Fire welding without flux: mild steels and wrought iron

[TechnicusJoe]

Recently I have made a video in which it was my goal to cleary happens in your forge what makes you able to fire weld without flux.
This is clearly shown in the beginning of the video how this happens.

A small note, in the beginning I say it's the steel melting, this is wrong. Timothy Miller corrected me and informed it was the oxide layer turning into a liquid, not the steel.
This makes sense, because you can look up the melting temperatures of scale and it is lower than the melting point of steel and (wrought) iron.
The other thing that makes sense it can't be steel melting, is because then the steel would fall apart. You see this a lot with tools steels and higher carbon steels.
If you heat these steels too much, bring them too close to their melting temperature, they will just fall apart because the bonds get too weak.
The same will happen to mild steels and wrought iron, heat them out enough and they will just fall apart. I tested this out in my forge and I suggest

everyone who is interested in this to try it out. It really does happen.

Another note, I am not trying to debate: flux or no flux. Useless discussion that is. However what I do want to bring out is awareness (especially for the beginner smiths)

that you can weld without flux and get good welds.
Borax is something that is not available everywhere in the world, in America it's a few cents I heard for a few pounds. In Europe you pay a few dollars per pound.
So, there is bit of looking into that.
I have used types of sand, they all work, borax and even iron mountain flux which is great.

So, by all means, if you favor flux, use it. I don't use it (often) (exceptions welding tool steels and higher carbon steels) because why would I bother cleaning

it and flux etc, clean the forge boogers and more when I can do it just as easily and faster without.


Enjoy the video, watch in HD 720 to get optimal view, it gives a much better view than 360!

[Francis Trez Cole]

Joe nice video as always

fluxing is a aid to the cleaning of the weld surface. I have done welds with and with out. then there are the many different types of flux from sand to borax and iron powder. The key to a good weld is a saturating heat. Heat fuse with one hit, Heat fuse with one hit, heat fuse with one hit three times to ensure it is a deep weld.

[anvil]

Joe, although Frank Turley added an update to this, my older learning taught me there is another state iron/steel goes thru. that's called liquidious. this a state that is neither solid or liquid. the surface appears molten(like a torch puddle) yet it maintains its shape. when at forge welding temp, it is liquidious thru and thru. this is the proper temp to forge weld. as has been said, flux is not needed to forge weld.

[Frozenforge]

Nice video, usually the videos I have seen the hot metal is too bright for the camera to compensate for so you cant see the liquidious state.

I think the real secret is the way you start the weld using your left hand to hammer then switch to the right hand! Im not even sure if i could hit the anvil with the hammer in my left hand! :)