How To Weld a Truss To Cast Steel - JK 1 Ton Swap
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- čas přidán 6. 09. 2024
- Hey everyone! In this video I show you an easy process to weld your truss onto the cast center section of the diff. This process will be the same for any axle and any truss. Welding to the cast is important for strength! It’s an easy process that people fear. I am by no means a professional welder, and there are other ways to make this weld. However I have found this method to work well without failures.
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Make sure to check out the other videos in the 1 Ton swap video series!
Nice job.It sounded like you had that Miller cranked up and were in the groove!!!Those welds look nice and strong....
Thanks for showing us the cast welding portion, this is the part that made me the most nervous. Doesn't look as hard as I thought it would be. 👍🏼
these are the best vids on 1 ton swap i have watched to date. i like it is a home garage job with basic homeowner tools. not some big shop with enough tools and guys to build a full jeep in a day with bolt in axles
That’s my goal! There are so many channels out there that don’t really understand that the average Jeep owner doesn’t have a full shop and unlimited tools. I’m just a normal guy trying out help out other normal guys
Fluke you! Haha great video ! You ARE teaching allot of people and you are doing it well! I think a thank you for your time is necessary.
Nice job for not actually being a welder, welds look clean and tight!
Thanks man! 🤘
Thanks for the info! Learned a lot. I am going to give welding my tie rod flip inserts to my knuckles another go using this technique! They have broken off on both sides and probably because of the reasons you mentioned! Thanks again!
Newish to welding and you make me think I can do this....Thanks for the video.
You can! Just practice if you can!
follow-up question - did you use high-nickel wire for the center section(s), or just regular mild steel MIG wire for 'everything'. Also, how thick do you recommend - .030, .035 ?
I’m picking up my 05+ Dana 60s this weekend and going to swap em in my tj. 👍🏻 these helped me a ton.... pun intended
Did you finish
I thought all you would need to do was prep/clean off the paint, rust, and debris at the weld area first by sanding it out till you see shiny metal then weld whatever it is that needed to be welded. So I guess the weld area for the differential is a different process due to temperature cooling difference. Great video tip!
what wire did you use??
Nice job Ben! Can't wait to see the install.
Same here!!
Love your videos but just wanted to point out that these differential housings are NOT cast steel, they are cast iron and technically should be welded with nickle rod. The inner Cs are forged steel, which is completely different and very weldable with a mig welder (er70s6). Without getting into complex metallurgy a simple way to test whether something is steel or cast iron is to take grinder and grind a spot and see if its a bright spark or a dull faint spark... Cast iron will have very dull faint spark.. Try it on your differential and then grind on your inner Cs... you will see exactly what I'm talking about. I know the truss companies say you can use a mig but its absolutely not the proper way to weld cast iron, not saying it doesn't "work" and if it's all you have by all means go ahead but if you have the option use the correct stuff which is nickle rod. The main reason for my post is just to point out that the diff housing and the inner Cs are not made from the same material, they are completely different.
Nope, they're something called nodular iron. While nickel based rod will most definitely work, this method of mig and heat is tried and true.
@@rigrocket1332 lol Nodular iron is cast iron and Ni55 is the proper filler. All differential housings are made from nodular cast iron and always have been. Some people get away with using er70s6 mig and lots of preheat but it is certainly not the correct method.
Aw cmon bro! If you're gonna read the wire type off the box at least call it gmaw and not mig!
@@rigrocket1332 lmao sorry that numbers confuse you…. Gmaw tells you nothing, that’s a process, it’s the filler wire that matters. You can gmaw them with ni-55 and that would work great… Gmaw with 70s6 does not
I know this was a while ago, but I'm trying to get into welding so question. Why didn't you need to grind off the paint on both surfaces and bevel the edge?
Did you know they make a wire for your MIG that only requires you to heat the cast iron to about 150°F in order to stick properly? It's expensive tho, like over $600 for a 5-pound roll, but it also has a much higher tensile strength of around 100,000# vs about 70k with most MIG wires. I figure I will only use it for the cast portion of the welds and use regular wire for the tubes and stuff.
