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Old September 23rd 2008, 17:41
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volkdent volkdent is offline
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Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Santa Rosa, CA, USA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Denny View Post
Cutting and welding alloy wheels can be accomplished safely ...but you better be damn sure of the welding skills of the person doing the work.

I wouldn't trust such an extreme operation to anyone, except to an absolute expert in welding alloy materials. Someone welding in the aircraft manufacturing industry would be a good candidate. Alloy welding requires unique skills and a thorough understanding of metallurgy. I've seen the process performed first hand and the guy doing the welding had the skills of a surgeon. He even x-rayed the welds to check for complete weld penetration and no air-pockets when he was finished just to make sure that the wheels were bullet proof. He wasn't about to let an unsafe job leave his shop. He learned to weld in the Navy where he worked on jet aircraft welding high stress components like land gear and wing ribs. He knew his stuff when it came to welding.

One more thing. Expect to pay a premium price for the work.
That sounds about right. And finding that guy to do that kind of job at a cost most can afford is not that easy. I just would hate to have someone have "a buddy of theirs" weld up some wheels and end up with a blowout on the freeway. If you ask those guys that do this sort of welding, it's still not as good as the original casting, so keep that in mind.

Jason
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