aluminum welding

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Looking info on mig welding older Harley aluminum castings. Am not a profesional welder although have very sucesfully TIG welded and machined many many(well over 100) older Harley castings with my old 300 amp P&H but it can be very time consuming and frustrating to finaly get rid of impurities have a good weld. The examples i have seen of so called profesional MIG welding on these cases have been ,at best,less than desierable and took a lot of grinding and TIG welding to repair. As wire feed is much faster, if i was to purchase a wire feed could i expect good results if i was able  master it use, or is it naturaly messy,nasty and porous on these old castings  even with careful prep and or preheat . Will appreciate input.Yours.Ben
Reply:If you are talking about stock Harley engine parts (cases, jugs, and heads) then aluminum isn't what you are welding.  That's pot metal.If you are talking about S&S, Delkron, and some other aftermarket engines then you are welding aluminum.  I wouldn't try MIG on them.  I've done a little stick on them but it is ugly.  TIG would likely be the only successful non-ugly repair.  Brazing is possible if it isn't a part that is going to be subjected to a lot of stress.Just my .02GravelThe difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference.
Reply:Mig will always be messy on old cast pcs stick to the tig I always use it for cast pcs works better and you can wash the impurities out with the tig welder.
Reply:The weld quality and astetics is a direct correlation to the metal that is being Welded regardless of the process. Cast aluminum has impurities, silicone etc.. That contaminates the weld
Reply:As mentioned in original post have tig welded and machined many,many Harley cases ALL sucessfuly. The majority of the oem  sand cast harley cases tig weld as good as properly cleaned 6061. A few DO  take some time and effort. They damm sure are NOT potmetal  ,perhaps you were cofusing then  with japscrap?? The question was would mig be be viable  as is much faster.  By the way,just how do you braze aluminum??  Ben
Reply:Makes Popcorn,  This should get interesting..Tiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Originally Posted by soutthpawMakes Popcorn,  This should get interesting..
Reply:Sounds like you have it covered. Carry on. Buy an aluminum MIG rig, maybe you can teach us all a thing or two...GravelThe difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference.
Reply:Pass the popcorn please.
Reply:MIG is faster than TIG, but almost all castings have impurities, sand, etc. and TIG is a much better process than MIG for dealing with these inclusions."Pot Metal" is a general term for zinc-based alloys which are totally unsuitable for engine components. If they were pot metal you wouldn't be able to TIG them either. Some small decorative parts may be made from pot metal but certainly not heads, crank cases, etc.JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps
Reply:Originally Posted by GravelIf you are talking about stock Harley engine parts (cases, jugs, and heads) then aluminum isn't what you are welding.  That's pot metal.
Reply:Originally Posted by urganbAs mentioned in original post have tig welded and machined many,many Harley cases ALL sucessfuly. The majority of the oem  sand cast harley cases tig weld as good as properly cleaned 6061. A few DO  take some time and effort. They damm sure are NOT potmetal  ,perhaps you were cofusing then  with japscrap?? The question was would mig be be viable  as is much faster.  By the way,just how do you braze aluminum??  Ben
Reply:Most commonly it is jugs because they have a steel sleeve inside. Seen some worse than others. I don't own, ride, or work on "metric" bikes.GravelThe difference between theory and practice is that in theory there is no difference.
Reply:Urganb/Ben, i have a spool gun/mig set up and have welded aluminum on occasion with great success. However i have not spent much time doing what you are doing. When i use my mig on aluminum i really like to have a test piece to set up on but most of the time i have to wing it. I welded two conduit benders and they were a cast aluminum. Both turned out very good. I will tell you that i use a small propane torch to preheat my parts with and have seen a noticeable difference in the start of my weld bead. In my opinion you will never get the looks of the tig when using the mig on aluminum. Just remember when talking about a mig on aluminum get bigger machine because aluminum soaks up the heat quickly which requires more amps. I use the Hobart 210 MVP/spoolmate 100 and love it.Fireman BillHH 210 MVPMM 211 Spoolmate 100Lotas LTP5000D PlasmaOxy/Accet (Victor)Wards AC/DC buzz box30 ton old hyd pressA few brand name toolsA bunch of cheap toolsA wife to worry me and4 dogs to supervise me
Reply:This is how you braze aluminum:SqWave 200Millermatic 190Airco 200 ACHypertherm PM45Boice-Crane Band SawVictor O/A
Reply:Wait!Where is Mr. Multiplaz? Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:Originally Posted by shovelonWait!Where is Mr. Multiplaz?
Reply:Originally Posted by dave powelson'The question was would mig be be viable  as is much faster.'The answer's no.A high end ac/dc tig inverter--specifically the Dynasty 350, allows for infinite arc tailoring in AC.One can weld new or repair AL 5X faster than with an old tranny machine.For case/block/head/casting work, it can exquisitely do what a tranny or older inverteror limited function inverter can not.
Reply:Originally Posted by 4sfedA little off topic, but is it wave shape, frequency, pulse or something else that makes the 350 the go-to machine?Thanks,
Reply:Originally Posted by MinnesotaDaveHere is a miller video on the 350.  It's pretty cool Apparently, even the amps are adjustable individually on the neg and pos side, so not only more negative balance, but more negative amps as well?  I'd likely never need that but it's interesting.  But if I'm not seeing things, right at the end of the video (about 3:48) they zoom in and there is a weld that is cracked down the center.Probably not what they were after - but the machine looks like it welds nice.
Reply:Originally Posted by urganbLooking info on mig welding older Harley aluminum castings. Am not a profesional welder although have very sucesfully TIG welded and machined many many(well over 100) older Harley castings with my old 300 amp P&H but it can be very time consuming and frustrating to finaly get rid of impurities have a good weld. The examples i have seen of so called profesional MIG welding on these cases have been ,at best,less than desierable and took a lot of grinding and TIG welding to repair. As wire feed is much faster, if i was to purchase a wire feed could i expect good results if i was able  master it use, or is it naturaly messy,nasty and porous on these old castings  even with careful prep and or preheat . Will appreciate input.Yours.Ben
Reply:Originally Posted by 4sfedA little off topic, but is it wave shape, frequency, pulse or something else that makes the 350 the go-to machine?Thanks,
Reply:Originally Posted by docwelderurg; if you really welded on well over a hundred bikes and can tig weld you are or must be a pro. why would you want to futz around with the mig process when heli-arc looks so much better?
Reply:Originally Posted by urganb. As stated , am NOT a professional welder,do not know symbols or codes and have no wish to and yes, at 82 years old i have really sucessfully welded AND machined over 100 Harley engine and transmission cases and heads. What does that have to do with my original and only question re mig ??. As am computer ignorant  ,how do i get rid of my posts prior to deleting this site from my computer??--can not locate a edit posts header --
Reply:Originally Posted by urganb. As stated , am NOT a professional welder,do not know symbols or codes and have no wish to and yes, at 82 years old i have really sucessfully welded AND machined over 100 Harley engine and transmission cases and heads. What does that have to do with my original and only question re mig ??. As am computer ignorant  ,how do i get rid of my posts prior to deleting this site from my computer??--can not locate a edit posts header --