welding on cases question...

[jcs003]

i have a hair line crack on my engine case near where the swingarm pivot point sits.

can it be welded with the motor assembled?

will heat cause issues in the tranny??

or should i epoxy it and let it be???

[05LSR250R]

You should be able to get away with Tiggin it right in place! But only if you have a skilled person doing it!Is there oil behind the crack as it sits right now?

[jcs003]

Originally posted by 05LSR250R
You should be able to get away with Tiggin it right in place! But only if you have a skilled person doing it!Is there oil behind the crack as it sits right now?

no oil. it is one of my spare motors that i am going to use in my hybrid. i heated it for a minute or so with a propane torch to confirm the crack wasn't a blemish. does a tig use less heat than that?

[05LSR250R]

Tigs use very low heat! Thats why there so desirable.

[jcs003]

Originally posted by 05LSR250R
Tigs use very low heat! Thats why there so desirable.

that sounds good. i was a bit worried about using the torch, but that is the only way the crack would "show it self" to where i knew it wasn't just an imperfection.

[05LSR250R]

The crack doesnt run across the gasket area does it? Sometimes you have to find the end of each crack and then drill a small hole at each end of it! That way the crack wont run on you! I would recommend it!

[jcs003]

Originally posted by 05LSR250R
The crack doesnt run across the gasket area does it? Sometimes you have to find the end of each crack and then drill a small hole at each end of it! That way the crack wont run on you! I would recommend it!

it is only on the left case where the swingarm recess is. behind the sprocket.

[brian350rx]

tig welding it will use more heat than a propane torch - as long as there arent any seals close to it you'll be fine.
and anytime you weld a case or something that has held oil - the oil will pull to the surface when you weld it. clean it as well as possible before hand!

[jcs003]

Originally posted by brian350rx
tig welding it will use more heat than a propane torch - as long as there arent any seals close to it you'll be fine.
and anytime you weld a case or something that has held oil - the oil will pull to the surface when you weld it. clean it as well as possible before hand!

about what would this cost?

[regg187]

I had a case welded a few years ago, off the bike and it was 20 bucks, so I'd guess about 50 now and on the bike , unless you find a 'friendly welder' , I'm sure one of your buddies isn't gonna have a TIG at home. thank god I found a new friend who welds at a shop that builds A-arms, my stuff gets done for beer now!!!

[Swiper77]

I'm not the best tig welder ever but I have welded cases before and I would NOT weld on the cases unless they are stripped down and tore apart and cleaned with preferably Braklean or some good solvent to remove as much oil as humanly posible. Good luck trying it on the bike but I highly doubt you will get a decent looking good quality weld without tearing it down.

[jcs003]

Originally posted by Swiper77
I'm not the best tig welder ever but I have welded cases before and I would NOT weld on the cases unless they are stripped down and tore apart and cleaned with preferably Braklean or some good solvent to remove as much oil as humanly posible. Good luck trying it on the bike but I highly doubt you will get a decent looking good quality weld without tearing it down.

it is a hairline crack and i want to nip it in the bud. thanks for the advice i will keep it in perspective when it comes to an engine.

[Swiper77]

To prep the case to weld regardless you will need to grind out where you will be welding to get penetration since aluminum welds nothing like steel or stainless. There is no need to drill a hole at the end of the crack that is more for plastic than metal. But you will need to feather out the area where the crack is for 2 reasons one to remove any foreign material and to give more surface area to lay the bead to. If you have someone weld it for you you might recommend Rockmounts Neptune fill rod it works extremely well.

[jcs003]

Originally posted by Swiper77
To prep the case to weld regardless you will need to grind out where you will be welding to get penetration since aluminum welds nothing like steel or stainless. There is no need to drill a hole at the end of the crack that is more for plastic than metal. But you will need to feather out the area where the crack is for 2 reasons one to remove any foreign material and to give more surface area to lay the bead to. If you have someone weld it for you you might recommend Rockmounts Neptune fill rod it works extremely well.

i looked at their soldering products. neptune s/ss seem the way to go. but it may be getting expensive at this point.

[IcutMetl]

Drilling a hole at either end of a crack is more for plastic than for metal? Done it on metal plenty of times when I couldn't get a crack to stop propigating, especially on cast iron. It's an old machinist's/dieworkers trick from way back.

I personally think it would be sketchy to weld a case when on the bike. Cast aluminum itself is tricky enough to weld w/o porosity, and cast aluminum that's been in contact with oil...well that's just nasty, even if preheated. Whoever said to clean it well is absolutely right...it can't be clean enough. Your welding shop will sell aluminum cleaner, which is nothing more than hopped up acid. I used to use industrial toilet bowl cleaner on mold bases in a pinch. If it's anywhere close to a critical component, I'd be leary, but I'm not the motor guru here. Good luck!

[trx310R#24]

jb weld it its not worth all the bull*sh-it of welding. i mean im all for making things look nice but like i said not worth it.

[Aceman]

Originally posted by trx310R#24
jb weld it its not worth all the bull*sh-it of welding. i mean im all for making things look nice but like i said not worth it.

Yeah, listen to this guy. He must know what he's talking about, it's clear a cracked case is purely cosmetic and can be fixed with with something half-@ss like jb weld.

I have a better idea, save your bad advice for working on your own broke down pieces of chit and I'll remember to never buy anything from you. Deal?

To the OP:

I've had a similar crack welded also. I'd suggest cracking the cases to fix it. I might even be inclined to leave it until the next rebuild if it's only a hairline crack too. The weldor that did mine had to tig it, then grind the weld away because it pulled all the impurities out of the cast aluminum and then reweld it. It looked great when it was finished.

[jcs003]

thanks for the help guys. swiper77 sent in the right direction. i am ordering rockmounts "neptune ss" soldering rod and a friend that welds for a living is going to do it. it can be done with low heat and warping and seal issues are null.

[86 Quad R]

i've heard nuttin but goed things about those rods.............. be sure to post some pics of the results. :cool: