Blew out the side of my forge after a bad weld last Tuesday

Was trying to patch this old brake drum I use as a forge base and the weld just gave up after like 10 minutes of heat. Had to spend the whole next day cutting a new piece of 1/4 inch plate and rewelding it from scratch. Anyone else have luck welding up cast iron for forge parts or am I just asking for trouble?

2 comments

2 Comments

jadep411d ago

Blew out the side of my forge" sums up my whole welding career honestly. I tried welding a cast iron brake drum once for a forge base and it cracked before I even got the fire lit. I think cast iron just hates being welded unless you do all that preheat and slow cool stuff. For forge parts especially, the heat cycles are brutal on it. I stick to mild steel or old propane tanks now, saves me a ton of headache. Good luck with that 1/4 inch plate though, that should hold up way better.

jenny_fox1d ago

Funny you mention that @jadep41, cause I've actually seen guys use cast iron for forge parts and it holds up if you brace it right before the weld. The real trick nobody talks about is adding a steel strap across the backside of the brake drum to take the stress off the weld itself. That way the cast iron isn't carrying all the heat load alone. Preheating the whole thing in a campfire before welding helps too, but I still think mild steel is the way to go long term. That 1/4 inch plate you're putting in now will probably outlast the rest of the forge.