Recycling aluminum road signs

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My local scrap metal place has tons of old road signs and I want to use them for my projects.I am curious if anyone knows what the alloy is and how well they weld with tig. The scrap iron guy says it is "really high grade stuff cause the city always uses expensive stuff". despite the obvious logic errors with this statement, I think he is full of BS.
Reply:Most are are signs are metal around here they have a big issue with people taking them and using them for sheet metal. Seen a couple of bush hogs with speed limit signs for decking and some rat rods using them as kicker pans. lolVantage 300 kubota ,miller 304 xmt ,lincoln ln 25 pro , ranger 305 G, plenty of other tools of the trade to make the sparks fly.
Reply:Usually 6061 is the cheapest, so thats what they use.The aluminum should tig weld fine, but sometimes its really hard to get the stickers off.Or, if they are painted, its a baked on enamel that doesnt come off easy, either.My buddy Boris makes chairs, bowls, and other products from them, leaving the stickers on- less work, more profit-http://www.borisbally.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by RiesUsually 6061 is the cheapest, so thats what they use.http://www.borisbally.com/
Reply:well the stickers come off quite easily with some heat and some acetone for the remaining adhesive.if not 6061, what do you think then? how could i test it?any thoughts on how they anodize?
Reply:Well, I welded some up. 1/8" thick. Welded very nice with 4043 rod and green tungsten. A bit sensitive to heat though. Some extensive googlein' led me to agree that it is most likely 6061. See link, read towards the bottom of pagehttp://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/s...d.php?t=308777Also found they are annealed, which is why they crack when bent in a brake. Link explains how to soften it for bending.
Reply:Originally Posted by phyisisist777Also found they are annealed, which is why they crack when bent in a brake. Link explains how to soften it for bending.
Reply:Originally Posted by RiesUsually 6061 is the cheapest, so thats what they use.The aluminum should tig weld fine, but sometimes its really hard to get the stickers off.Or, if they are painted, its a baked on enamel that doesnt come off easy, either.My buddy Boris makes chairs, bowls, and other products from them, leaving the stickers on- less work, more profit-http://www.borisbally.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by A SquaredIf they were annealed, they wouldn't crack.  They're tempered and need to be annealed before bending.  Or maybe that's what you meant.