An Aluminium welder in Brisbane

[cc]

Hi
The Aluminium camshaft cover needs a broken corner welded back on.
Can someone recommend a tig welder in brisbane good at fine detailed work?
thx CC
see forum post in link
http://www.alfaclubvic.org.au/forum/index.php?topic=19032.msg111416#new

[Citroënbender]

Can you bond it with Belzona? Yes, bonding medium would be dear but I suspect the chances of getting a die cast cover TIG welded at a fair price, are not good. I'd wonder if the cover is actually Magnesium.

[cc]

Turns out 2 corners are broken off! I had a look at the Belzona website as i hadnt heard of it before. Thanks for the tip.
Looks promising and will discuss with a panel beater who has worked on the car.
Will also have a look to see if any are available from the wreckers however the 1998 version i think was out for only one year so it will be rare..

[Citroënbender]

Isn't it just a CF2 cover? Should be a plethora of them in the UK and Europe.

Belzona is nothing like JB Weld, and superior to Devcon also.

[bazzbazz]

No, looks like a CF1 Twinspark with early metal Fixed Intake Manifold and metal camshaft cover. Rare as hens teeth here.

[Citroënbender]

Fleabay 192961060812 any good?

[cc]

Yes that looks like it. Thanks for finding it.

Terrible paint job! Went to a metal worker today who said its very difficult welding Aluminium castings as they crack.

He said there is a way of doing it but didnt know what it was.

Would prefer repairing so will research more. Perhaps super heating the casting before welding?

What appealed on this 1998 spider was the general quality. As exampled by little plastic being used on the engine and a lot of alloy!

I cleaned it up today and dug out a lot of stubborn grey sealant in the groove that the gasket sits in. Its possible that it was making the gasket sit a little high and prevented the cover from going metal to metal when screwed down.

So the corners if rattled down by an electric tool may have bent then cracked.
Or the corner screws were just over torqued or they didnt design enough metal in the corner of the casting.

Found an article on the web on welding a casting. Seems to depend on the blend /recipe of metals used in the casting. See link:
https://www.thefabricator.com/article/aluminumwelding/aluminum-workshop-the-truth-about-welding-aluminum-castings

[David Mills]

http://www.aviationwelding.com.au/aluminium.html

[cc]

Thanks David, my brother reminded me of Chiltons in woolloongabba so will go there.
http://www.chiltonengineering.com.au/

[cc]

David at Chiltons is going to take the repair on : )
Have also heard back from Milano spares who have a 2nd hand replacement on the shelf. Looks like the repair will be the less expensive of the 2 options.
One of the challenges of the repair is forming the groove the gasket sits in.