- Thread starter ramtuff
- Start date
Double bevel the break, preheat to 300-degrees, use 110-18 rod. After the welding is done, wrap up with insulation, or place a large heater facing the repair for at least 12-hours, you want a very slow cool down! Do not rush the welding! You don't want the interpass temperature to get too high!
Couple more things I forgot. Buy brand new rod, and[u:cbca008bb0][b:cbca008bb0] DO NOT[/b:cbca008bb0][/u:cbca008bb0] open the can until you are ready to start welding!
How thick is the fork? If your fork is over 1-inch thick, buy 5/32-inch rod, if under 1-inch thick 1/8-inch rod will be OK.
How thick is the fork? If your fork is over 1-inch thick, buy 5/32-inch rod, if under 1-inch thick 1/8-inch rod will be OK.
Gambles
Well-known Member
We are talking about a forklift to lift objects, aren't we?
I have absolutely no dog in this fight, but just remember that OSHA forbids any welds on forklift forks and I believe the fines are pretty hefty. Now if this is your own personal forklift, and nobody will be hurt but yourself, I guess OSHA won't ever see it or really care.
I have absolutely no dog in this fight, but just remember that OSHA forbids any welds on forklift forks and I believe the fines are pretty hefty. Now if this is your own personal forklift, and nobody will be hurt but yourself, I guess OSHA won't ever see it or really care.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
How big are the forks and what machine are they on? If they are high capacity forks and/or used for frequent loading of customers trucks/trailers you're better off replacing them. Also, where are they broke? Most forks are similar to spring steel so proper weld procedures have to be followed very closely.
Puddles has posted the procedure but it's not a repair for an inexperienced welder. I worked in a pressure vessel shop with a couple dozen exceptional welders and the shop still replaced broken forks instead of welding them. To expand on Puddles procedure using new rods, it is best if you have a way to heat the rods to about 200 deg's and keep them there so the weld will be free of defects. Even something like a toaster oven would work or maybe you have a place that rents small 10 lb. rod ovens. Each pass has to thoroughly cleaned before the next one and you'll most likely have to alternate from one side to the other to control warpage. It would be a good application for using starting and run off blocks.
Puddles has posted the procedure but it's not a repair for an inexperienced welder. I worked in a pressure vessel shop with a couple dozen exceptional welders and the shop still replaced broken forks instead of welding them. To expand on Puddles procedure using new rods, it is best if you have a way to heat the rods to about 200 deg's and keep them there so the weld will be free of defects. Even something like a toaster oven would work or maybe you have a place that rents small 10 lb. rod ovens. Each pass has to thoroughly cleaned before the next one and you'll most likely have to alternate from one side to the other to control warpage. It would be a good application for using starting and run off blocks.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
That should say each pass has to be thoroughly cleaned. Another thing I should add is not to clamp the fork to a table or use a heavy straight edge to prevent the fork from moving due to the welding heat. Restraining the repair in an attempt to keep it nice and flat will add additional stress that could lead to premature failure. Using the right welding sequence will limit how much the fork moves from the welding heat.
I know OSHA is very strict with fork lift forks. Just about the time I retired all forks with holes burned / drilled in the tips for shackles had to be replaced with new forks.
It must have been 1985 I was working on a floating bridge project in Lake Washington, one of the forks on a 966 CAT loader broke right at the heel. The heel must have been 8 or 9-inches wide, and about 5-inches thick. I welded the broken fork with the procedure I posted above. Just wrapped the fork in insulation until the next morning. I left the job in 1988, every time I seen the loader operator abuse those forks I'd just smile. Stickweld is correct this is a good place for start and run off tabs. For those of you who do not know what they are, here is a picture of a AWS test plate. See how the backing plate is longer than the V-butt plate? You start the weld on that backing plate, weld through the V-butt plate, and stop on the other side, on the backing plate.
Here is a link to Lincoln's site about welding T-1 steel.
http://www.lincolnelectric.com/en-us/support/welding-solutions/Pages/T1-steels-detail.aspx
It must have been 1985 I was working on a floating bridge project in Lake Washington, one of the forks on a 966 CAT loader broke right at the heel. The heel must have been 8 or 9-inches wide, and about 5-inches thick. I welded the broken fork with the procedure I posted above. Just wrapped the fork in insulation until the next morning. I left the job in 1988, every time I seen the loader operator abuse those forks I'd just smile. Stickweld is correct this is a good place for start and run off tabs. For those of you who do not know what they are, here is a picture of a AWS test plate. See how the backing plate is longer than the V-butt plate? You start the weld on that backing plate, weld through the V-butt plate, and stop on the other side, on the backing plate.