Professional very professional no doubt great job
This is great info! Can I use a stick welder (electrode) to do this? What’s the best rod to use if so?
I’m in a tough spot. Trying to build a Dana 70HD into a front axle. I’ve already pressed the tubes out but the leaf mount is my issue. Going to try and lathe a perch on the lathe but my lathe is limited. After seeing this, I may just make a full axle truss and use the truss as a perch.
Is this process of relieving stress/tension also called anealing?
Great job Waiting for the next video on the swap
More is usually better. Go BIG or go home when you put this much time into something go all the way Thank you sir Shane P.🤪
We’re getting closer and closer!!!
Man I can’t wait to build my 1tons!
thanks for doing this series!!
Thank you for your support!
As always, another great video! Doing the same swap as you right now, except mine is going under an XJ
Good video, thanks for your time and sharing your build with us.
Thank you for watching! I can’t do it without you guys 🤘
“Wrap it up and pray for the best”
All of the spot welds were not the best idea , a good spot weld on both ends would have been the best , then take your time and fill the gap just like pipe weld is done with gaps to get full penetration without all the spot welds that would have to be feathered in to let you get a solid consistent weld ,
I plan on using an electric heat gun for the post heat.
Where did you get the rubber bushing for the front upper control arms
They were part of the Barnes4wd truss kit
Nice looking weld!
Thank you!
did your D60 have the carrier installed?, or was it empty (with the diff cover on to protect the insides)? Second, you heat up/keep the center section hot to 'match' the truss and try to maintain similar temps as the truss cools down?
Yepp everything still inside. Some people are afraid of the seals, but mine were fine and still are. Yes you post heat to maintain as it cools. I would recommend post heating to keep temps similar as long as you can as they slowly drop, then wrap in a thermal blanket for the rest of the night
Im not super knowledgeable with welding but shouldnt the to-be-welded surfaces be hit with a grinder,etc. before hand so theyre fresh shiny metal?
It was, I’ve been using steelit paint. It is a weldable paint
How did you confirm the center section was cast steel? An assumption could lead to big problems if a viewer tried to replicate what you have done and it turns out to be cast iron.
Nice welds and progress
Looks good ben!
Can you touch on the type of filler wire you used to weld the truss please?
Just normal .030 welding wire
JK Gear and Gadgets thank you!
2 videos in one day!
I didn’t see a gas bottle for your welder,...are you using flux core?
It’s mig, the bottle is over beside the welder. It’s a small bottle
You don't have to pull the carrier or seals?
Looks at watch; like where you ben?
Good vids man!
Good job, great teaching as well
Thank you for the great videos. Searching for my good simple welding setup. Just enough to do my 1 tons. What setup do you have? Thank you and keep on rocking
I would look at the harbor freight line of new welders, the 110/220 multiprocess welder looks pretty impressive!
@@JKGearandGadgets Thank you for taking the time to answer and fast. Will be going to harbor this weekend. Have a good one from Kentucky.
Looking good
Thanks 🤘
Good show!
Cool build and I've enjoyed watching your video's. Did you make any provisions for adding lockers?
Was this done with gears carrier and gears installed?
Did you remove the internal diff components or did you just weld them with them in it ?
I took my time and welded mine solid all the way and then I welded to opposite side truss to pumpkin nnis that a bad idea
Good job
What kind of wire did u used?
whats a budget welder that can handle this on a 120V outlet?
Do not use 120v
Anyone know what welder that is? I’m doing the same thing but my welder is too small
Pretty sure very few diff housings are cast steel. 99.9% are ductile iron, also called nodular iron.
Looking good man
Could the cast itself crack, or just the weld? I’m at this step now. I welded the Barnes truss to my sd 60 yesterday, want to weld the cast and the tube to the cast tonight, then do the gears this week. Just making sure I got my ducks in a row before so I don’t fuck something up. Appreciate the videos, I’ve gone back through them several times as a reference through my tj build. After gears I’ll get my Barnes high steer arms welded up too. 🤙
Just the weld
Great info man.
Good job
Is the Dana 30 cast steel or iron?
