Cutting cast iron

Oxy lance, magnesium burning, termite burning.

Martin

Reply to
Martin Eastburn
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Martin Eastburn fired this volley in news:6yOov.34906$ snipped-for-privacy@fx06.iad:

Oh, Martin! Termites don't eat metals! Lloyd

Reply to
Lloyd E. Sponenburgh

OK, I have my answer.

Wet 6010 electrodes work really great and cut cast iron like butter.

I tried them today at work and the result is excellent.

You do "dip - cut - dip - cut - etc" and it is very easy to do. One needs to get a little hang of it, but once you do get it, it is very straightforward.

I can use my lowest paid guy to do it because it is so simple. It is an ugly process, but it works great and only needs a working welder -- no air, plasma etc needed.

I will experiment some more to see if I can use 3/16 electrodes instead of 1/8.

Thanks a lot to everyone.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus27974

But they burn pretty well.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus27974

"Ignoramus27974" wrote in message news:0KCdnRADP8gntznOnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com...

Do you need more current than the 200A an inexpensive transformer machine provides?

-jsw

Reply to
Jim Wilkins

I used 1/8" welding rod and 200 amp current. It worked well. 250 amps was too much and would melt the welding rod if I forget to dip it at just the right time.

For real jobsite work, I want to try 3/16" rods at 300 amps. This is my current practical limit, because the biggest stick welder that I have at the moment (just taken out of my store) is a 300 amp welder.

I also have 1/4" 6010 rods, and for the future will look for a cheap old ugly 500 amp stick welder.

Ability to quickly cut cast iron castings is invaluable to me.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus27974

Thanks.

I try to limit my questions and suggestions to what the average hobbyist might own or be able to buy today, not rare or specialized stuff I found at an auction. For example I haven't pushed the Clausing mill or South Bend Heavy 10 lathe when someone asked for a recommendation.

If it is Meehanite perhaps it has higher scrap value to someone?? I think they add Nickel etc as well as change the process.

-jsw

Reply to
Jim Wilkins

sledge) and then give it a whack with a two pound hammer and it would shatter, leaving the pipe threads clean.

I wailed on that sucker, and all I did was dent it. I guess all cast iron, as you have discovered, is not created equal.

I ended up disassembling more pipe from the radiator end so I could unscrew this fitting. With a 3-foot pipe wrench and a 4-foot cheater, it was still a bitch. I though the house would flip over before it would unscrew. I finally cut (carefully) with an angle grinder to get some relief. BTW, I had soaked this joint twice daily for a week with PB Blaster.

=== There's an old plumbing supply house in town I go to for odd stuff I can't find elsewhere. They have a line of "cast iron" pipe fittings that are substantially thicker than the usual ductile iron fittings, and machine differently.

-jsw

Reply to
Jim Wilkins

I understand. In the places where I work there is usually a lot of 3 phase current available. Old stick welders are cheap and plentiful, and good.

None of this applies to an average "hobbyist", but then again, a hobbyist would not need to cut cast iron castings, either.

No, they pay the same for all cast iron.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus27974

Yes, not all created equal, as you said.

i

Reply to
Ignoramus27974

You may not remember, but you asked about "cutting with an arc welder" back in

2005 and got a lot of information then on using an arcair torch. Since you are in the scrap business, I recommend you look in to it. IIRC it is what the shipyards use for cutting up submarines. And I think you will find it much faster than using wet 6010 rods. You can find the torches on Ebay.

Dan

Reply to
dcaster

You may not remember, but you asked about "cutting with an arc welder" back in

2005 and got a lot of information then on using an arcair torch. Since you are in the scrap business, I recommend you look in to it. IIRC it is what the shipyards use for cutting up submarines. And I think you will find it much faster than using wet 6010 rods. You can find the torches on Ebay. Dan ====

And you can find plenty of scrappable submarines at 69N, 33.4E.

Reply to
Jim Wilkins

Do not remember.

Dan, this 6010 method is very acceptable and it does not need air. I only need to cut cast iron on jobsites, where I do not have a lot of air available.

I was looking for a great, easy method to cut cast iron on jobsites.

I just found one and I am very happy. At this point, I will stop my search.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus27974

It is a very nice method. Dip the entire electrode and the end of the electrode holder, to keep everything cool.

I believe that the water keeps everything cool, but it also enhances the cutting action, with more steam helping push the molten metal out.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus27974

I am under the impression that they scrap submarines at Archangel and Bremerton.

Dan

Reply to
dcaster

I gave the location of Severomorsk. The facilities are spread around:

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Reply to
Jim Wilkins

don't you love spell checkers..

Termites eat wood and concrete. Thermite is what I wanted.

Thanks LLoyd or is that Loyd Lloyd.. I've seen it all three ways!

Martin

Reply to
Martin Eastburn

Full of gas and lots of raw cellulose around! Martin

Reply to
Martin Eastburn

A little follow up on this. I have a job where several castings need to be cut on Monday. So I spent the weekend getting a setup ready for this job.

I have put together a nice package, a Miller 300SS stick welder, welded it to a heavy duty cart, with heavy 6/4 30' input cable and heavy 2/0 welding leads. Also with an aluminum box for storing stuff, a clevis shackle on the lifting eye for lifting it with chain etc. A very nice package.

Tried cutting cast iron using this rig and 3/16" 6010 rod (Lincoln

5P). Set the current to 300 amps DCEN.

It works really well, cuts metal very quickly, blows molten metal away, etc.

I have not really decided, yet, if it is better to cut from the bottom up, or from the top down.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus1492

Run 3/16" 6010 at around 250 amps DC electrode Positive. Dip the rods in water before arcing to get a little more oomph.

Messy as hell, but it works. Use a sawing motion on the heavier sections to clear the cut all the way through. This also puts so much thermal shock into the heat affected zone that it makes it easier to crack the cast iron.

Wear full leathers and a welding hood.

Reply to
Ernie Leimkuhler

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