Welding for another reason

[easygo]

I bought a set of old ring chains and modified them to fit my tractor. I bent the rings to match the curvature of my tires and added extra teeth to make it a smoother ride. All that work turned out real well except that the new "teeth" I added to the rings are wearing very quick. They are just run of the mill mild steel and the original teeth are clearly some far more wear resistant material. My idea is to add a harder surface to the new teeth by welding a bead on the very top and then dousing with a some water, to try to harden the weld but not the entire tooth. Is this going to work? I know I can buy hard facing rods but they are expensive and I have a bunch of 6013 that I never use.

ps: The chains are way too heavy duty for my tractor but they sure work well for yarding out firewood. I will post pictures in the next day or two as the chains are behind a bunch of other stuff for Summer storage.

 

[Shield Arc]

Another approach is to use a torch to heat the work area to a cherry red in dim light and then dunk the heated part in oil. (An open gallon of motor oil is fine.) Polish a few spots to reveal clean metal and reheat slowly until you see the bright steel areas turn to a light straw color.

 

[mrmikey]

.....welding a bead on the very top and then dousing with a some water

Won't work, you can't appreciably harden mild steel by quenching it, not enough carbon.
Best solution since you already have the corks added is to hardface them. Hardface rods aren't cheap but you do get quite a bit of coverage from them. Just remember, use the lowest heat that'll will give you good fusion with the base metal as you don't want to dilute the hardface rod, it isn't going to look pretty
I find the Stoody 31 to be one of the better hardface rod, good for abrasion (which is your major concern) as well as impact. It's what I use on buckets and such with good results, probably in your case 5/32" would be a better choice or if you're not used to a larger size 1/8"....Mike

 

[LD1]

Another option is to get some 7014 rod and use it like a hardface rod. It isnt going to be as hard/wear resistant as hardface rod, but a 70 series rod will probabally be harder and more wear resistant than trying to heat/quench mild steel. And the 7014 lays on like butter very similar to 6013 and just as cheap

 

[Shield Arc]

Don't disregard heat quenching so easily! I do it to chisels, center punches, and chipping hammers.
I know a lot of people who like to use used motor oil, they say it adds more sulfur.

 

[20 20]

Don't disregard heat quenching so easily! I do it to chisels, center punches, and chipping hammers.
I know a lot of people who like to use used motor oil, they say it adds more sulfur.

I'll 2nd or is it 3rd this

 

[easygo]

Thanks for the ideas. I only have a stick welder so heating with a torch is not an option. The other problem is that after my modification the chain became a unit. I mean I welded links on the big rings that connect them laterally as well so they can't "wonder around" on the tire. So. Since the chains weigh around 60-70lbs per side I have no option of heating and then picking up the unwieldy mess and plunging it into water or oil. I have a total of 28 lugs to heat treat or just simply build up with a bead of weld. I guess if I can't do a satisfactory job I will just have to bight the bullet and get some hard facing rod. I have to produce a total of about 60-65" of welds. I have not forgot the picture just had no time yet.

 

[Gary Fowler]

If you dont want to invest in hard surfacing rods, just do a weld metal build up on the worn area with whatever rod you have on hand. When it wears off, build it up again. Depending on how fast the wear cycle is, this base metal build up might last a long time.

 

[dstig1]

Chisels, punches and hammers are made of hardenable steels, not mild steel. Steel is hardened by carbide precipitation which requires excess carbon. Mild steel just doesn't have enough carbon content to harden much if at all.

 

[Shield Arc]

Chisels, punches and hammers are made of hardenable steels, not mild steel. Steel is hardened by carbide precipitation which requires excess carbon. Mild steel just doesn't have enough carbon content to harden much if at all.

You are correct:thumbsup:, I stand corrected!

Scroll down to "Mild and low carbon steel".

Then on down to "Case hardening".
Carbon steel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia