HS163 VW Golf Mk2 GTI cylinder head repair

[@russnixon6020]

Dear old Dad comes through! I think you now have a steady customer.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Russ, yes there are a few more jobs on that head yet for a start. It's nice to have a supply of real world jobs to work on. Cheers

[@Rustinox]

On a shaper you can make anything :) Thanks for showing your welding progress. I found it very interesting.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Rusti, I'm still on the learning curve with TIG. It's surprising some metals weld easier than you might expect and then others not so easy. I find stainless a delight to weld, so far. Cheers

[@AWDJRforYouTube]

Good job Paul. I always found on AL heads and blocks with TIG, preheat the weld area min 150 deg F-250 deg F makes welding MUCH easier. It cooks out oils and contaminants, [use of the TIG over the whole area or use a gas torch, then clean with wire brush] The weld pool forms faster when starting TIG. Pulse is not what you need for a piece of heavy AL like a block, you need the continious heat [pulse takes heat out ] All in all turned out very good.

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Al, I will add your advice to my memory bank. Cheers

[@TheRecreationalMachinist]

Cheers Paul. Another nice repair 👍 🇬🇧

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi TRM, quite nice to have my first bit of alloy TIG actually work. Not so difficult as I imagined. Cheers

[@dee1089]

nice job. ive heard that you should preheat with a piece as big as that.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Dee, yes that seems to be the advice from comments. It's amazing how much heat Aluminium can absorb. Cheers

[@Machine_NZ]

Hi Paul, just a tip: if the carbide burr clogs when grinding aluminium use some WD40 and it will help stop the clogging. Great video. Regards Kevin

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Kevin, thanks. I will have the WD40 handy next time. Cheers

[@mftmachining]

Excellent job....thats the reason i keep an asortment of all tread in the shop....at least 10 times a year i´m glad to have them around.👍

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi MFT, yes very useful for all sorts for jobs. Cheers

[@davidberlanny3308]

Well done for tackling that job. Some of the pitting on that first pad looked quite deep, almost as if it was a casting defect that had been revealed. Turned out really well!! Good luck from Spain!!

[@HaxbyShed]

Thank you David. I was really surprised how deep the pitting was, after I removed the corrosion. I did not think the weld would have penetrated deep enough to fill them but as you saw it turned out fine. Happy days. Cheers

[@andrewdolinskiatcarpathian]

Sterling work. Bet your son was delighted. 👏👏👍😀

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Andrew, yes he is pleased. On to the next stage sometime - valve guides, injector port sealing plugs, and maybe a head skim. Cheers

[@RalfyCustoms]

Well done Paul buddy, on cast like that, it really plays to work the arc over the surface a few times first, to both preheat and draw any sh!t out of the material

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Ralfy, I will preheat next time. Probably shove it in the oven for an hour when the wife is out. Cheers

[@carlwilson1772]

Good video Paul. I am not a welder but I do have some experience in maintenance welding repairs on aluminium components. You have to remember that aluminium has a heat capacity 10x that of steel. So that big block would dissipate huge amounts of heat. I'd be looking to start at 200 Amps without preheat, maybe 180 with. Aluminium takes in heat at a great rate before it starts to melt. Once it goes though, you have a "sweet spot" prior to thermal runaway. So once you are in the zone, you can back off the current a bit, either via a pedal or pause and use the pot on the welder.

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Carl. Given it was a big cold lump then it's surprising it welded ok. I'll preheat next time. Cheers

[@carlwilson1772]

@@HaxbyShed I don't believe it's always neccesary to preheat. I think if you start with a high current, the heat will inevitably soak in, unless we are talking about relatively massive sections. I think you did an excellent job and my words were not intended to be critical in any way.

[@houseofbrokendobbsthings5537]

Well done. Looked fine. Enjoyed the setups on the shaper. All the best Dan

[@HaxbyShed]

Thank you Dan, Happy New Year.

