So I have an inner hardened inner CV shaft that I have to weld to an outer mild steel UJ shaft. Is this possible? Is it practical? How do I go about doing this? I have MIG, TIG, Arc and Oxy A welding rigs in my shop.
So I have an inner hardened inner CV shaft that I have to weld to an outer mild steel UJ shaft. Is this possible? Is it practical? How do I go about doing this? I have MIG, TIG, Arc and Oxy A welding rigs in my shop.
When you're talking about welding temps, I don't think the concept of hardening applies.
I've make long sockets by cutting regular sockets in half and welding exhaust tubing into them with a regular old MIG. Most driveshafts are not much thicker than exhaust pipe.
The CV side is a hardenable steel, probably 8620 (case hardened) or 4140/4340.
When I made my custom halfshafts I turned the ends down so they were cylindrical, made a 4140 sleeve with a heavy shrink fit, then socket welded the sleeve. Before TIG welding with ER90S-D2 filler I preheated all of it to ~450F, did the welds without letting the shafts exceed 550F between welds, then wrapped in a welding blanket and let cool overnight. After letting them cool I straightened them using centers on the lathe to measure and a small press.
They've been on the car for a couple of years with no problems.
The preheating and slow cool down are very important. If the steel cools quickly (because the cold steel sucks the heat out fast) the metal will harden excessively and be brittle.
Read this last night but didn't have time to answer, but hat is exactly what I was going to say.
In lieu of a welding blanket I've used sand, and if you don't take the time to preheat and slow down the cooling process it will crack or break at the weld joint.
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