magneticanomaly
Titanium
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2007
- Location
- On Elk Mountain, West Virginia, USA
I am considering welding on a partial ring of material to replace the broken portion of bull gear on "my badly beaten Becker", then re-cutting the teeth over the replaced portion. I am not gojng to find an arc-shaped piece of cast iron, and I happen to have some wrought-iron bars of about the right cross-section (about 1 x 2"). I have no doubts about being able to get the new rim-section, replacement spokes, and broken original spoke satisfactorily welded together. (Bevel, fixture, preheat whole assembly to 1000deg F, weld with E-NiFe 55, re-soak and slow cool)
Wrought-iron should be easier to machine than steel.
What I wonder about is the strength of wrought-iron teeth. Wrought-iron is of course stronger in tension than CI...along the grain. But the bending stress on the new gear teeth will be across the grain. Cast iron of course is weak because it is interrupted by graphite. Wrought iron is not very strong across the grain because interrupted by slag. My WAG is that across-the-grain wrought-iron teeth will be easilyas strong as CI teeth, so it will work.
Anyone disagree, or have a better suggestion?
Wrought-iron should be easier to machine than steel.
What I wonder about is the strength of wrought-iron teeth. Wrought-iron is of course stronger in tension than CI...along the grain. But the bending stress on the new gear teeth will be across the grain. Cast iron of course is weak because it is interrupted by graphite. Wrought iron is not very strong across the grain because interrupted by slag. My WAG is that across-the-grain wrought-iron teeth will be easilyas strong as CI teeth, so it will work.
Anyone disagree, or have a better suggestion?
