In a pinch, can you use nickels (coins) to braze?

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Nickel coins are 75% copper, 25% nickel. If you just need to fill some holes or something not load bearing, can you just clean up a nickel with a wire wheel , apply some flux, and torch it?"To tell which polarity to use go to the bathroom and pour some water down the drain. If it runs clockwise use straight polarity. If it runs counter-clockwise use reverse polarity. Or if it just gurgles use alternating current." -RandomDave
Reply:I am sure Clint Eastwood could do it if he was in prison but unless you were on a deserted island and thats all you had. I would just use the right wire...BobBob WrightSalem, Ohio  Birthplace of the Silver & Deming Drillhttp://groups.yahoo.com/group/southbend10k/http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sawking/1999 Miller MM185 w/ Miller 185 Spoolmate spoolgun
Reply:If your macgyver you can.[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UILxQY9TQ5w"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UILxQY9TQ5w[/ame]
Reply:I've "heard" of plummers using pennies to repair holes in the old bronze water heater tanks. Not tried personally.200amp Air Liquide MIG, Hypertherm Plasma, Harris torches, Optrel helmet, Makita angle grinders, Pre-China Delta chop saw and belt sander, Miller leathers, shop made jigs etc, North- welders backpack.
Reply:I thought pennies were a copper shell over zinc.  Older pennies may have actually been all copper.Edit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cent_(United_States_coin) says the new ones are 97.5% zinc.  The ones 1982 and back are at least 95% copper (ignoring the steel ones during WWII and some really old ones you'd be a idiot for melting down)Last edited by AndyA; 05-05-2010 at 12:53 PM.Dynasty200DX w/coolmate1MM210MM VintageESAB miniarc161ltsLincoln AC225Victor O/A, Smith AW1ACutmaster 81IR 2475N7.5FPRage3Jancy USA1019" SBAEAD-200LE
Reply:Originally Posted by AndyAI thought pennies were a copper shell over zinc.  Older pennies may have actually been all copper.Edit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cent_(United_States_coin) says the new ones are 97.5% zinc.  The ones 1982 and back are at least 95% copper (ignoring the steel ones during WWII and some really old ones you'd be a idiot for melting down)
Reply:I was working on my motorcycle's exhaust header pipes. I have no idea why, but I just can not for the life of me get a good weld on the headpipes. I can practice on scrap metal, be confident, and then when I go to work on the actual piece, I get this.I spend a few hours trying to weld with 7014, 6013, 6011, and trying all the settings I can, but for some reason, nothing works. I thought maybe it was that I'm using basic rods on some special type of stainless steel that rusts. Later someone told me that the carbon build up inside the headers from running the bike excessivly rich could be causing me problems. Anyway...Then I come up with the idea of just brazing it with oxygen and propane. The joint is strong enough, it's just not air tight. If only I had some other metal that would melt before steel but bond to it reasonably well...something like copper or nickle or silver. But, you know...cheap. Thanks to the US government, we now get a huge supply of a blend of 75% copper 25% nickle....for only 1/2 the value of the metal alone!Heck, I can spare 50 cents to give it a shot.Yeah, this'll work great....Or not. I guess I need more heat. Remember back in chemistry class when they were talking about how lithium burns red, magnesium burns white, and copper burns.....Green?Still not melting, though...just burning. (Yes, nickels really are 75% copper).Maybe I need more concentrated heat. I ditch the rosebud for a welding tip. That's a little better, but still not hot enough. Maybe if I could rub and smear the metal into the gaps....but my gloves aren't that heat resistant. It will come as no surprise to any of you that it took me a lot of grinding to be able to open the far pair of visegrips again. It sort of worked, if you've got a few days to kill per each pipe. There's got to be a better way. Like....Glue. Hm. I wonder if I can glue my exhaust pipes together?$5 later, I have some 2000*F sodium silicate glue. I use a putty knife to push that in all the holes, then use exhaust wrap (which, as far as I can tell, is identical to fiberglass wood stove gasket) as a reinforcing medium. So, in conclusion, I'd imagine that any of you probably could use nickels to braze. But I suck at all forms of welding and brazing, so I can't."To tell which polarity to use go to the bathroom and pour some water down the drain. If it runs clockwise use straight polarity. If it runs counter-clockwise use reverse polarity. Or if it just gurgles use alternating current." -RandomDave
Reply:You need flux.  The white flux meant for bronze brazing will work in a pinch, but that alloy melts at a hotter temperature which is why nickel-silver (what it's called) rods often have a blue flux coating, which is a slightly different composition.
