Europa TCST

[dakazman]

 Turbo,  Good to see again . 

    Getting past our hurdles is the best story coming out of this. Wow , you laid it down nicely. 👌👌

Now your in control again.
Dakazman


   

   

[BDA]

Great start, Turbo! I’ll bet you’ll stack that loose change into a stack of dimes in no time!

[TurboFource]

Scrubbed inside of T-section as best I could and treated with Ospho will I still have reasonable access before welding last two pieces in....it's already turning to iron phosphate....will prime with rust preventative tractor primer....

Repaired rear frame section.

Welded closing plate nuts and drilled "spot" weld holes for bottom T-section piece.

Welded chassis to T-section between lower 2 welds with silicon bronze as this area is prone to crack.

Added horizontal holes for master cylinder mounting to facilitate all options....

Going to add a couple of 1" square tubing pieces for jacking support......I already opened up the hole for steering joint access.....are there any other chassis upgrades that could be done at this point?

[jbcollier]

Careful with brazing.  While material temperatures "should" be lower, it easy to go too high, especially with thin sheet metal.  This affects the metal more than straight MIG/TIG because a larger area is heated for a longer time.

It's the same with seam welding, which I see you have also done.  You think it would be better.  But, unless it is carefully and skillfully done, you end up with a weaker, embrittled, structure.

If you are ticketed, skilled welder, naturally ignore the above but I didn't want other, less-skilled, people following your example.

[TurboFource]

It was done with my TIG welder not oxy/acetylene. And for short durations.

[GavinT]

Looking good, Turbo.

Out of curiosity, have you encountered much in the way of distortion happening with that front T section?

[TurboFource]

It does not seem to be Gavin. Going slow, letting it cool, fairly low amperage since it is thin.
Nothing has buckled or distorted...the circled area shows back side of where I welded with silicon bronze to strengthen the lower chassis to T-section weld....miminal heat input....

[TurboFource]

JB brought up a good point a couple of posts ago.

I am just documenting my build and do not recommend anyone repair or modify their chassis or suspension components etc. as your skills, experience, thoughts, etc are probably different than mine and these are no areas to learn welding.

My experience includes:
-Time served in the Air Force as an aircraft machinist and welder certified to weld titanium, magnesium, aluminum, stainless and carbon steel. I also did a lot of silver soldering here.
-I have been an AWS Certified Welding Inspector.
-I have rebuilt/upgraded high speed precision industrial manufacturing equipment.
-Fabricated custom made industrial agitators.
-Programmed industrial robotic welding equipment.
-Did machine work for a race car shop.
-Worked in the service department of 2 Honda motorcycle dealerships while in school.
-I am currently a boiler and pressure vessel inspector.

If in doubt, please sub it out!

[GavinT]

Hi, Turbo,
Pleased you've outed yourself as a certified inspector (as distinct from myself who probably should be merely certified). 

It was done with my TIG welder not oxy/acetylene. And for short durations.

I've sometimes wondered about this.
With the arrival of reasonably priced TIG welders for we, the great unwashed, no one seems to bother with brazing any more.

Back in the day I recall joint design had a serious place in the discussion, but now, brazing is usually seen as an outmoded and inferior method . . . and maybe that's OK.
Would you care to comment on the differences between TIG and oxy/acetylene brazing?
Apart from the differences between silicon bronze and manganese bronze, my impression is that TIG has better bead & fillet control but gas brazing sees more capillary action happening.
Thoughts?

Way back in the dark ages, I had an entire header oxy/acetylene brazed together (by someone else) using various bend sections and it never gave an ounce of trouble.

[TurboFource]

Gavin I believe you already hit the nail on the head. Also because of more controlled heat input with TIG your heat affected zone is much smaller. Using the foot pedal provides infinite control of heat input as you weld.

Old school oxy/acetylene definitely has its place as you can weld, braze, solder, cut , bend etc with just one welding rig. I wouldn't use it on sheet metal I am trying to keep straight....the heat input is significant before you get things hot enough to weld or braze.

[Jmarkusic]

I need to preface with the fact I am not an expert welder.  My training was in college as I worked towards an engineering degree.  I weld but have a tendency to do test welds and destroy them to insure what I am doing will result in the needed strength.  Most things I have my professional welder do it though we are mostly brute force type stuff in the welding shop. 

That said, back in the day, English chassis for cars like FF were all braised.  US chassis were often mig welded.  Tig seemed to come along later as is probably how most hand built pro chassis are done today.  For exactly the reasons turboforce stated.  Though proper mig does still serve well. 

The braising rod is what makes the difference.  The rod used in the old chassis that provide strength has a high silver content and that makes it expensive.  And yes, capillary action certainly enters into some applications.  Your ac system has copper piping.  It is not soldered together like water pipes but rather braised with high silver content rod.  (If done right) and capillary action is vital for that application.  I have repaired tubes with other tubes and used the capillary action you can get with braising to make the repair easier and strong.

As my tig went down about every six months and wanted hundreds to repair each time, I scrapped it years ago and recently braised repairs to a FF chassis and a new header.  I question whether to get a new tig but my ability makes me question if I should bother.   

[TurboFource]

Figured I better paint in here while access is the best it will ever be.....finished with paint up to my elbows, on my glasses and who knows where else.....hope to finish welding tomorrow

[TurboFource]

Finished chassis repair        I am about 1-1/2 months behind my mental schedule ....

Next up is rust prevention and painting of chassis....


Special thanks to Alexa for keeping me company and playing lots of Rush and Triumph as requested

[BDA]

That looks great, Turbo! 

[TurboFource]

Just a reminder what it did look like.....