aluminum filler rod

By Lawrence (*****)

Date 08-12-2007 11:00

Jorie

3/32 aluminum GTAW wire is common.

What alloy is your base metal?

By Tommyjoking (****)

Date 08-13-2007 02:43

ummmm....are you welding on cast pieces? You might know about this maybe not..... It could be cast magnesium which looks very much like cast aluminum and you can run an aluminum bead on it it will stay for a few seconds till it starts to cool then it will basically crack out into pieces. A simple test for this is to file some of your base metal then place the filings on a table and expose them to a flame from say a bic lighter......if it ignites into bright white sparks (think sparkler) you have magnesium and not aluminum. If it is Aluminum then you should identify the base metal as Lawerence asked and also provide what filler material you are using, machine settings, gas etc.

By js55

Date 08-13-2007 13:26

The critical thing is not preheat or lack thereof (though excessive heat regimes can lead to cracking in heat treatble Al alloys) or any particular filler size. The two most cirtical 'things' are first to make sure that your particular alloy is weldable in the first place. Some are not, some are very difficult. The second thing is to make sure that your filler is compatible with your base metal in order to avoid those chemistries (specifically Mg and Cu generally in the range of ~1% to ~3%) that are highly crack prone.

By devo

Date 08-13-2007 19:57

another Mg test is to wipe it with vinegar. If it turns white, its Mg

By Milton Gravitt (***)

Date 08-14-2007 01:50

Lawrence is right she needs to know what her base metals are.Jorie have you found what they where. This is something that we need to know before we can help you.