Reply:remember the melting point of nickel is actually higher than that of steel, and cupronickel alloys melt right around the temperature of steel.  you can't braze with them. They can be welded to  steel but certainly not using an OA torch with no filler or flux, also the alloy used in nickels is high in manganese which makes it potentially crack when welded to steel.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CupronickelFor all the money and time you spend, whey didn't you grind it down flush, gap it about a 1/6th of an inch and silicone bronze  braze it?  was it thick wall it probably coulda been welded just fine with 6011, it looks like your welds were extremely cold and weren't sitting in right.  The carbon soot wouldn't affect the weld appearance that much, the weld would literally dissolve the carbon into the steel.If that aint a mickey mouse fix, i don't know what is...Welding EngineerCertified Scrap Producer
Reply:Oops, I think I missed a picture.It's some plumbing flux. I'm not sure how well it works at higher temperatures, because it seems to be flammable. It's probably just for soldering, but it was the only thing sold within 30 miles.Now that I've looked up Curponickel, I see it's probably not a good thing for brazing. I know the welds look cold, but I just couldn't stop burning through the metal. I'd started with 3/32 6011 and 7014, and when I couldn't stop burning through went to 1/16 7014 at like 40amps. I really haven't been able to find any brazing rods around here except for really expensive silver ones. I'll look into silione bronze rods, maybe order some online."To tell which polarity to use go to the bathroom and pour some water down the drain. If it runs clockwise use straight polarity. If it runs counter-clockwise use reverse polarity. Or if it just gurgles use alternating current." -RandomDave
Reply:yah that's copper flux, don't think it will do much at those temperatures or for steel. In fact the chlorines in those might even be harmful if I remember correctly.http://www.shoplet.com/Anchor-brand-...BRZ332X36/spdvhttp://www.airgas.com/browse/product...aspx?catID=126look around you can probably find a better deal, Silicone bronze is a fairly common filler, does great on gaping spans and building up material that have problems being blown through.  Used to use it all the time when I was a sheet metal welder.Welding EngineerCertified Scrap Producer
Reply:Originally Posted by Metarinka  The carbon soot wouldn't affect the weld appearance that much, the weld would literally dissolve the carbon into the steel.
Reply:Okay, thanks for the responses. You inspired me to try it again on another bike, using silicone bronze brazing instead.This exhaust was from a 2-cylinder bike, into two seperate mufflers. I bought a replacement carbon fiber muffler, so I needed to to make the 2 exhausts go into 1.I take off the exhaust headers, cut out the crossover pipe, shorten one side, and losely put them back on so they touch in the approximate position. Then I tack weld the headers in place, and take them off again. Find some scrap metal lying around, and form it roughly into shape.Now to braze!Oh, it's pretty gold... I wasn't really thinking about that, since the rods are white (flux coated, of course)Then I ground down all the lumps, made sure it was air-tight by plugging the ends and blowing cigarette smoke into it, then touching up where the smoke came out, attacked it again with the angle grinder to make it pretty, and then painted it black with a ceramic paint for wood-burning stoves. It's slow going, but a HECK of a lot easier then stick welding it--and since I only had to do it once, about 10 times faster in the long run.Last edited by Skippii; 05-27-2010 at 01:34 AM."To tell which polarity to use go to the bathroom and pour some water down the drain. If it runs clockwise use straight polarity. If it runs counter-clockwise use reverse polarity. Or if it just gurgles use alternating current." -RandomDave
Reply:It hurts... Oh, it hurts so bad.My GF is from Virginia; she's proud of your efforts!! As such, and as a moderator, I will offer some advice. Not because I want to see this project succeed, but because my sides hurt from laughing, and I am out of Tums and Pepto Bismol.Work at getting very good fit-up on your parts. That last patch was pretty good, and then I can only imagine it went buck-wild once you added some heat.Use several clamps to pinch the metal onto the pipe tight; use the heat sparingly, and just braze a small section on several sides of the patch. Move the clamps, and again add some heat and close the part up. You do not need to bury the pipe in braze, it will seal like a good solder if the fit is tight. Try to braze as close to the clamp as you can, it will warp much less.And keep the moonshine as far away as you can; I don't want to see you in a fireball.....And then, after so much work...... you have it in your hand, and you look over to your side...... and the runner has run off. Leaving you holding the prize, wondering when the runner will return.