Help anyone know a way to fuse aluminum and steel
- Thread starter prairie breeze
- Start date
professor
Active Member
There is no such thing as fusing them together. Besides, you are better off using a steel frame.
motorpsycho
Active Member
yes, it can be done by welding, but there are some very special techniques and materials that need to be used to get it done.
you have to use bimetallic transition inserts or you have to coat the dissimilar materials prior to welding. this can be expensive.
i would personally not use an aluminum frame for a m.b. and the expense to getting the steel welded to the aluminum would be more than trying to find an all steel frame already done, or 2 steel frames that you can cut up and weld together.
(i got the following info from the web)
Bimetallic transition materials are available commercially in combinations of aluminum to such other materials as steel, stainless steel and copper. These inserts are best described as sections of material that are comprised of one part aluminum with another material already bonded to the aluminum. The method used for bonding these dissimilar materials together, and thus forming the bimetallic transition.
basically you get a peice that is 1/2 steel and 1/2 aluminum. you weld the steel end to the steel part and then weld the aluminum end to the aluminum part.
A coating can be applied to steel to facilitate its arc welding to aluminum. One method is to coat the steel with aluminum. This is sometimes achieved by dip coating (hot dip aluminizing), or brazing the aluminum to the surface of the steel. Once coated, the steel member can be arc welded to the aluminum member, if care is taken to prevent the arc from impinging on the steel.
you have to use bimetallic transition inserts or you have to coat the dissimilar materials prior to welding. this can be expensive.
i would personally not use an aluminum frame for a m.b. and the expense to getting the steel welded to the aluminum would be more than trying to find an all steel frame already done, or 2 steel frames that you can cut up and weld together.
(i got the following info from the web)
Bimetallic transition materials are available commercially in combinations of aluminum to such other materials as steel, stainless steel and copper. These inserts are best described as sections of material that are comprised of one part aluminum with another material already bonded to the aluminum. The method used for bonding these dissimilar materials together, and thus forming the bimetallic transition.
basically you get a peice that is 1/2 steel and 1/2 aluminum. you weld the steel end to the steel part and then weld the aluminum end to the aluminum part.
A coating can be applied to steel to facilitate its arc welding to aluminum. One method is to coat the steel with aluminum. This is sometimes achieved by dip coating (hot dip aluminizing), or brazing the aluminum to the surface of the steel. Once coated, the steel member can be arc welded to the aluminum member, if care is taken to prevent the arc from impinging on the steel.
Last edited:
prairie breeze
New Member
sounds like it can be done but at the cost i could buy a chop frame from one of the various online sites. lol
wheelbender6
Well-Known Member
KHS used to build a soft tail bike with an alum front triangle and steel rear triangle. The old Raleigh Technums and some of the Univega road bikes had a similar setup. They didn't provide a lot of details in how they did it.
srdavo
Well-Known Member
Hi. I like the lines of your potential frame.
Tell me.... what part is (parts are) aluminum? All the Next bikes I have seen are steel.
prairie breeze
New Member
the red part from the neck down is aluminum i think i figured a way i could bolt it together but i am afraid it will never have the strength.
RedBaronX
Member
I have never done any welding or frame fabricating, but I would think that if you are going to do that much fabricating, you would be better off starting with all-steel.
retromike3
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TRaleigh Technium
Back in the day I used to sell Raleigh Technium mountain bikes and they had some problems. Granted, the frame design was not really good for off road, but the main flaw I noted was that they felt "dead" and unresponsive.
Something about them that did not work. They were fairly light for the time but they never "Jumped", they just sat there. The steel Mongooses I sold at the same time(back when mongoose was "hot" and not Walmart fair) were a bit heavier but a lot more fun to ride.
I think you could bond steel and aluminum together, probably with carbon fiber "lugs" like they do with bamboo frames but I don't think it would achieve a bike that has the properties that you are looking for.
mike
Back in the day I used to sell Raleigh Technium mountain bikes and they had some problems. Granted, the frame design was not really good for off road, but the main flaw I noted was that they felt "dead" and unresponsive.
Something about them that did not work. They were fairly light for the time but they never "Jumped", they just sat there. The steel Mongooses I sold at the same time(back when mongoose was "hot" and not Walmart fair) were a bit heavier but a lot more fun to ride.
I think you could bond steel and aluminum together, probably with carbon fiber "lugs" like they do with bamboo frames but I don't think it would achieve a bike that has the properties that you are looking for.
mike
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