welding up a bellhousing

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friend of mine brought me a th-400 transmission to weld up.. bellhousing is cracked... what would be a good filler rod to use? like 4045?tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/
Reply:Without really knowing specifically what alloy a TH400 is, I would say go with 4043 (consisting of about 5% silicon), because cast aluminum usually has silicon in it so that would be the best match.  4047 (with about 12% silicon) I've heard good things about using for welding dirty cast, but it is much harder to locate than 4043.  4047 is sometimes sold as a brazing rod I've noticed.  It has a lower melting temp but is also a "fast freeze" rod (a eutectic mixture of silicon in aluminum.)  Only a 10 deg F difference between liquidus and solidus temp.To prep, make sure to clean the grease and oils out as best you can and scrub all the oxides off the surface in the area you are welding.  A "bake" of the area to be welded with a torch until oils in the metal are smoking would also be good.  Vee out the cracked areas and fill the gap to ensure penetration.  I would go with about a 45 degree or so bevel so and get your tungsten down in there deep, to get a puddle started deep into the bottom of the vee.  Expect a little distortion (contraction of the weld bead) from the weld.  If you get any stubborn dirty nasty spots, let the work cool, grind out all the dirt and materials surrounding any inclusions to root them out (carbide burr on a die grinder works great for this), then redeposit fresh filler rod in place.  If you can access both sides of a crack, weld both sides.If memory serves you have a TA185, correct?  I'd go heavy on the EN balance % and hit it with all 185 amps you've got to minimize the heat input into the rest of the transmission.  Assuming the bellhousing is relatively thick stuff.  Some pre-heating with an air-propane torch may be helpful if the area to be welded is particularly thick.
Reply:Brake-Kleen works good to get the oils out of the crack(s) as well.  Spray - blow dry, spray - blow dry, repeat as needed until there's no more oil/grim rising to the surface.  Grind out and repeat.It also helps identify the end of the crack(s) as does the heat that jakeru mentioned but don't heat the Brake-Kleen for the reasons stated in past threads regarding the dangerous fumes from burning liquid forms of brake cleaner products.MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:My neighbor gets these from dealers and shops all over, and in my thinking does them a bit wierd.He doesn't spend much time cleaning, maybe some wiping of oil and grinding the crack. When he welds it's very hot and often he'll shove a ton of rod in the puddle sagging it to the other side (I mean a real blob here).After finishing one side he cleans (cuts/grinds off) any mess from melt through and lightly grinds the other side and welds a reinforcing bead on the backside.It's hard to argue about how he does it as it goes pretty quick and folks keep bringing more housings when they bust them. He does much the same when pieces are broken off, so I'm thinking he just sees the junk comming up and sags it through to get rid of it.Must be that practice, practice, practice thing... it just looks wierd.Matt
Reply:Originally Posted by duaneb55Brake-Kleen works good to get the oils out of the crack(s) as well.  Spray - blow dry, spray - blow dry, repeat as needed until there's no more oil/grim rising to the surface.  Grind out and repeat.It also helps identify the end of the crack(s) as does the heat that jakeru mentioned but don't heat the Brake-Kleen for the reasons stated in past threads regarding the dangerous fumes from burning liquid forms of brake cleaner products.
Reply:Would really have to see the bell housing and where and how it is cracked.May need to bolt it up to a steel engine block to keep it from warping and then recheck after welding.It should be tacked and welded on the inside FIRST then welded on the OUTSIDE LAST.Many considerations. I would preheat a weldment that large and that thick before TIG welding..If it is for racing I would not weld it at all.Aluminum is in the as welded state is 64 % strength of the parent metal.For street use it is ok.AWS certified welding inspectorAWS certified welder
Reply:4043 is what i use to tig alu cast stay away from brake clean just not worth the risk -clean clean clean and clean again stainless brush and acetone works best for me-Use carbide not a grinding disc as the disc will just contaminate your weld again  ( i use a skill saw to groove with a die grinder works just as good but takes longer)-use a something as a jig to hold everything in place-weld it up on one side then groove other side weld it then cut out the weld and do it again -and if you want a nice finish wash the casting bubbles out with the tig cheers and hope this helps
Reply:Originally Posted by dave powelson1-Duane, you're presuming that the air blow off will positively remove all the brake cleaner, including that which is mixed with the crud and grime--remaining after blow off and whatever may find it's way into casting pores and on the opposite side of the break.This is somewhat dicey to do--hopefully if one's doing the brake clean route(which has been repeatedly flagged with stickies--as a potentially disablingto fatal method).....then 'hopefully' they'll recognize that particular smelll ofliberated chlorine compounds--which can eat their lungs, before it eats their lungs.Fooling around with brake cleaner as above is a dangerous thing to do.Yes--you do it and get away with it---I won't.