Good vid good info
You DO NOT HAVE TO HEAT THE CAST!
I see so many doing this the hard way!
First off min temp for welding cast is 500* ideally you want 6-800* no more then 1200*
Side not.. when welding you ideally want 1/8” or so gap this keeps the metal from pulling as the weld cools. This is why welders always bevel all surfaces to be welded to 30* or so.
Do this work in your deiveway out in the sun. There is a cool weld and a heat weld to welding to cast. You only need 100* surface temp for a cool weld which you’ll get on just a 80* day or so long as the axel has been sitting outside all day.
Second misconception.. you only run small beads 1-1 1/2” to cast cause if you exceed 1450* the cast will crack. Welding reaches typically 1650* ish..
Here is the easy way to weld steel to cast steel.. set it outside in the sun over concrete (concrete reflects heat and makes it hotter)
Even on a mid 70* day that axle can reach over 100* in a concrete driveway on a sunny day if welded in the afternoon.
Second weld 1-1/2” inch at a time then take a lunch and hammer and peen the welds as soon as you’re done. This keeps the weld from cracking.. use the lunch and hammer every 1/2” or so and lunch the center of the weld.. then rotate and do 180* opposite side same location the same way.
When welding cast always run welds same direction back to previous welds. For example I’d doing the tune to the housing.. the two 180* welds complete 1/2 of the weld.. the renaming two should run from the finish point of one to the starting point of the other.
When doing this there is no heating no blankets etc.. if it cracks I wouldn’t grind it out. Simply use a .045 cutting wheel and grove the joint directly on the crack then run another bead over it. You won’t have to worry about cold or hot welding the cast at this point. You are only welding the weld back to itself not cast to steel.
There is way way too much uneducated speculation on this when it comes to the 4x4 world. I see way way too many people going to these extremes that are just not needed.
To be honest I’ve welded cast to steel on several axels to date over the years and never ever once checked the temps of the materials. Never heated anything either. As an experienced welder I just freaking send it and if it cracked (never has as this only happens if you over heat the steel and run too long a bead “meaning more heat” where the cast cools faster then steel pulling heat out of the steel much faster then the steel can cool and cracking) I’d grove it out ant cap it.
Thing is.. the way everyone doing these videos is welding 1” or so at a time you’re never going to heat either material enough for this to matter. The truth is by hearing to 5-600* you should be welding the entire thing at one time. That’s the reason to preheat. Pipe welders do this for this very reason. When running small beads it’s completely a waste of time.
All that said.. here is how I’ve welded every axle if ever done.. first off I use flux core wire .035 to be exact. (They do make special rods for those using stick that work the same way but the issue here is stick generates more heat so special rods I would recommend vs wire. Prime example I’d never weld an cast housing with say a 6010 or 6011 rod.
I’ve always (living in Florida) just left the would be axle outside on jack stands for days. (Not cause I was doing anything special just cause I was waiting for the time to get to it) keep in mind here for some reason I’ve always been doing this in spring or summer...
If simply just laid a good bead for 1-1 1/2” around the tube rotate 180* and did this again. I then moved to the opposite side and repeated. I then move back to the first side and go over the plugs. Then the other side same. Rotate again and weld the first tube all the way same direction from first two beads SAME DIRECTION (this is important on cast materials not with regular steels) move to other side do the same. To state again and go back to the first completing it in just 4 welds. Do the second side the same. No time between no special hearing or cooking no nothing.. just using simple welding techniques. Never had one crack!
Now I know this is getting long.. but when welding to the steel tubes for the steel truss.. soon as you weld one side of said truss flip 180* and weld the other this is what keeps the welds from pulling out of square, level, etc. then move to the furthest opposing side and do the same. Rinse and repeat.
