Transfer Case (Weld) