Stick welding rail road metal

[big bubba]

would be interesting to see your finished project when completed

 

[Sebculb]

FWIW ive had my issues with welds cracking in the center of the bead and pulling themselves apart when pieces of metal with a massive size difference or irregular shape mating surfaces etc expand and contract at different rates. preheat fixed it in all cases. it doesnt have to be massive preheat, a kitchen oven has gotten hot enough to keep a backhoe hub and a stabilizer foot from cracking apart again. you wouldnt happen to have one of those big propane flame weeder blowtorches, would you? get the whole thing hot enough so spit sizzles and weld it up and blast it again periodically as it cools so it cools slower. or soak it in gasoline and light it on fire before after and welding it ha ha.

When its a metal incompatibility the weld metal pulls away from the base metal, in my experience.

 

[California]

I use the burner that came with a turkey fryer for preheating.

 

[KWentling]

I agree with Sebculb. It's always good practice to sweat the moisture out of thicker metals. These look like shrinkage cracks to me. Slower travel speed would help and it looks like you were making fairly large skip aheads in your welding motion, leaving little fill material and slag inclusions.

 

[jaxs]

If we are to believe everything we are told,all you need is a 120 volt Harbor Freight wire welder laying 1 bead for each 1/4" thickness.

 

[BMan2005]

Pics of repaired gate post with new 1/2” hinge brackets, 1” steel rod for hinge post to hang gate, welded washers on gate hinge after hanging gate, and C channel to extend from rail track where it was broke to set in concrete.

 

[Sonny580]

Pre-heat is always your friend! I always pre-heat all my thick stuff. For the high carbon stuff its 7018 BUT ya still need that pre-heat! lol!

 

[grsthegreat]

I doubt that gate would ever damage those welds. Maybe hitting it with a dump truck…….

 

[jaxs]

Shied-arc (rip) once showed us how to make joints like this. I believe it was a combination of horizonal position, over sized rod,deep penitarting type rod,long arcing and angling arc onto heavy material while catching thin stuff with edge of puddle. Waaay above my abilities but showed it is possible without slowing down production.

 

[Ken45101]

I'm certainly no expert but the weld looks cold and too fast to me. I know, I do it myself. IDK if that would cause the cracking?