Now here is where I’ll get controversial with experienced welders... when welding cast to steel the issue is the cast acts as a heat soak to the steel which cools at a much slower rate then cast does which means the reason the weld can break is cause the cast filled too fast and soaked all the heat out of the slower cooling steel and the cast was cold while the steel was hot. Keep a water bottle handy and LIGHTLY cool the steel side only with water so it will cool faster. This is not a recognized way to weld cast to steel but I’ve done it for 15 plus years wo issue. This is by no means a recommendation of doing this.. as the worst possible thing you can do is cool the cast even faster as that a sure way to crack the weld. If you want to go this route (which I do wo peeping which honestly is recommended and just as fast and easy) then pour the water on the tube 1-2” from the joint.
What mig wire i should use to weld cast to steel? And Thank you for the information
Great write up! What rod do you recommend if 6011 is not the go too rod. Will 7018 work?
What welder miller is that?
Just out of curiosity, what model Miller is that?
Do you think you can weld to the cast on a Dana 44 rubicon without taking gears out?
Yep. Shops do it all the time
Be careful. Don’t heat the 44 up too much around the axle seal areas. The 60 is thick, whereas the 44 can heat up pretty fast and melt them
I have a 1988 Jeep Wagoneer Dana 44, is the pumpkin Cast Steel or Cast Iron?
Im not sure about the wagoneer axle, however i would still recommend doing the pre and post heat when welding to the pumpkin
JK Gear and Gadgets I read that they make a MIG wire for welding cast iron/steel. But it’s $80/2lb spool.
every dang forum ive read on trussing axles say its not worth trussing. Gusetts yes. trusses no. due to the axles warping or bending with the heat while welding the truss on, so basically your warping the axles installing something designed to keep that from happening. obviously you dont beleve that? im getting 37s on monday and doing my homework....thanks for the vids
As long as you alternate around when welding, it’s fine.
Ps structure welds are always up hill.
Bubba take a D1.1 3g weld test and run that open root up hill with mig tell me how it goes....
@@keepjeepin969 mig or mag? Because mig should be easy 3g... cooling of hard wire open root .25 bev w 3/8s gap with ceramic backers.. at least thats how my tests went for navsea.?.? The only time it gets rough is 308/309 Stainless- dissimilar metals
Josh Zimmerman at the end of the day this weld does not qualify as a structural weld. it’s a automotive weld. Yes it holding the structural of the axles but is there a bevel in there? Is he running multiple passes on it?
@@keepjeepin969 just trying to help, the weld is fine, lol just keeping ppl educated. Not trying to be a troll, lord knows there's to many out there and Ben is one of my favorites to watch since this series came out.
Did you take out the inner seal before welding the truss
Nope
JK Gear and Gadgets thanks I’m getting ready to weld my Barnes truss this week and was wondering about that
JK Gear and Gadgets did you replace them after?
Man you gave me flash burn
Did you leave the carrier inside the diff or just leave the covers on?
It doesn’t really matter. If you are able to pull the carrier out then might as well
@@JKGearandGadgets i plan on doing this to my 44 front and rear but do you think the heat will mess with the axle seals? the front gets more weld so might just go slow and try to keep the heat soak down
With a 44 truss you don’t need to weld the whole section, just weld 2-3 3” sections. And yeah don’t heat it too much in the front axle seal area.
Any concerns for differential internals or cover seals?
We will be changing the diff cover anyways, the gasket is very cheap or you can use rtv. The only internal component that could be damaged is the axle seals, but they are a good distance away from the heat
JK Gear and Gadgets thanks much, come from HVAC so always thinking about rubber when there’s fire on metal
@@JKGearandGadgets I'd be a little concerned with pinion seal on the front, but maybe that's far enough away too?
Joshua Mann yeah that’s too far away to get damaged
Do you have to preheat it if you’re spraying it ? “Spray transfer “
@8:15 a man with a Jeepin' for Jesus sticker does't trust prayer.
Doesn’t trust prayer? What are you talking about
Religion has nothing to do with welding skills or axle work....wow
@@JKGearandGadgets Just havong some fun with Irony. Listen to what you said at the noted time. Not my words.
Awesome build and channel BTW.
Haha it’s all good, it is ironic. I just can never tell when someone’s trying to troll
why not braze? its easier and you already have the stuff except for the brazing rods. But nice job looks great!
The nine ppl who thumbs down are dead inside!
What wire did you use