When we bought the kit from Gleason, The wire type I had alot of questions about,, 2 types, gas cranks and diesil cranks. Different hardness ratings. I know I can cut a crank down to where there is no hard surface left and bare cast iron or what ever the crank is made of is exposed. Found that out,, when I just cleaned up the stock journal, heated it up and tried to weld,,, well it puddled up, and did not penetrate the surface of the journal. So, I took my hand grinder, and really cut into it,, no easy job, it took me almost an hour just to get it to where it even looked like I scratched it!!! But got it cut down,,, reheated it, and welded,,, it did a great job this go around, (this comming from someone who has never ran it, but does know how to weld) LOL! So, I built up Id say 5/8". Then seen some pits and quit,, they wasnt real deep, but I know Id have to grind em out and reweld that area,,,, thats where it really stopped me in my tracks,,,,,
I could not scratch that new weld with a hand grinder. If I laid the grinder on edge it would cut it, but it was HARD!!!
Called back to make sure I got the right wire,,,
He said, the wire I got is good for both gas and diesil journals. So, Im assuming Im using the high tensile materials, or I misunderstood when I ordered,,, But he said it will work for both, was my last impression.
My plan to build a crank, Im gonna do a pregrind,, if I stroke it a half inch for a full inch stroker, Im thinking of cutting the back side the .500, maybe a bit more for weld pentration. Set it up in the crank welder. Once setup, the journal rotates at 0, the crank is offset in the jaws of the welder that will allow the journal to rotate in a perfect circle and weld all the way around it. I figure, if I can cut a little deeper than usual on the back side,, I can build up that welded surface, and that area will have more of a built up surface in that area. Im sure they do that anyways,, but it makes the welds all one piece, then go back in and rough grind it to shape. Weld it up where it need to be repaired, for lets say a pit, etc etc,,, and then grind it to spec if the job was done well enough. I think overheating will do more damage for warpage than underheating. Im no expert. When I welded up the crank in the picture, I did not heat the whole crank, just the area of the journal. The chuck of the welder, simular to a heavy lathe is prety sturdy, and can tell you if the crank bows,, you can see it if it moves in the jaws of the chucks,, I never seen it move, and I welded, and let it cool while it was in the chucks, I dont know if that can help hold the crank straighter or not,, but thought it couldnt hurt,,,,
Have heard "they grind em straight",,, grinding all journals all at once makes em straight. I dont know if thats true or not, but I do feel that welding up a crank is not a bad job at all once a proceedure is established. Maybe some of the grinders on here might wanna share some secrets?
Aint seen no cracking on those welds yet,,, I dont think the crank cooled too much during welds to allow that to happen. Id say if it cracked as soon as it was welded and cooled, it wasnt kept straight and it flexed, too thin of buildup surface? Id like to see a picture of the spiderwebbing,,, some of the literature I got tells why this happens during the rebuild stage,, ChadS
