron guttering, its pretty easy if you TIG braze using SIF No8.

You can use SS but cracking is very likely, and its not really worth using SS for that reason.

Best way to do it is vee out the cracks right through to other side, get a few tacks in at the root, then back step braze slowly and try to keep the heat down as low as you can.

Hi,Engineer,I believe we have the same welding plant.I am trying to purchase the tig acessories, pulse unit,cooling box and foot pedal with no luck to date. I have never seen them listed on the Fronius site which today is unavailable.Do you know if these items are now obselete? Is there a supplier you know of who can assist me? Yours sincerely hootchiecootchie.