Jump to content
I Forge Iron

200lb post vice cracked half way threw " help"


Ed Haaf

Recommended Posts

I just bought this beautiful vice and under the crud I see this crack. I tightened the screw and it is amazing how much the loiter leg bends. I'm shire it's wrought. So wondering the best way to repair it. I really want to do work with this monster. Thanks!

post-31881-0-85053300-1405887806_thumb.j

post-31881-0-75499200-1405887829_thumb.j

post-31881-0-77247100-1405887858_thumb.j

post-31881-0-71004300-1405887903_thumb.j

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The "best way" has too many variables---how are you at tig welding in an argon box?  How is your forge welding skills and do you have a forge large enough?  If the "best" way costs more than a new car, would that be a problem? Etc and so on

 

However a good way would be to arc weld it.  It is most likely to be low carbon wrought iron and so a standard low carbon rod should work.  It will take more filling as the ferrous silicates will go away in the weld zone; but that is not a problem.  Don't forget to V the crack first!  As low carbon; preheat and post heat are not an issue either.  You may want to practice on some other wrought iron first to get the hang of it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, I would love to weld this and feel confident that all would be good but I have bin reading bad things about welding wrought. I can oxy aceteline weld, stick,tig,and mig. It's in a bad place and I don't want to make a bad situation worse with out checking with people who have structurally welded wrought iron. If it was hot rolled steel I would feel confident in the repair.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, I would love to weld this and feel confident that all would be good but I have bin reading bad things about welding wrought. I can oxy aceteline weld, stick,tig,and mig. It's in a bad place and I don't want to make a bad situation worse with out checking with people who have structurally welded wrought iron. If it was hot rolled steel I would feel confident in the repair.

I did the exact same repair to my very large vise. I went to extremes, I wanted it to last forever. 

Folks here told me I overdid but I don't really agree; too much is always enough. 

 

1. I ground out the entire crack into virgin metal. 

2. I buttered both sides with 309 stainless steel stick electrode. (308-316 would have worked just as well, especially since this step isn't really needed.)

3. I filled the gap with multiple passes of 7018 stick electrode. I welded past the last stainless bead to make an "invisible" repair..

 

Technically 6010/6011 would have been sufficient but 7018 is a fast fill rod, being part of the high speed group, and between the stainless (for stretch)

and the 7018 (for strength) this repair will never need to be made again. (I am planning to die still owning this vise). 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, I'm going to clamp it in the mill at lunch tomorrow and drill down with a 3/4" ball end mill. Making a half circle relief on each side of the crack. )( I'll try a 6010 root and follow up with the 7018. I will preheat and post heat the hole area after. Should I post heat both sides of the opening to get the hole thing to stress relieve. I mean the side that didn't crack.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, I'm going to clamp it in the mill at lunch tomorrow and drill down with a 3/4" ball end mill. Making a half circle relief on each side of the crack. )( I'll try a 6010 root and follow up with the 7018. I will preheat and post heat the hole area after. Should I post heat both sides of the opening to get the hole thing to stress relieve. I mean the side that didn't crack.

Don't preheat. You could post heat for stress relief. I wouldn't mess with the side you don't weld. No point. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks every one. I will post pics , but I ran into a slight snag, this thing was coated in so much grease fore a very long time. I keep cleaning and grease keeps pouring out. I gotta make sure when I prep it that it's not going to get contaminated before I weld it. Grease also keeps pouring out of the crack.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Disappointing that your vise is cracked. It looks like a real beauty otherwise.

 

The vise is likely wrought iron. If so, here are a few of my thoughts on arc welding wrought.

 

I am not a pro welder but have had some experience welding wrought iron. Based on reading some older welding books the best thing to do is avoid a deep penetrating weld. What happens with a deep penetrating rod is the iron silicate slag is released into the weld zone. At this point the slag it is no longer in grain form but can develop porosity in the weld.

 

I would avoid welding with a deep penetrating rod such as 6010/6011. 7018 should work just fine. Also a good preheat may help burn out some of the grease and will aid in welding.

 

Good luck

 

Dan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ok,sorry it took so long. I finally got a chance to do some work on it. I milled out each side with a 3/4" ball end mill. Then cut a slot ware the crack was. I tried mig on the inside first and that failed to bond well so I had to mill it all out again. I used 7018 and that worked much better. I still have to heat the hole area to get it to relax before I test it out. I have some picks of the steps. Wrought Is it's own animal. Machines very easily though. I want to thank every one for helping me. It would not have come out as well as it did ,thank you !!!

post-31881-0-89563100-1406342462_thumb.j

post-31881-0-36422800-1406342487_thumb.j

post-31881-0-82554500-1406342518_thumb.j

post-31881-0-90133500-1406342550_thumb.j

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll say this, that's one of the better prep jobs I've seen done on something. Way too many times I see someone simply wave the grinder  quickly over a crack like it's a magic wand and then wonder why their repair fails. Nice job.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks ,the mig gas was the tri gas. The real problem was the wire. It was corona weld 321 ,designed off all mild steel but it's a maintenance rod. Good for galvanize with out cleaning. Paint and oily metal. It try's to float everything to the top. The weld looked like a sponge. You guys warned me about not using a deep burning rod so I switched to stick 7018. The welds are so big because I used 5/32" rod. A big hole to fill

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 months later...

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...