8 3/4 Housing - Is this crazy?

[BPBP440]

Just tore down and cleaned up my 70 B-body 8 3/4 rear. The housing has this terrible welding on it, yet the inside is as it should be. Looks like the flange washed out and it was built up with terrible weld. Factory???

 

[snakeoil24]

Dirty weldmaybe someone tried to mig weld it with gear oil still around. Look for cracks!

 

[gkent]

That, as a factory weld, does not surprise me at all !!! Have you looked at K-member welds ?!?!

 

[RJRENTON]

Dirty weldmaybe someone tried to mig weld it with gear oil still around. Look for cracks!

IMO.....it looks as if it was "welded" by a blind man using the hunt and peck method using his feet.....heavy castings should have been preheated and if I were doing it, I'd use TIG, fof better penetration using pure Argon as the shield gas ....and ER Alloy ER 309L filler metal and is of similar composition as ER 309 except for the carbon content being lower than 0.03%. This lower carbon content reduces the possibility of intergranular carbide precipitation......I'm sure others will have their own opinions and methods.
BOB RENTON

 

[BPBP440]

IMO.....it looks as if it was "welded" by a blind man using the hunt and peck method using his feet.....heavy castings should have been preheated and if I were doing it, I'd use TIG, fof better penetration using pure Argon as the shield gas ....and ER Alloy ER 309L filler metal and is of similar composition as ER 309 except for the carbon content being lower than 0.03%. This lower carbon content reduces the possibility of intergranular carbide precipitation......I'm sure others will have their own opinions and methods.
BOB RENTON

Using his feet … haha. You paint an entertaining picture.

 

[Lefty71]

If there's one thing that pisses me right off, it's intergranular carbide precipitation.

 

[RJRENTON]

Using his feet … haha. You paint an entertaining picture.

Thanks.....one could use stick electrodes.....7018 LH....maybe 1/8" diameter...for better penetration ....horizontal position....but preheat first to 300°F....try and maintain interpass temps using a TEMPEL STICK and post weld cool down......but I'm sure others will have their own methods......
BOB RENTON

 

[RJRENTON]

If there's one thing that pisses me right off, it's intergranular carbide precipitation.

Usually the result of carbide precipitation is bead cracking on cooldown .....
BOB RENTON

 

[steve340]

probably factory - a new welder on his first day on the job perhaps.

 

[toolmanmike]

I have to ask because I am curious. Did the factory use a stick welder back then? I don't know when wire welding started in production.

 

[RemCharger]

Definitely stick on the k frames and shock supports!!

 

[padam]

I don’t think 8-3/4 housings are castings

 

[RemCharger]

I don’t think 8-3/4 housings are castings

You don't have a cast iron 8 3/4 housing??

 

[MCODECUDA]

I have to ask because I am curious. Did the factory use a stick welder back then? I don't know when wire welding started in production.

Mig welders were invented in the late ‘40’s and I would think that the auto industry would have started using them most likely in the ‘50’s because mig welding is much more efficient than stick welding.

 

[eldubb440]

If there's one thing that pisses me right off, it's intergranular carbide precipitation.

that's like hail, right?

 

[33 IMP]

You don't have a cast iron 8 3/4 housing??

Lol. The pumpkin is a casting, what I call the housing is stamped,welded steel.
(But you knew that!)
As for the weld... the brown, nice-looking weld is factory, the rest is a poor weld, by a poor welder. Could have been mine, lol.

 

[Photon440]

IMO.....it looks as if it was "welded" by a blind man using the hunt and peck method using his feet.....heavy castings should have been preheated and if I were doing it, I'd use TIG, fof better penetration using pure Argon as the shield gas ....and ER Alloy ER 309L filler metal and is of similar composition as ER 309 except for the carbon content being lower than 0.03%. This lower carbon content reduces the possibility of intergranular carbide precipitation......I'm sure others will have their own opinions and methods.
BOB RENTON

Isn't ER309 used for stainless alloys? I thought most post WWII axle housings that aren't stamped were cast steel. Unlike cast iron, we had no requirement for preheating with heavy cast steel items on the railroad. There wouldn't be any carbide precipitation on a normal steel casting as that is usually a problem with high chrome alloys.

 

[khryslerkid]

I have to ask because I am curious. Did the factory use a stick welder back then? I don't know when wire welding started in production.

Definitely stick on the k frames and shock supports!!

You can see where they drug the electrode from one spot to the next...

 

[Bighouse]

“It’ll hold ‘til it don’t”

 

[RJRENTON]

Isn't ER309 used for stainless alloys? I thought most post WWII axle housings that aren't stamped were cast steel. Unlike cast iron, we had no requirement for preheating with heavy cast steel items on the railroad. There wouldn't be any carbide precipitation on a normal steel casting as that is usually a problem with high chrome alloys.

Yes.....but it can be used with other materials.....
Application
ER309 is used for the welding of similar alloys in wrought or cast form. It is mostly used for welding dissimilar materials such as mild steel to stainless steel, as well as for a barrier layer in stainless overlays. For some applications, welding of straight chromium steels can be accomplished with this consumable.

Deposited Chemical Composition % (Typical)
C = 0.06	Mo = 0.25	P = 0.018
Cr = 23.50	Mn = 1.80	S = 0.015
Ni = 13.0	Si = 0.40	Cu = 0.20

Class: ER309
AWS: A5.9
Conforms to Certification: AWS A5.9 ASME SFA A5.9
Weld Process Used for Tig (GTAW)
AWS Chemical Composition Requirements
C = 0.12 max
Cr = 23.0 – 25.0
Ni = 12.0 – 14.0
Mo = 0.75 max
Mn = 1.0 – 2.5
Si = 0.30 – 0.65
P = 0.03 max
S = 0.03 max
Cu = 0.75 max

Hope this helps.....
BOB RENTON