identify cast alunimum

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I have a cast eagle that used to hang on the front of my house. it was there when we moved in.The fastener that held it up failed and the Piece fell on the porch and cracked in two. Is there a way to identify aluminum cast alloy? Or is there a preferred rod to attempt to weld it back?mooseTimmetalcraft by mooseSoutheast Michiganhttps://www.facebook.com/Metalcraftbymoose  Stupid Hurts!!
Reply:If it broke it is probably die cast zinc. If so epoxy is your only hope.Pictures would be nice.
Reply:Potmetal = JB Weld....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Maybe you can use Durafix rods to "weld" or glue it back together?More info: www.durafix.com
Reply:http://www.kingmetals.com/Catalog/It...temNumber=3015It is probably cast aluminum, maybe like this one. If you have access to a spool gun then fixing it is a piece of cake. Cast al. welds pretty good with one using 4043 wire. Or, you could just buy another oe as they are pretty cheap.
Reply:Originally Posted by Bobhttp://www.kingmetals.com/Catalog/It...temNumber=3015It is probably cast aluminum, maybe like this one. If you have access to a spool gun then fixing it is a piece of cake. Cast al. welds pretty good with one using 4043 wire. Or, you could just buy another oe as they are pretty cheap.
Reply:Moose, part of the frustration of cast aluminum is the amount of zinc in it. I have welded cast that took a little filler and burring and welded ok and I have welded cast(Kohler carb body) that as soon as you hit it with an arc big pockets drop out, add filler, burr and repeat multiple times.I am sure there is some cast with enough zinc in it it simply will not weld just giving my expiriences.
Reply:I fixed one of those 20 years ago for my Sister-In-Law. Wish I could remember how/what I did???????
Reply:when you see a casting you have really no ideal what metal alloy it is..i bought some scrap "aluminum" from junk yard and was melting it in a small foundry furnace for making sand castings. i open furnace and metal is burning with blinding white flame. i figure i got magnesium instead. i dig groove in dirt and pour metal in groove and since still burning i cover it up with dirt and it burns a good 5 minutes at least even covered up. can see white ash and bright light leaking in spots.point is a casting unless you know what metal alloy it is you can have considerable problems welding it with the wrong alloy filler metal
Reply:A man putting a new roof on my Barn knocked the weather vane down and it broke in half. It appeared to be cast aluminum and it welded very nicely so I guess there wasn't any zinc in it. Zinc is near impossible to deal with if you are using a TIG welder.Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set
Reply:Originally Posted by matt1mortonI beg to differ.  Cast aluminum is a special kind of beast.  Keeping it Super clean (i.e. wire brush on a grinder and then wiping it down with acetone) will help but it still easily creates porosity it the weld.
Reply:There are many varieties of cast aluminum from1000 to 7000 grade and everything in between. There are also all sorts of alloys as well with differing amounts of bronze, magnesium, zinc, lead and you name it. If it welds, it welds, otherwise you are out of luck and probably have some mystery metal. There is cast and then there is cast. LOL.Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set
Reply:Originally Posted by BobIt's a cast aluminum eagle, if it has a little porosity, what will it hurt? He isn't talking about an engine block. I do lots of cast al. for the area powder coater and I don't treat it special in any way. I've never has a failure of any kind.
Reply:I've welded many Harley Pahnead and Shovelhead cylinder heads. They are from 1948 through 1965. They weld beautifully because they are virtually pure aluminum, probably 1000 grade. That was in the era where they were sand casting parts and there were virtually no additives. Later, from the Evolution era, 1985 and on, they started using percentages of silicon and other such additives, apparently to ease the casting process. For that reason the later cylinder heads are very difficult to weld. The worst cast items I ever welded were parts from post-WWII British bikes. They were made from old melted down airplane engines and other similar items. They were full of all sorts of pollutants and would generally cause all sorts of black impurities to come up to the top of the weld puddle. You could do, it, but it wasn't pretty.  LOL.Miller Millermatic 252Miller Syncrowave 200Liincoln AC-DC 225Victor O-A Set