Aluminum welding help

I know I don’t have the skills to weld what I need welded right now. I need a couple bungs welded to my supercharger case and I know I’m just gonna blow holes in it. Anyone have some free time this week and want to play with the Tig for me? I’m more than willing to exchange pizza/alcohol/monies in exchange for said work…

Look up Carl… He’s the chairman of the motorsports committee at DMS.

Is he on talk, or do I need to go seek him out?

Can not tap the housing?

1 Like

You mean Chuck? Chuck doesn’t really weld, that I’m aware of. @dallasmagna

When you get rod, look for what is needed for cast alumin. Have no idea what alloy this is. Many alloys are not really weldable, a serious consideration. If you can put in something threaded, I agree with others, better safer way to go way to go.

1 Like

I think I would look to brazing first, possibly making an adapter and brazing.

2 Likes

I think you have to seek him out. He should be there tonight, I think. He’s the dude that rides the scooter parked in the back. See a guy that have a motorcycle helmet with pony tail grey hair, that’s him.

Thanks allot, Dude!

I forgot brazing was a thing, that might be the best option if the casting isnt thick enough to just tap and call good.

What sensors/parts are you putting in?

a GM 3/8" NPT intake air temp senosr, and a -8an nipple for a remote vacuum manifold.

I’d actually suggest solder instead of brazing if you are going that route. Brazing has a working temp range of probably 10 degrees, this is between the melting point of aluminum and the working temp of the rod. I say this because I found out the hard way. Middle of the summer trying to braze aluminum condenser with a tarp over me trying to keep the wind away. This was how I figured it out.

Thats a good point, and i doubt that the blower is going to see temps even close to the melting point of solder. ive only soldered electronics before, do you have any tips for soldering aluminum, or a direction to point me in?

Can’t take the vacuum from the actuator for the bypass?
Or use a nipple that’s force fitted/epoxied to the housing instead if tapping.
Maybe epoxy the threaded NPT too?
Pre SC air temp?

i probably should have been a little more clear, i need manifold pressure, and the blower only has a single small manifold pressure port on it, which is conveniently right on top and barely clears the engine lid. I want a remote manifold pressure manifold partly to clean up the engine bay, but mostly so i dont have 4 things using a small little port at the same time.

I need post supercharger temps and pressures.

I suppose the really issue is if the casting isn’t thick enough to be tapped well. If it is thick enough then this has been a fun exercise in unnecessary problem solving. ill drill it tonight and let yall know what my plan of attack is.

2 Likes

Looks like this was just a fun exercise, the case is thick enough to tap no problem. Now I just need to clean all the metal shavings out of it…

3 Likes

@Spoonanator what’s it going on?

I’d stay away from welding cast Al…I’ve done it a bunch of times with mixed results…mostly repairing 2-stroke lawn equipment…where it was broken to start so no skin in the game. My concern would be heat etc making the cast expand/contract differently than the bung…I could see it cracking on the cast side of the weld.

1 Like

I need to add an intake air temp sensor and a -8an bung on the blower case, i was worried that the casting was too thin to tap so i was looking for someone to weld it. Then i put on my big boy pants and drilled it, turns out its thick enough to tap quite nicely, so i did that instead.