Preheating aluminum head?

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I need to weld up a crack in a cast aluminum head however it is an inline 6 head so it won't fit in my oven even if I tried to stick it in at an angle. Would sticking it on top of my wood burner suffice or would that be to uneven of a heating and post cooling? I used the wood burner for the final stages of my shear repair but that wasn't as crucial as this.The other thought I had was to fashion a bigger temporary oven box using the elements and stuff from my existing oven just to get the job done but it seems like quite a bit of work for a one time deal.Any suggestions?The shear head on the wood burner:
Reply:Will it fit in your gas grill?.No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I'll have to measure but I doubt it. The head is 30" end to end. Great idea though!
Reply:Grill is 27"
Reply:You need a bigger grill!   I assume you checked diagonal as well. One option might be to make a "box" you can sit on your grill top to extend it's size. The lids on most come off with just a few pins. For a new lid you'd only need a piece of plate.I could also see possibilities with a big weed burner and an old 55 gal drum. A BBQ thermometer would let you regulate the inside temps and the large volume would help avoid hot spots. You'd need to build some sort of support rack to set the head on inside. You could either hang it vertical, or do it with the drum laying down..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I do have a burning barrel out back, that is one option I guess.
Reply:Anyone ever use a ready heater for preheating? I have used it for heating parts before for other reasons like paint or cleaning but never thought of using it for preheating.
Reply:Seems like aluminum is so darn conductive of heat, any old method of heating it would work if you gave it a couple minutes to equalize...O/A torch, propane ice melter, wood fire, whatever ... what did you end up doing?
Reply:Myself....I have never had to pre or post heat a head for repair and have had great success with them all..But that's just me....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:Originally Posted by zapsterMyself....I have never had to pre or post heat a head for repair and have had great success with them all..
Reply:Originally Posted by zapsterMyself....I have never had to pre or post heat a head for repair and have had great success with them all..But that's just me....zap!
Reply:Originally Posted by KelvinWould that be with the 330A/BP set to "STUN" ... or "KILL"?
Reply:Had to weld up some bosses for overhead cam on an Audi  5 cylinder (hey, its almost a 6).Simply used a Millermatic 200 with a spool gun (neighbors, before I had a spool gun of my own).  Welded fine.. When back with a die-grinder to smooth things out, saw that I had good penetration.  In this case I had a stud in the head to try to prevent damaging the threads.  stud slightly melted, but I got it out.  Heli-coil + some cleanup with a file and it was good to go.  I left enough of the boss 'virgin' so I knew roughly how far to file it down.  Just filed it until the cap sat on it straight.  Most of the stress was on the stud.No pre-heat.  It was a small area but it was under significant stress (valve springs pressing against it).Con Fuse!Miller Dynasty 350Millermatic 350P-Spoolmatic 30AMiller Multimatic 200Hypertherm PowerMax 1000G3Miller Maxstar 200DX
Reply:I'll bet a few minutes with a propane powered weed burner would be more than long enough.
Reply:All is good! Ready to head to the machine shop.The water port erosion, same around every one.Welded up.All the ports welded up.
Reply:Looks a lot like a Jaguar head?Dynasty 300DXSmith He/Ar gas mixerMM350PHobart Handler 120Smith LW7, MW5, AW1A
Reply:It is a jaguar head, a numbers matching jag head to be exact.
Reply:Nice work.. I guess that Carls Jr/Hardees meal gave ya the extra confidence  1st on WeldingWeb to have a scrolling sig! HTP Invertig 400HTP Invertig 221HTP ProPulse 300HTP ProPulse 200 x2HTP ProPulse 220MTSHTP Inverarc 200TLP HTP Microcut 875SC
Reply:Originally Posted by OscarNice work.. I guess that Carls Jr/Hardees meal gave ya the extra confidence
Reply:Originally Posted by VPTIt is a jaguar head
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Reply:Originally Posted by KelvinIf it doesn't work, I guess the consolation is that they never ran worth a darn in the first place!
Reply:Originally Posted by 4sfedIn '64, when the GTO needed 389 C.I. to make 325 hp, Jaguar made 265 hp from 258 C.I.
Reply:This car only has 3 carbs, should be a cake walk to set up.
Reply:Probably don't even need to preheat it. If you do, set it across the stove... for next time anyway.Also, I wouldn't heat it above operating temps.Welding/Fab Pics: www.UtahWeld.comIf I didn't preheat the crack would have never gotten fixed, it would still be sitting on my bench,cracked. lolThe welding I did around the water ports did bring the head up to operating temps which wasn't enough to overcome thermal contraction and cracking of the weld.
Reply:How many amps were you throwing at it?Welding/Fab Pics: www.UtahWeld.com
Reply:I had the machine on 175 but using the peddle. I would say I was around 125 on the peddle or so to keep the puddle under control and not have it drop out. I tried everything from cutting the arc fast to very very slowly dropping the arc after welding and every time it would open up like an artichoke.
Reply:You were experiencing a hot cracking problem, you say?  (Like a hairline crack at the weld bead?)  If so, could have been caused by using crack-sensitive parent/filler rod combination.(Certain %'s of certain alloying ingredients in aluminum are very sensitive to this type of cracking when the weld bead is solidifying.)The pics looks like they might have been OK, though?
Reply:Well after heating the head it welded just fine. Those were the pics I posted, I never took or posted pics of the welds that cracked because I ground them back out right away. It was when I tried welding the crack I cut out without much preheating is when the weld would crack as it cooled. I have seen this before and pretty much knew I had to heat the head to get it to weld right.The filler used was a A356