Reply:DuaneI use brake cleaner frequently.  Lot's of it.  I don't have any problems welding with the non-chlorinated stuff.  Still burns my eyes a bit after the heater burns the fumes, but as far as welding goes......no problems.  Spray paint fumes run through the heater burn too.  I just open the overhead door frequently to swap out the air.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Originally Posted by Matt_MaguireMy neighbor gets these from dealers and shops all over, and in my thinking does them a bit wierd.He doesn't spend much time cleaning, maybe some wiping of oil and grinding the crack. When he welds it's very hot and often he'll shove a ton of rod in the puddle sagging it to the other side (I mean a real blob here).After finishing one side he cleans (cuts/grinds off) any mess from melt through and lightly grinds the other side and welds a reinforcing bead on the backside.It's hard to argue about how he does it as it goes pretty quick and folks keep bringing more housings when they bust them. He does much the same when pieces are broken off, so I'm thinking he just sees the junk comming up and sags it through to get rid of it.Must be that practice, practice, practice thing... it just looks wierd.Matt
Reply:5356 is your best bet in this situation.....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:hmm, I have an idea of eventually replacing my tranny with a awd stick tranny & this will require me having to cut a bell housing in half & then weld that to the replacement tranny. the replacement tranny does not use a separate bell housing at all, it's all cast into the main tranny case but I want to cut the front off & then weld the front on from a different bell housing. I'm going to be making somewhere in the neighborhood of 600hp, does this sound like it's doable?miller 330a bp TIGmiller dynasty 200DX TIGmillermatic 185 MIGthermal dynamics cutmaster 101 plasma cuttersnap-on YA5550 plasma cutterhypertherm powermax 30 plasma cutterbaileigh CS225 cold sawetc....
Reply:yup hell of alot less scarey then brake kleen
Reply:Originally Posted by turbocad6hmm, I have an idea of eventually replacing my tranny with a awd stick tranny & this will require me having to cut a bell housing in half & then weld that to the replacement tranny. the replacement tranny does not use a separate bell housing at all, it's all cast into the main tranny case but I want to cut the front off & then weld the front on from a different bell housing. I'm going to be making somewhere in the neighborhood of 600hp, does this sound like it's doable?
Reply:Originally Posted by abecyup hell of alot less scarey then brake kleen
Reply:I have found that once they crack they typically will crack again so I am using this now.  They have them so you can but GM behind a mopar or Ford as well.  NEW JW Ultra Bell Bellhousing Turbo 400 to GMhttp://www.plunderhere.com/auction_d...ion_id=2310998Please dont mistake my enthusiasm for talent!
Reply:Originally Posted by duaneb55Brake-Kleen works good to get the oils out of the crack(s) as well.  Spray - blow dry, spray - blow dry, repeat as needed until there's no more oil/grim rising to the surface.  Grind out and repeat.It also helps identify the end of the crack(s) as does the heat that jakeru mentioned but don't heat the Brake-Kleen for the reasons stated in past threads regarding the dangerous fumes from burning liquid forms of brake cleaner products.
Reply:Originally Posted by turbocad6hmm, I have an idea of eventually replacing my tranny with a awd stick tranny & this will require me having to cut a bell housing in half & then weld that to the replacement tranny. the replacement tranny does not use a separate bell housing at all, it's all cast into the main tranny case but I want to cut the front off & then weld the front on from a different bell housing. I'm going to be making somewhere in the neighborhood of 600hp, does this sound like it's doable?
Reply:I have welded TH-400 tranny's  before and the weld will depend on how clean the casting is....4043 is typically what you use on most cast aluminum any dirt in the casting will show up as a porosity in the weld and not be as strong as possible if it was clean......Does that make sense? Anyway welding should be your LAST option in my opinion....  Miller Dynasty 350Twenty Six HammersThree Crow BarsBig Rock
Reply:Originally Posted by zapster5356 is your best bet in this situation.....zap!