Welding a crack in SP 12s

[cinquecento]

I have emailed ACT where I bought them..must be on holidays.

I've a crack on the inside of one of my rear SP12 wheels on the Griff..does anyone have any experience with welding them.

Thanks

[GreenV8S]

You might find somebody willing to try it, but alloy is always notoriously difficult to weld, thin castings even more so. I suspect the wheel will be written off as unrepairable.

[LucyP]

Just google alloy wheel crack repair. Lots of companies offer it judging by the results. £65 plus VAT seems to be the going rate for a quality job for one crack.

[cinquecento]

Thx...

I have overdosed on videos..and the welding looks the easier but..the opening of the crack to get good weld penetration is the unsettling bit ans so much material is removed.. but I do agree, the outcome is very likely alloy dependent.

[TVR Tommy]

I’ve had this done to a wheel before and unfortunately it lasted about a year and then cracked one side of the weld.

[LucyP]

It's £65 plus vat, compared with the cost of a new wheel. It's surely worth getting an opinion from one of the many companies that offer the service and know their business. If it can be done and it works, then it is much cheaper than a new wheel.

[Adrian@]

I am going to presume you are the only person taking the risk ...most people coming the other way will have air bags, that then you never take your wife, friends or kids out with you. I would of thought you buy another wheel. A@

[BritishTvr450]

What he says ^^
New wheel time but I had a Jag wheel repaired once and it never failed or let air out after.
I’d suggest the Jag wheel was more meaty and the crack had only just formed. About 10mm long
His business was repairing wheels so a great expert. I’d not bother repairing unless you find such a guru.
Normally excepted as a decent wheel so suprised yours has cracked. Do you have a well lit picture of the wheel.
I assume your tyres not holding air?

[citizen smith]

Always best to get the wheel crack detected once it's been welded, to show up any weakness in the weld etc.

[Basil Brush]

+1. Unless it was a rare wheel you can't replace I wouldn't be repairing.

[gruffalo]

Allot Weld Craft in High Wycombe offer wheel welding.

They are insurance industry approved repairers and do a great job.

https://alloyweldcraft.co.uk/

[GreenV8S]

citizen smith said:

Always best to get the wheel crack detected once it's been welded, to show up any weakness in the weld etc.

There will always be weaknesses and stresses around the weld. The only question is whether it's going to crack before or after you do the crack test.

[LucyP]

Yeah right. So all these companies offering welding are just total charlatans, out to take your £65 plus vat? All offering a totally bogus service? All offering welding that won't last 5 minutes?

Your whole chassis is made of welds. Much worse welding than the wheel repair companies offer, probably. Do those welds crack and does you chassis fall apart before or after the crack test?

[GreenV8S]

LucyP said:

Yeah right. So all these companies offering welding are just total charlatans, out to take your £65 plus vat? All offering a totally bogus service? All offering welding that won't last 5 minutes?

Your whole chassis is made of welds. Much worse welding than the wheel repair companies offer, probably. Do those welds crack and does you chassis fall apart before or after the crack test?

I guess you've never welded an aluminium alloy casting or seen anyone attempt it.

Most car chassis are made from steel, not aluminium alloy. It's relatively rare to have large aluminium castings in a chassis and they tend not to be welded.

Conflating welding of steel and aluminium is hugely misleading. It's completely normal to weld steel. Welding aluminium alloy is OK as long as it is clean and pure. Welding cast iron and steel can be a PITA. Welding cast aluminium is worse. Welding is hugely sensitive to the purity and cleanliness of the casting which is notoriously a problem with cast aluminium alloy. In some cases you're left digging a bigger and bigger hole hoping to find something that will take a weld so you can start filling it. The problems get worse when you're dealing with thin castings because they're more susceptible to contamination and also to distortion and burning through.

When you've finished the weld you have to deal with the thermal stresses - aluminium alloy has a snigificantly higher coefficient of thermal expansion than steel and is alwo mechanically weaker, so it's far more vulnerable to stress cracking around the weld, which is exacerbated again by any impurities in the weld.

[keynsham]

I never understand why we form our own opinions of what is possible and safe, and then comment, without talking to a specialist? n(I am as guilty as everyone else!!) There are a lot of wheel repair places who wouldn't attempt a repair unless it was safe to do so. That is assuming you take it to a professional and not the bloke with a gas torch next door!!

[Pagey430]

sounds like the wheels aren't that strong in the first place, welded or not. Get stronger wheels or drive very gently or take the risk? some very experienced peeps here on PH but ultimately it is your choice. Personally new wheel = least risk, or perhaps sell it?

[Byker28i]

GreenV8S said:

LucyP said:

Yeah right. So all these companies offering welding are just total charlatans, out to take your £65 plus vat? All offering a totally bogus service? All offering welding that won't last 5 minutes?

Your whole chassis is made of welds. Much worse welding than the wheel repair companies offer, probably. Do those welds crack and does you chassis fall apart before or after the crack test?

I guess you've never welded an aluminium alloy casting or seen anyone attempt it.

Most car chassis are made from steel, not aluminium alloy. It's relatively rare to have large aluminium castings in a chassis and they tend not to be welded.

Conflating welding of steel and aluminium is hugely misleading. It's completely normal to weld steel. Welding aluminium alloy is OK as long as it is clean and pure. Welding cast iron and steel can be a PITA. Welding cast aluminium is worse. Welding is hugely sensitive to the purity and cleanliness of the casting which is notoriously a problem with cast aluminium alloy. In some cases you're left digging a bigger and bigger hole hoping to find something that will take a weld so you can start filling it. The problems get worse when you're dealing with thin castings because they're more susceptible to contamination and also to distortion and burning through.

When you've finished the weld you have to deal with the thermal stresses - aluminium alloy has a snigificantly higher coefficient of thermal expansion than steel and is alwo mechanically weaker, so it's far more vulnerable to stress cracking around the weld, which is exacerbated again by any impurities in the weld.

Unfortunately this poster believe they are an expert in everything and never fails to have a dig at supposedly poor quality of TVR's, hence the dig about chassis welding, despite having never owned a TVR. Ignore anything they post

[s6boy]

Green V8s very disappointing that you seem to be relying on knowledge and experience, rather than Google for an answer. It's just not done

On a serious note, should a welded repair fail causing an accident can the garage be held responsible?

[BritishTvr450]

As wheel repair seems to be a legit thing as people obviously do it you must be accepting liability as the person who ordered the repair.
When I had a wheel repaired many years ago I remember the chap saying he couldn’t guarantee the repair. That might be him saying the responsibility is still with me.
I do know he would often refuse to repair wheels as he was a friend of a fiend.
If you knowingly drive with a repaired wheel and it fails sometime later surely you are responsible.

Balancing the wheel is often the issue afterwards involving ugly amounts of ballast weight and on a Tvr not really a good idea as any imbalance will get magnified due to the cars light and sensitive nature.
Just buy a new wheel.