Any metallurgy experts here? Welding gone awry!

[JohnnyK]

Was trying to weld onto a vice I had sitting here, and after making a long bead at max heat, I just snapped it off.



Looks kinda funny in there. Doesn't look like a normal weld on heat treated steel would be, does it? So I'm not sure what it is!

Thanks guys!

[John Evans]

The vise may be cast iron?

[JohnnyK]

That's what I was starting to wonder. Is that what it would look like? Just looked like hardened steel to me on the outside, but I seem to be wrong about that.

[hammermill]

cant argue with the opinion of it being cast iron looks like oops put a grinder to it and look at the sparks

[JohnnyK]

So you're saying cast iron as well?

[spro]

JK. It was good it was a large piece. Something like a gear tooth or fine casting would have been blasted away. there are really good Ni rods and stuff for iron but usually beforehand or by screwing with it the base gets good and Hot.

[JackF]

JK,

I'm just curious, why were you welding on the vice? Was there a crack or were you fixing a OOOPS?

Jack.

[Bill Shields]

99% chance it is cast

[JohnnyK]

I needed a vice for my milling machine so I milled some 'legs' for it with .5" slots in it to bolt to the table, so I was going to weld those to the sides of it. Guess I'm screwed, eh?

[ken572]

Hello JohnnyK, (No Fans Etc.,)

The best rods you will find at any welding supply store will be work anealing exotic type
rods 120,000 lb. T.S. for cast and dissimilar metals.

If you were trying to fix a crack, you will want to drill through and just below the crack on
each end of the crack. Now grind a VEE the full length of the crack and in deep enough to
be just under the crack. ( If Possible).

Your piece's you should grind so when set up in position to weld they will be a VEE.

Purchase enough fire bricks to build a temporary oven type wall and top completely covering
your work.

Purchase or make a Natural Gas gun type burner to slide into where one of the brick is. light it up and let it preheat the entire piece for one or two hours until the piece kind of radiate's a slight light grayish heat coming off of it. once up to preheat open up just the areaover the crack while keeping the preheat on and skip weld the root in. when the root is all in, chip it, Peen it, brush it, and put in your next pass.
Then Chip it, Peen it, brush it, Keep repeating this until you have aprox 1\2 your rod diameter above the surface of the piece.

In your VEE that you ground you should have your Root Pass on the bottom, two passes on that, three passes on that and so on.
Your final cover pass will be across and back and forth the full length of the repair. Chip it, Peen it, Brush it. Cover your work area back up with the brick you removed. keep the gas heat on for another 15 to thirty minutes and shut off gas. Cover the fire brick with tin foil
and leave it for 12 to 24 hours slow cool. When cool you can cross flush grind it.
Ken.

[JackF]

JK,

I am not a welder by trade but it sounds like Ken may be or at least has the knowledge. If you have the ability to follow his directions that would be the way to go. If however you don't have the ability to do that then there may be another option. In either case the best option is to buy a vice with ears already on it and slots milled in the bottom for keys to locate the vice in your mills table slots. The option you may wish to try is this. Find or machine a slot block for a snug fit in your table slot. Place this slot block in the slot in your table, invert your vice and screw the jaws to grip the slot block. You will need to support the rear of the vice with a block and shims or if it will fit, a machinist jack. Now, on both sides of the bottom of the vice machine a slot to accept keys the same width as your table slots. the key slots need be no deeper than .1875. Find some key stock or machine the slot block you made and place in the new slots of the vice. Attach the keys by whatever method you choose. You can now place the vice on the table and use standard table clamps to hold the vice in position. If either of these choices seem too complicated your best bet is to buy a vice to suit your needs.

Jack.

[John Evans]

If you must/need to use that vise on your mill JackF's idea would be a good way to go. That style vise is normally used on a magnetic chuck on a grinder or in a larger vise on a mill ,shaper etc.