I admit, I have a workshop tool addiction :-)

[Cowcalf]

I would say in absence of physically viewing the work first hand, it would probably be more akin to a braze using the Tig kit imho - but just my take, it may be welded.
The joint testing would be required to confirm for sure.

As an aside, I read an article which discussed a supposed cored mig wire coming out / is out, but not seen it personally in any of the shops when buying my supplies, as that will be on my list to try in my kit.

core mig wire has been about for years, what do you mean ?

 

[Phil P]

I’d say it looks more like a braze also, however I’d love to be proved wrong as it would be quite a useful tool in the box. Would be interesting to see a cross section of the weld/braze to see what sort of penetration it had.

 

[Ukjay]

core mig wire has been about for years, what do you mean ?

Err, I know cored Fluxed Mig Wire has been out for yonks, I was referring to mig wire for welding Alu to Steel allegedly coming out / already out, but have seen nothing further of it as per topic of discussion we were looking at above..

 

[Ukjay]

Would be interesting to see a cross section of the weld/braze to see what sort of penetration it had.

The two concerns I would have, is structural integrity - as I doubt it would be strong enough in that kind of process as I have read that the highest strength value is circa 70% of the Aluminium, and secondly - the affect of the two dissimilar metals and galvanic process affecting the longevity of said works.

 

[davieh3350]

I’d say it looks more like a braze also, however I’d love to be proved wrong as it would be quite a useful tool in the box. Would be interesting to see a cross section of the weld/braze to see what sort of penetration it had.

Not much penetration with a brazed joint, only the surface, capillary action and all that.

 

[TheTallGuy]

The two concerns I would have, is structural integrity - as I doubt it would be strong enough in that kind of process as I have read that the highest strength value is circa 70% of the Aluminium, and secondly - the affect of the two dissimilar metals and galvanic process affecting the longevity of said works.

Their website makes much of the fact that it's for low strength & non safety critical applications, plus only on thin materials.

 

[Shovelhands]

Their website makes much of the fact that it's for low strength & non safety critical applications, plus only on thin materials.

= useless, surely?

 

[Ukjay]

Not much penetration with a brazed joint, only the surface, capillary action and all that.

Although brazing is lower in strength - I think you may be surprised at the difference AC Brazing performs. It is completely different, and gives a more robust Brazed joint..

 

[Ukjay]

= useless, surely?

Personally I would not say useless, as I believe it could be useful in certain circumstances instead of using bolts etc non structural jobs.

 

[davieh3350]

Although brazing is lower in strength - I think you may be surprised at the difference AC Brazing performs. It is completely different, and gives a more robust Brazed joint..

I've only used gas... Must try out the tig some time.

 

[Ukjay]

I've only used gas... Must try out the tub some time.

For someone like you Davie, I think you will find AC Brazing quite interesting. It appears to clean the braze as it goes, which helps increase the efficacy.
Also - what I have found whilst tinkering - is that if you give the brazed joint a wider fillet, the strength is far better, and to be fair, braising strength is when done both sides of the joint - or full diameter, which differs from true welding.

 

[TheTallGuy]

Aside from fusion issues, there are several reasons for not bonding steel & aluminium together - not least of which being the differing thermal conductivities & coefficients of expansion, both of which will lead to significant stresses being imparted during both the joining process for tig/braze & any subsequent heating/cooling cycles. Those stresses would be a hairy proposition for anything requiring structural integrity on anything other than small joints.

 

[Ukjay]

Aside from fusion issues, there are several reasons for not bonding steel & aluminium together - not least of which being the differing thermal conductivities & coefficients of expansion, both of which will lead to significant stresses being imparted during both the joining process for tig/braze & any subsequent heating/cooling cycles. Those stresses would be a hairy proposition for anything requiring structural integrity on anything other than small joints.

Did you know that modern car manufacturing weld Aluminium to Steel, albeit a different technique.. so not as clear cut as saying a hairy proposition for anything requiring structural integrity. It all comes down to available tech and end requirements.

 

[TheTallGuy]

Did you know that modern car manufacturing weld Aluminium to Steel, albeit a different technique.. so not as clear cut as saying a hairy proposition for anything requiring structural integrity. It all comes down to available tech and end requirements.

Yes, I was aware of that & should have worded my response better - as I understand it the alloys used are specifically suited for the purpose & the processes and joints are designed to manage the stresses rather than just banging a piece of cold rolled steel onto a slab of 6061.

 

[Ukjay]

Yes, I was aware of that & should have worded my response better - as I understand it the alloys used are specifically suited for the purpose & the processes and joints are designed to manage the stresses rather than just banging a piece of cold rolled steel onto a slab of 6061.

The process is a varied frictional stir welding technique...

 

[holwellcourtfarm]

The process is a varied frictional stir welding technique...

Hardly a farm workshop proposition then

 

[Ukjay]

Hardly a farm workshop proposition then

Depends - some farm workshops are inspiring. They're not all spit and sawdust floors using BSF, BSW Spanners only.

Come out of the Dark side HCF

 

[fermerboy]

Depends - some farm workshops are inspiring. They're not all spit and sawdust floors using BSF, BSW Spanners only.

Come out of the Dark side HCF

You have to admit though, "a varied frictional stir welding technique", isn't something you'd hear in most farm workshops.

 

[Ukjay]

You have to admit though, "a varied frictional stir welding technique", isn't something you'd hear in most farm workshops.

I think you may find I am having a bit of fun with HCF...and basically is my own jealousy about some of the kit seen in some of the members on here workshops, owing to the fact that I have not had the opportunity to get my workshop built yet...

Additionally, I know it would be a rather tall ask to find something akin to that Tech in a farm workshop - but the mute point in my points was due to the ones taking the pee about someone saying they had bought the wrong kit / welded Alu and Steel, then basically saying it cannot be done basically - when there appears to be a route to do this in the market, be it rather a pedantic explanitory version to do this.

 

[Dave W]

Santa's been