Here is a link to Lincoln's site about welding T-1 steel.
http://www.lincolnelectric.com/en-us/support/welding-solutions/Pages/T1-steels-detail.aspx
Bill in IN
Member
The above comments concerning rod ovens should be clarified to mean for low hydrogen rods only (7018 and the like) some others could cause more problems....
The last thing you want to do is store your 60xx rods in an oven! Sometimes when my 60xx rods dry out too much, I'll dip them in water, and let air dry for a day or two.
On the other hand stainless steel rods should be stored in an oven. I have some that state not to exceed 160-degrees, so always read the manufacturer's recommendations!
http://www.esabna.com/us/en/newsletters/January-2007/stainless-steel-electrodes.cfm
On the other hand stainless steel rods should be stored in an oven. I have some that state not to exceed 160-degrees, so always read the manufacturer's recommendations!
http://www.esabna.com/us/en/newsletters/January-2007/stainless-steel-electrodes.cfm
fordtractorpro
Member
braze the fork. braze is amazingly strong. I had a fork on a d4 caterpillar loader break. I cleaned it good and brazed it. It has been in 10 years without any problem.
Brazing has it's place, but I won't be standing under a load on a T-1 fork that was repaired with brazing!
I would stand under a load on a repaired T-1 fork that I welded with 110-18 tho! :wink:
http://machinedesign.com/article/when-brazing-beats-welding-1209
I would stand under a load on a repaired T-1 fork that I welded with 110-18 tho! :wink:
http://machinedesign.com/article/when-brazing-beats-welding-1209
Butch(OH)
Well-known Member
I hate to be in disagreement with the others here especialy the expert welders which I am not but a fork lift fork is one tough arsed piece of heat treated steel. There is no way I would trust my life or limb or anyone else's with one that was welded. As one of the other posters wisely stated repaing them is widely known in industry as a BIG NO-NO!! Scrap bin material. If you simply must weld it put it to the test in a manner that cannot kill or mame. Wrap a chain around the end of it and lift something you shouldn't lift and jerk it around a bit. Forks dont just break, it was severly abused and it will happen again.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
It was mentioned that an experienced welder should do the repair and proper procedures must be followed. Most people should not attempt to repair forks but keep in mind that almost every fork made was welded when it was new, either for the mounts or because it was too thick to bend. That tells you that they are a weldable grade of steel. There must be places that test and certify forks?
There has to be! The company I worked for would go all over the world and buy whirley cranes, have them shipped back here mount them on barges, and have them certified. Coast Guard and ABS would certify the barge, then an independent engineering firm would conduct load tests, then certify the crane. Last crane I was involved in load testing, we picked 300-Tons, and boomed out 150-feet. That certified the crane for 500-tons at x-amount of feet. We worked in every major port on the west coast, for US Navy, Army Corp. You name it, never a problem with the derricks.
Butch(OH)
Well-known Member
I assumed that when he said the fork was broken that the fork was broken, not the mount? I haved never seen a fabricated fork. Only ones that are forged both in the bend and at the tips where they are thinned.
I have worked for 3 construction companys over a span of 35 years and NONE allowed the repair of or use of a repaired fork. Maybe a reason for that??
Here is a link to the reg. I pulled this from a web site Work Safe which is much easier to navagate than OSHA site. In short it says the repair must be;
A. Allowed by the original equipment mfg (wanna bet on finding that?)
B.Prodeedure must be laid out by a PE (lotsa luck)
C. And certified by a PE afterwards, (lotsa luck)
OR the lift shall be removed from service until corrected.
Weld and advise others as you wish. I will continue to advise replace.
Work Safe
I have worked for 3 construction companys over a span of 35 years and NONE allowed the repair of or use of a repaired fork. Maybe a reason for that??
Here is a link to the reg. I pulled this from a web site Work Safe which is much easier to navagate than OSHA site. In short it says the repair must be;
A. Allowed by the original equipment mfg (wanna bet on finding that?)
B.Prodeedure must be laid out by a PE (lotsa luck)
C. And certified by a PE afterwards, (lotsa luck)
OR the lift shall be removed from service until corrected.
Weld and advise others as you wish. I will continue to advise replace.
