Crankcase repairs

Here are some photos of repairing the hole in my tractor crankcase . Welds looked kinda shitty , but this is a piece of aluminum that's been soaking in oil for over 30 years . I'm happy enough with it that I'm going to send the one I bought* back and use this one .

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Reply to
Terry Coombs
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Looks pretty good to me, considering what you have to work with. A whole lot better than the mess I made welding the broken cargo rack for the back of my motorcycle. In hindsight, I should have dug out my MIG machine and skipped trying to do it with stick. Heck, that's how I fabbed it originally many years ago. My stick welding skills just aren't up-to-snuff for fussy work like that. Sigh...

What a raw deal on the replacement crankcase. I find it hard to believe someone would think that was a suitable way to clean up a gasket surface. Sad thing is it will probably be sold again, till someone gets it that either doesn't care or doesn't know the difference...

Reply to
Leon Fisk

Thanks ! It was still warm from the oven and yes I used TIG . I baked it at

350 for a while - after 2 cycles of scrub with gasoline then with detergent . I fitted the patch with about .003 clearance to help avoid weld shrinkage causing warpage . I do have a small sand blaster setup , I never considered using it to minimize porosity . I wasn't sure this was going to work , I don't usually do well with oil-soaked aluminum . I did take more care to clean up the piece this time .
Reply to
Terry Coombs

That case was scrubbed 4 times , gas/detergent/clean gas/detergent , then baked in the oven at 350 for about 45 minutes . Now if I had a vapor degreaser ... I knew there was going to be carbon contamination floating up out of the welds , just a question of whether I'd have to grind it out and re-do . And how many times . That was the first try , looked better than any I've done in the past and so I said to myself "Self , you better quit while you're ahead." . So I did .

Reply to
Terry Coombs

You didn't do an acetone soak?

Reply to
Larry Jaques

No ... I was out . I guess that would have gotten a little more oil out of the pores .

Reply to
Terry Coombs

I'd have packed some kitty litter around it while baking in the oven. It makes a good scouring powder for coarse work. Clay type (bentonite?), not the cellulose stuff.

Reply to
whit3rd

OUT of an important chemical? Oh, well. Mebbenextime.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

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