Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature currently requires accessing the site using the built-in Safari browser.
We noticed you are blocking ads. DO THE TON only works with community supporters. Most are active members of the site with small businesses. Please consider disabling your ad blocking tool and checking out the businesses that help keep our site up and free.
this is truly becoming a lost art. I'm sure Tulsa School of Welding ain't gonna teach you how to do this stuff!! As with most dying skills you probably have to find some old Craftsman (notice Craftsman with a capital C) who would be willing to teach you. Unfortunately, here in North America they are few and far between, you would be better off moving to Wales and becoming an apprentice. What I can see in the pictures, I would love to have one of these frames but not to build a bike, just to hang in my office and gaze at the beautifull art that is fast becoming a thing of the past. I admire this work as art of the highest order. Thanks for keeping it alive!
we use t45 for the frame tube. but brackets ,mounting tabs we use clubmans grade, as t45 does not do so well as a bracket especially with vibrating singles . t45 has a high content of manganese. 4130 has a high content of chromium.
we are just 4 miles up the coast from aberystwyth. and your friend is welcome to visit. just ask them to contact me first via email or a number on my website.
Very nice work. I didn't know motorcycle frames can be bronze welded. Before TIG became popular in the bicycle world, high-end chromoly frames were fillet brazed. The joints were built up with bronze then hand-filed and shaped to a smooth radius. The process was time-consuming and required a lot of skill. Some custom builders still do it but it's a rare art these days.
Yes,your right,I read way back in my teens( a long time ago)about how the best,hi quality bicycle frames are Bronze welded,not rod,tig or mig welded and they have been doing it for a very,very long time.
Even the relatively more modern higher quality bikes are,like my chrome-moly framed Schwinn High Plains mountain bike from around the mid 90's? That is one of the reasons I purchased it in the first place as I read up on how it was built. I knew it would probably hold up to a beating better than a lesser,inferior built bike.
It wasn't cheap,but I still have it to this day and it's still a good bike. Much lighter and better built than the hi-volume box store crap you see today.
Welding is when two metals the same kind are joined together.
When a second type of metal is used to weld the parent metal (steel) together ,
it is called brazing.
Brazing is about 30-45,000 PSI tensile strength.
TIG welding two steel plates together is about 85,000 PSI tensile strength.
For brazing to be effective it needs to have perfect fit up.
Brazing is good when there is a lot of vibration.
TIG welding WITH silicon bronze is using a second type of metal to join the steel base metals together.
But remember some metals (dissimilar ) do not galvanically get along with each other which leads to corrosion. Steel and copper do NOT get along with each other and Bronze has copper in it.
Stainless can be Silver soldered(brazing) and is about 45,000 PSI.
Brass is a little less. Bronze is stronger than brass.
I want to add this and did not see an EDIT button.
When ever you weld or braze there is a HAZ,(Heat effected zone),
Otherwise some degradation of the metal.
maybe it varies depending where you are from , but we do not call what we do "brazing"
As far as brazing is concerned you heat up an area to be brazed introduce the brazing (brass) rod and it flows , you can push it along with the flame.
we do "bronze welding" using sifbronze n.o.1 rods and a liquid flux unit in the acetylene line, and i more akin to welding mild steel with a mild steel filler rod, however you don't actually allow a pool to form, bronze welding and brazing have more in common to glueing metal together.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
