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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Oakleigh East, Sunny Vic
    Posts
    3

    Default Broken Cast Iron. I need help.

    Hi,
    HELP!
    I'm working on restoring a very old cast iron sewing table for my wife. Everything was going great until I dropped the last piece and it snapped in 3 places!
    I am told Brazing is the way to go to fix this. I don't know because I cant weld.

    1. Opinions on welding vs brazing cast iron?
    2. I have a small gas torch. It's a Tradeflame Butane gas torch. See Picture. Will it get hot enough to braze? Is this something I can tackle, as someone who has never brazed anything?
    3. What type of welding rod do I braze with?
    4. Can anyone suggest a welder around Oakleigh, Victoria, who could braze this back together? I am prepared to pay. Anyone have an idea of the cost?


    Thank you,

    Steck

    IMG_2069.jpgIMG_3017.jpgIMG_9750.jpg
    Cheers,
    Steck

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Sydney
    Posts
    112

    Default

    1. Options are: Oxy-acetylene fusion welding using silicon CI filler rod; properly done, the repair will be almost invisible when painted. Needs a skilled welder with understanding of expansion, contraction & characteristics of CI.
    Electric arc stick welding using a nickel alloy electrode. Skilled welder as above but not quite as critical.
    Oxy- acetylene brazing using manganese-bronze filler rod. Probably the most forgiving process, but expansion/contraction control is still important. The resulting joint is usually ugly due to required reinforcement.
    2. No.
    3. Manganese bronze.
    4. Sorry, I am in Sydney.

    Chas.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    formerly from Sydney (north of The Harbour), NSW, Oz
    Age
    68
    Posts
    306

    Default

    can't help with a recommendation of who could do the job,

    but the brazing is the easy part -- the hard part is pre-heating and then cooling the cast iron in a controlled manner. Get the preheating and cooling right and the repair can be made to disappear, get it wrong and ...
    regards from Canmore

    ian

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
    Location
    Melbourne
    Age
    54
    Posts
    825

    Default

    G'day Steck,
    That should be a pretty straight forward bronze brazing repair. Your little butane torch will not be up to the job as you'll need oxy acetylene temperatures to bronze something like that.
    I reckon TIG with 316 filler would give you a good workable repair as you have small relatively thick sections with plenty of room to manage expansion & contraction issues.
    CI stick welding rods would do the job ok but they would be my least preferred option for fine repairs like this, harder to get small deposits and cost as they're bloody expensive.
    I'm in Fawkner and would be happy to do the repair if you don't mind coming up to the wild north.
    Cheers,
    Greg.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Southern Highlands NSW
    Posts
    1,894

    Default

    I have a cast iron bench seat here, that had a leg snap off when moving house, back in the '80s.
    It was repaired in such a way as to be invisible when painted.
    I resisted advice to grind a "V" at the joint, just heated the pre-fluxed joint with oxy-acetylene to glowing hot, then the bronze filler rod was introduced, which got right into the joint by capillary action.
    I've been sitting on that bench ever since!

    Jordan

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Far West Wimmera
    Age
    63
    Posts
    4,049

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by nadroj View Post
    I have a cast iron bench seat here, that had a leg snap off when moving house, back in the '80s.
    It was repaired in such a way as to be invisible when painted.
    I resisted advice to grind a "V" at the joint, just heated the pre-fluxed joint with oxy-acetylene to glowing hot, then the bronze filler rod was introduced, which got right into the joint by capillary action.
    I've been sitting on that bench ever since!

    Jordan
    Bet you have a sore backside by now!

    Dean

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Oakleigh East, Sunny Vic
    Posts
    3

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by kwijibo99 View Post
    G'day Steck,
    That should be a pretty straight forward bronze brazing repair.
    I'm in Fawkner and would be happy to do the repair if you don't mind coming up to the wild north.
    Cheers,
    Greg.
    Hi Greg,
    I am happy to come up to Fawkner to get this fixed.
    I will send you a PM.
    Thanks,
    Steve
    Cheers,
    Steck

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Oakleigh East, Sunny Vic
    Posts
    3

    Default

    I just took my broken cast iron over to kwijibo99 who did an excellent job saving my cast iron with a TIG welder.

    Many many thank yous!
    Cheers,
    Steck

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