Cutting out the middle man.

[DB49]

Hi Guys,

I'm new to this, welding that is. But in an attempt to have some brazing completed on some classic car bumpers I have been left out of pocket with a dodgy job. But being a practical chap, I know I could do better myself if I had some kit and a bit of knowledge from honest chaps like yourselves that already have completed the leaning curve. Therefore if there are any diy gas welding gear owners near Solihull in the West Midlands who would be amenable enough to suggest the best way to approach this task or I would be delighted to here from them. Thanks in advance. Paul.

 

[zardoz]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience with a dodgy welder. Can you take a quick pic of what needs doing to show us here ?

 

[DB49]

Wilco. Its quite a project in reality. But, I thought if I could braze a portion myself grind and flat then braze a bit more I could get a proper job and then go get them chromed with confidence. The issue is that these bumpers are forty years old and thin! Will be back with some snaps shortly. Thanks Paul.

 

[DB49]

Bumpers

Zar, I've loaded three images as an album is this OK. P

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/album.php?albumid=907

 

[oceanobsession]

Re cutting out the middle man

Hi there db49. cant you cut out the rotten bit and weld a new piece in
linish off the welds sand down and chrome i can recomend a chrome place
its called creswells in newtown great barr birmingham they use nical copper
and chrome cheers ocean

 

[gavuk]

I don't think it will ever look very good ....i'll pay scrap value for the car and arrange pickup if you like tho .........good luck with it Paul......Gav

 

[DB49]

Hi Ocean, Creswells have already done some jobs and top people they are too.
The bumper metal is so thin, I'm afraid the weld might blow straight through. Some of the brazing that has been done proves it works. It just that when you buy welding professionally its not a case of how good the job ought to be when finished (in my experience). What appears to apply is as little as possible and as much as they have to do in the quality stakes. Cheers.

 

[Wallace]

What about metal spraying to have the surface built up?

Mike

 

[runnach]

Nice motor, my kind of colour too, possibly repair using tig with pulse facility, bit of backing ect???

Cheers..............

 

[madkayaker]

could be a job for om with his flame gun

 

[malcolm]

I'd cut out the thin bits and replace with new metal. Seems a shame to botch a nice Aston like that by brazing over the rusty bits. Should be possible to fix using either MIG or TIG.

 

[DB49]

What's a flame gun? And does any body know of a metal spraying service in Brum?
Thanks.

 

[madkayaker]

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=8991 this is the thread

 

[Robotstar5]

What's a flame gun? And does any body know of a metal spraying service in Brum?
Thanks.

Try Dowding & Mills on Stratford Road, I know they spray motor shafts, may be able to help?

 

[Wallace]

I had some motorcycle forks re-chromed by this company and they do metal spraying too, service was good. I too would be interested to know if they can chrome on top of metal spraying as it would enable the reclaimation of Jensen bumpers that are getting hard to obtain in good condition.

http://www.amphardchrome.co.uk/

Just as an aside, does anybody have experience of chrome plating on steel that has been Tig welded using autogenous welds or parent metal as filler? I have gas welded development parts that have been chrome plated and the welds always showed through, I was wondering if Tig might aleviate this problem as I was considering making some quater bumpers for a car.

Mike

 

[DB49]

Nah, can't chrome on top of sprayed metal, man from amphardchrome said so. Very knowledgeable he was too. In his opinion the only way to fix challenged bumpers was by the brazing route. In addition backing the brazed area with copper sheet was a good idea. So perhaps them Jensen bumpers may be redeemable after all. DB

 

[Omniata]

You can flame spray on top of a coating if the right base coating has been used first on the parent metal. Ibeda do a powder called EB1001, a general purpose base coat...

You could chrome flame spray but then would need to spend hours polishing the surface, repraying perhaps half way through whilst it still has a key...

Problem with flame spraying is it doesn't tend to stick too well to smooth surfaces unless perhaps a hardening coating, ie: for axles, or an abrasive coating such as tungsten carbide...

There's a user on here called "zst" from Serbia and the company he works for use the gun I've got on a regular basis for coating maching axles, some really big!!!

 

[zardoz]

As Malcom says id also be inclined to cut out the crap bits and replace with MIG or possibly TIG might be preffereable. Then a little light use of a hammer and dolly and gently grindback with a fine flap disc. . However this does depend on how good you are with the welder. At least the metal left behind would all be steel, unlike the brazing method. However If your expert guy says Brazing is the way to go, then fair enough. Although it may be one way to go i am not sure its the only method? If you are unhappy with the old job and are possibly looking to replace anyway, then maybe its going to be no loss to have a go at it.

Obviously its the chrome thats the sticking point. (If it were not chrome then lead loading would be a prime candidate for this job). Maybe wait a few days and see if anyone else comes up with a good workable solution.

 

[weldwise]

i say cut the crap out put a bit of steel underneath to thicken it up then put a bit inbetween mig it then use fine flapwheel to level it off then get it chromed,,,,hope this helps...?

 

[Wallace]

I'm sure using dissimilar mild steel and filler wire/rod will show through the chrome even with copper/nickel/chromium plating, not the kind of finish required for most Aston Martin cars. This is the reason I am interested to find out if Tig welding shows through like the Gas and Mig I have done in the past.

Mike