Work Safe
I know times are different now! OSHA has no tolerance for altering a fork in anyway from original factory equipment. In the work place the liabilities are just too great, so replacing the fork is the [u:9f96507022]only[/u:9f96507022] way to go! But for the average guy repairing a fork for his own use I don't see a problem. But as Stick weld pointed out, this repair is not for the average guy! Personally I don't see a whole lot of difference in building a trailer, or trailer hitch that goes down the highway where we all travel. You'd be surprised at how many people buy a 120-volt Mig welder, and for their first ever welding project jump right into building a trailer, or hitch. Now that scares the he!! out of me!
Here is the construction company I was working for when I repaired the broken fork on that 966 CAT loader. They went by the name of Guy F. Atkinson at that time, they have since been bought out by Clark Construction.
http://www.atkn.com/about.html
Puddles,
Do you mean the wiley - wirley cranes ,
if so they were made about 20 miles from here.
I did work for their maintainence dept , much
of it at nite so they could work the next day.
The last barge mount crane they had in the
yard was a 90 ton and it needed a boiler.
I have the beam bender from that yard that
was used to form the beams for the ends of
the barges.
george
Butch(OH)
Well-known Member
Probably because the build a trailer plans come with the welders, LOL
My first welding project story is a school buddy who decided to build a race car out of a Ford Pinto (another good first project eh?) Class required a 8 or 12 point cage, cant remember which. So he goes out and buys a bar kit and a brand new top of the line Miller MIG outfit with all the goodies. Couple weeks later I go over to see the progress and first thing I noticed is the Miller hasn't been used yet, second thing was the cage was in the car. Third thing was he had brazed the joints. I said John, what are you doing?? He said he knew how to braze and wanted it all tacked together well before he tried out his new welder and did the finish welding. Told him you cant do that!? He says, Yes I can!
That was a heck of a mess to straighten out! And cost him another cage kit too.
My first welding project story is a school buddy who decided to build a race car out of a Ford Pinto (another good first project eh?) Class required a 8 or 12 point cage, cant remember which. So he goes out and buys a bar kit and a brand new top of the line Miller MIG outfit with all the goodies. Couple weeks later I go over to see the progress and first thing I noticed is the Miller hasn't been used yet, second thing was the cage was in the car. Third thing was he had brazed the joints. I said John, what are you doing?? He said he knew how to braze and wanted it all tacked together well before he tried out his new welder and did the finish welding. Told him you cant do that!? He says, Yes I can!
That was a heck of a mess to straighten out! And cost him another cage kit too.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
I've been to a lot of Ritchie Bros. auctions and seen hundreds of sets of forks. There are some real big forks that are welded at the heal instead of being bent. A lot of forks are made by aftermarket suppliers like Weldco-Beales so it might not be very be hard to get a procedure from the manufacturer. I think what they don't want is some guy on the job site saying he can patch the forks up. The fact they mention A,B and C would appear to indicate that they can be welded. Whether it's the fork or the mount on the fork, it's the same piece of steel and requires the proper procedure.
George here is the type of cranes I'm talking about. The company I worked for bought two whirley cranes that were in a graving dock in Scotland, a Clyde 52, and a Clyde 44. Then they bought an American that Shell oil was using for nothing but a light plant in Singapore! Shell stuffed as many lights as they could in the boom, and used the crane as a rotating light plant.
http://www.americanconstco.com/whirleys.html
Here is a link to the company I'm talking about.
http://www.generalconstructionco.com/library/show_projects_bridge.asp
http://www.americanconstco.com/whirleys.html
Here is a link to the company I'm talking about.
http://www.generalconstructionco.com/library/show_projects_bridge.asp
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
With the proper welding rods and procedure welded joints are generally stronger than the parent metal. The attachment point still has to hold the same load as the fork.
Anonymous-0
Well-known Member
I was looking at some pictures of forks and noticed there was more meat in the heal on some of them. That would indicate they might be welded and an additional fillet weld was added to give more strength/thickness in the heal.
buickanddeere
Well-known Member
What kind of a short sighted penny pinching fool would consider welding a broken fork?
Ever consider the kind of stresses that entire fork was subjected to prior to the break?
The rest of the fork is ready to fail too.
About as swift as somebody over loading a chain, stretching it until a link fails. welds in/replaces a link. Then declares the chain fit for service at it's factory rated capacity.
Ever consider the kind of stresses that entire fork was subjected to prior to the break?
The rest of the fork is ready to fail too.
About as swift as somebody over loading a chain, stretching it until a link fails. welds in/replaces a link. Then declares the chain fit for service at it's factory rated capacity.
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