re-bar

[BrokenBiker]

now this might sound like a daft question, but is re-bar mild steel or not?

I have had conflicting info about this after I bought some, and the guy selling it asked what I was using it for.

I told him I was going to bend it to form handles for my wood burner door and ash tray, and then weld it on.

he then told me I would have to TIG it and use argon otherwise it wouldn't stick well and would have to use a nickel filler??

is this correct? I doubt it very much but would like to know before I start bending it and then find out I cant weld it

 

[Shox Dr]

He talking out his a**e

 

[BrokenBiker]

I suspected this.

I got the feeling he was trying to flog some old stock of nickel rods, or trying to convince me to buy some other, more expensive bar instead.

 

[dan.taylor.1]

I mig it all the time so shouldnt be an issue, i think it might be some wierd grade of mild tbh as it is meant to be really strong and still flexible.

Dan

 

[TechnicAl]

There are different grades usually differentiated by strength. Used to be covered by BS4449 but probably some ISO spec nowadays.
Some of it would have a really have high CE so might need fancy filler

Probably the majority is mild steel though

 

[rory1]

I was under the impression it's some sort of medium carbon steel, when I was an apprentice an old boilermaker helped me make a small podger bar out of a piece of 5/8 rebar and we hardened and tempered it.

I would say that mig welding would be fine .

 

[pedrobedro]

A foundry I worked in used to make the steel and roll it into profiles. Rebar was made to the specs requested by the customer, a lot of it was in 431 or 416 which although stainless does surface rust.

 

[Paul99]

There's no markings on the rebar we have and always assumed it to be ordinary mild steel. whatever it is it welds absolutely fine with 6013 rods and would be more than strong enough for handles on your woodburner. That said if there are different types I'd run a few test welds first just incase but my guess is it'll weld fine. In the unlikely event it doesn't then you'd be better off binning it and finding some that will rather than shelling out for nickel rods.

 

[Lawnmowerboy]

I think 431 is martensitic. It's nice and strong and macines nicely but is heat treatable and still does rust.

 

[lexi]

So who carves the designs on it?

 

[chunkolini]

ShoxDr, is that an official technical term?

 

[BrokenBiker]

I think it is the official term lol

well as I got the propane tank today, I hooked it all up and had a play. cut the re-bar into the required length (even allowed for bending) and then marked out where I wanted the bends. put the bar in the vice, the heat on the line and clamped a set of mole grips to the top, got it glowing and bent it nice and simple.

held it against the door of the burner and tacked it on with the mig.

all works as it should and it bent really well too. no problems with welding and not much discolouration on the bends either.

just gotta get some paint now and finish it off

 

[awemawson]

Rebar is usually a medium carbon steel that can be hardened sufficiently to make cold chisels, so it's not mild steel. As it is used to supply the tensile strength missing from unreinforced concrete it has to have a higher tensile strength than mild steel.

 

[BrokenBiker]

thanks for that, as it happens i was just sat wondering what tools i could make from it.

i have been asked by my missus grand parents if i can make a poker and door hook for their fire, and my neighbour wants a 3ft long spike with a hardened tip for some reason