# I Love my Milling Machine!!



## Brent H (May 25, 2020)

# 2 son is working his butt of as an HVAC contractor and is pretty much on the go all the time.  He had a very loud engine compartment and we took a look - exhaust header split in half at the catalytic converter :





so I got all the pieces out, bolted it to the welding table and welded it all back together using the high nickel mig wire - took a while and I let it cool between welding stitches.

after that - how to make it flat and true - good ol Bridget and a a wack of supports!!!!









Yes - that backwards nut on the threaded rod just put enough on the flange to take out vibration and not distort things.  The whole contraption is sitting on 3 blocks and then I jacked up one end to make the header flat in the x axis - bolted it all down solid and then rotated the mill head to be at the same y axis angle.  

the passes averaged about 3 thou per pass and I had to take 0.045” off to get all the flanges clean and true 





Hopefully after a new gasket it will last at least long enough for the boy to decide on a new truck or dump $600 on a new exhaust - I think  he gets a core return.
Love the mill!!  Woo Hoo!!


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## David_R8 (May 25, 2020)

Looks like your regular 'run of the mill' kind of setup.  Great job!


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## Chicken lights (May 25, 2020)

Fantastic work!


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## Brent H (May 25, 2020)

@David_R8 indeed it was a very punny set up as you mentioned (LOL) but it held solid for the job!  Can never have too many hold down devices involved!  

@Chicken lights - thank you!!   It had some pucker factor going in - especially welding it yesterday.  But machining it today was awesome!


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## DPittman (May 25, 2020)

Very nice fix!  I'll have to research high nickel might wire...have you used it before? That was cast iron manifold right?  Are you very well experienced in cast iron repair.


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## Brent H (May 25, 2020)

It wire is expensive - I have had it for several years - so far I have welded the cast iron support for my band saw - still working after 8 years- I have several repairs to my lathe (welded in a tooth on the main gear) and welded up several items on my grinder machine - this would be my first full round exhaust manifold - have to see how she goes with the heat factor.  
The nickel is like 55% or something like that in the wire - migs like regular wire - just watch heat and if the cast iron has lots of crap in it you will get slag blisters you will need to grind back.   I stitch the repair (I gouged up and ground back to clean cast - drilled stop holes at crack ends etc) keep the heat as low as possible and build up deep areas over several weld/cool down periods.  I will post back if it fails - but I still love the mill


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## Brent H (May 25, 2020)

Couple things I should mention- 




So that is the wire in the picture.  I have had the best success using a 0.040 tip and not the 0.035 tip that would normally be the choice.  Also, the wire is hard and my mig will sometimes slip on it so I changed out the smooth roller groove( for solid wire) and run a flux core feed roller (serrated groove).  This tip/groove combo stops the slipping.


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## YYCHM (May 25, 2020)

That's truly awesome work Brent!


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## Everett (May 25, 2020)

That is cool, I'm impressed with that repair - and your ingenuity at table setup, lol! I've only ever brazed cast but if the high nickel wire you used will hold up under heat/cool cycles it might be a useful addition to our arsenal at the heavy truck shop where I work. I don't have a MIG . . . yet


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## Chicken lights (May 25, 2020)

Everett said:


> That is cool, I'm impressed with that repair - and your ingenuity at table setup, lol! I've only ever brazed cast but if the high nickel wire you used will hold up under heat/cool cycles it might be a useful addition to our arsenal at the heavy truck shop where I work. I don't have a MIG . . . yet


You work at a heavy truck shop? General repairs or specialized?


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## Everett (May 26, 2020)

It's a small general shop in Stony Plain, we do all sorts of stuff from oil changes to engine swaps. Coming into it as an auto mechanic, I've had a lot to learn about things like air brakes and 18 speeds, lol!


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## CalgaryPT (May 26, 2020)

Really nice work using a combination of skill sets Brent. I was especially impressed how you improvised with MIG tips and rollers to get the desired outcome. And yes, can we ever have enough/different/adjustable/unique clamps around? 

There is something so satisfying about seeing someone fix a part that normally would have to go to a speciality shop for repair, or more often these days—just get trashed for a new one. It feels like you dodged a bullet.

Good for you. Excellent job.


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## Brent H (May 29, 2020)

Just a fast update for anyone watching:

Exhaust gasket arrived yesterday and I fit the repaired manifold and buttoned the engine all back up.  My son test drove it and things were good after all the oils etc smoked off.  

today it had a full drive around doing the HVAC patrol and all is good!!!

Hopefully it holds for a good long while. His truck sounds great !


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## DPittman (May 29, 2020)

Awesome if handles the first few heat up and cool downs its probably a good fix for a long time.  That's the sort of fixes I love, job well done.  Ya don't get that done at any commercial garages.


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