[@grahameblankley3813]

Excellent video, I now want a shaper machine & a tig welder of course 200 amps, looking forward to your next video to see what I can learn 👍🇬🇧.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Grahame, now I think about it the welder is rated at 210 amps TIG but only 160 amps stick. It's enough for me. Shapers are basic and slow, and just magic 😁Cheers

[@GardenTractorBoy]

Very interesting, thanks. I always enjoy your TIG welding projects

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi GTB, I'm getting there slowly. Each project increases my confidence. Fact is I don't do enough but gas is expensive and so I don't TIG unless I've a proper job for it. The potential for what you can do with it is great (large). Cheers

[@mikebarton3218]

Interesting video - thanks. Maybe consider a pre-heat with a flame or playing the TIG torch over the workpiece for a minute or so? Thanks again.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Mike, yes the messaging in comments is that I should have preheated for better results. Next time I will. Cheers

[@bostedtap8399]

Great job Paul, maybe a little preheat of the block would assist in welding, but impressive for a small amperage machine👍, quite a bit of the black arts to aluminium welding, the slag/contaminates are heavier than the base material, hence cleaning phase, in theory anyway. I can see more VW engine blocks coming your way very soon!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for sharing, hope you get rid of the lurgy soon. Regards John.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi John, took me 3 weeks to shake off that chest cold. Dragged on forever. Cheers

[@MattysWorkshop]

Gday Paul, this job turned out great, thanks for sharing mate, cheers

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Matty, it was a beginner's effort but it all adds to experience. Cheers

[@paulhammond7489]

I'm pretty sure those reworked sealing surfaces will last long than our new PM ;)

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Paul, true enough the head should give long and distinguished service for many years to come yet. Politicians are a good subject for comparisons. Cheers

[@MatthewTinker-au-pont-blanc]

Cheepo carbide burs that you can find on line are much better for cleaning up Al! Clean up with stainless wire brushes or carbide burs, avoid stones, you can imbed grit! Al tig always AC. Cheers, Matthew

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Matthew, I will look out for the small carbide burs. I bought that Dremel clone ages ago and decided it lacked power (too easy to stall) but then I used it twice in a week. The other job was getting filler and paint out of cross-head screws so I could unscrew them - it was perfect for that. Cheers

[@SeanBZA]

Yes a lot of machine shops will simply grind that face out and put metal epoxy, and it will last the life of the vehicle. Been there done that, especially on a sunday afternoon, when all the shops are closed, and the car was needed for the morning to work. 5 minute epoxy to the rescue, though I also have done inserts into heads as well, especially for those little bolts that love to corrode out.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Sean, there are a few damaged threads, but I think we will manage without insets on this one. Cheers

[@TrPrecisionMachining]

good job..thanks for your time

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks again TPMA 👍

[@JourneymanRandy]

I nominate you father of the year Paul. Nice work with the Tig and the shaper.🔧⚒🔩

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Randy, I might have to achieve more than that to be father of the year but it's nice that my son and I share similar interests. Cheers

[@dannywilsher4165]

Nice repair Mr. Paul. Thanks for sharing!!!

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Danny.

[@kens.8834]

Perhaps in hindsight you overthought that welding of an aluminum casting. Unlike the welding of aluminum thin-sections, cast aluminum can be pretty forgiving, especially when it will be machined-off later . Pretty welds are often just a vanity exercise or a work of artistic expression . You did a more than fine job ! P.S Tungsten electrode contamination is an ever present danger with aluminum -- you are hardly the first one to be plagued by the innocent slip of hand .

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Ken, as a first timer on a casting like that I was surprised it was easier than I expected. I was sure I had left cavities but apparently not. I will be more confident/experienced next time. Cheers

[@Warped65er]

Well done. As you know, epoxy would have would have been fine, but what you did is a far superior fix. And both require good surface prep to work.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi W65er, I would have used epoxy myself but it was good experience and now I have a bit of ally welding experience. 😁 Cheers

[@TheKnacklersWorkshop]

Nicely done Paul.

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Paul. Cheers

[@jonsworkshop]

Very nicely done Paul, and really showing the versatility of a shaper. As for welding tips, thank you. As for lettuce tips, they are normally the most tasty bits lol, "I'm not a quitter but.....I will happily take the £115k a year for life as payment for my 4 weeks of hard work..... Stupid tax payers" Cheers, Jon

[@HaxbyShed]

Hello Jon you made me chuckle. It's always dangerous to comment on politics because a comical comment today can be taken in bad taste tomorrow, if something unexpected happens. You leave yourself hostage to fortune. Cheers

[@jonsworkshop]

@@HaxbyShed hi Paul, definitely, me too, if this was politics I would have avoided it like the plague, happily (and unfortunately) this exciting period in our history was as far removed from politics as you can get, an utter farce at our expense making us a laughing stock for the rest of the world.

[@billdoodson4232]

Funnily enough I got the same TIG welder from R-Tech, with the same reasoning. Having done some alloy welding previously (350A water cooled Kempii that I bought for work 🙂) I knew I needed a decent amount of amps. The 170A was too small the 210 amp seemed about right and I couldn't justify even to myself the almost £300 jump for the next 40 amps. Have to say I have been very pleased with the welder, so much so that I also got the MIG and the little inverter MMA stick welder for those jobs when you need something portable.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Bill, I spent ages deciding whether I wanted 170 or 210 and you possibly know that the stick rating is lower (I think 160A for the 210A model) so that's what drove me to the 210. The other thing is that the fan runs all the time on the 170A model, so they told me, whereas the fan only fires up when you strike an arc on the 210. Now I've tried Alloy pulse it just reconfirms it was the right choice to go for the 210. Cheers

[@billdoodson4232]

@@HaxbyShedYes, sometimes you can over think these things and then you prevaricate as to what you should do. For a long time, I have thought it best to go with the first thing you considered and get what you would end up with anyway. But saying it is a lot easier than doing it. I’m looking for a new lathe now, probably look at buying in the New Year, but once again I find I’m spending too much time investigating and not doing. The thing that has surprised me is the price ranges for what is essentially the same lathe from different suppliers. I’ve found prices between £9,700 and £20,000 and the only thing I can find different between them is the colour of the paint and the expensive ones come with “German supervision” while being manufactured. Sometime think I should just take up knitting.

[@HaxbyShed]

@@billdoodson4232 Bill that price range is staggering, but if you had not done your research you might not have uncovered that so it kinda validates the approach. Time spent on reconnaissance is seldom wasted - so they say. My wife is a knitting fanatic so let me know if you need lessons. 🙂

[@dcraft1234]

Must be feeling quite satisfied.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi DC, surprised myself really. As a first timer I thought I'd get a meltdown. Amazing how much heat Aluminium can absorb. Cheers.

[@alanremington8500]

Nice job!!

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Alan, It was very satisfying to work with that large lump on the shaper. Cheers

[@kimber1958]

GREAT JOB , LOOKS FINE.

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Kimber. Always good to have your comment. Cheers

[@candeservices1]

These are dark days and most politicians are selling us down the river. Take care my friend and one day your son will remember that pop fixed that water jacket.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi CandE, it's nice that I can still teach my kids a thing or two and they do absorb. It strengthens the bond. We are fortunate. As for politicians, the thing I struggle with in recent years is ideological popularist policies where they just don't think through the consequences. I'm not sure if they are dim or just shallow (or both). What happened to the thinkers? Cheers

[@peterhadfield873]

Watching you TIG weld that face I thought you could do with a slightly larger welding rotator. Next project? :-)

[@HaxbyShed]

Peter I did not think of it at the time but yes I could have removed the jaws from the rotator and used it as a small rotating table perhaps. In fact it's an idea I should keep in mind. Cheers

[@glenncpw]

Great video. Would make me try doing a head if I had too. As for the Politicians, I think in all countries (and Parities) they are all self serving and forget the bloke in the street..

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Glenn, my thoughts about politicians are complex 😮

[@hilltopmachineworks2131]

Another odd job done! 👍

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Tom. Another one added to the experience bank. Cheers

[@paweisyn7446]

🙋

[@HaxbyShed]

Thank you Pawel. Cheers

[@bearsrodshop7067]

Great content today Paul. My tig welds look like Fido's butt,,, great job.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Bear, I'm sure Fido was a good looking dog .... 🤣 Cheers

[@claygormish4884]

Cast aluminium is full of garbage. It's nearly impossible to get clean welds particularly chasing cracks. Looks good to me.

[@HaxbyShed]

Hi Clay, yep I reckon you are right. I'm sure even German auto engineering consumes it's share of old Coke cans. Cheers

[@willybendit]

Hi Paul good job and Cheap found some ( jones & shipman) tool holders that might fit your Shaper if your interested in them send me a email in the new year all the best to you and your family regards Alain

[@HaxbyShed]

Thanks Alain. Happy New Year.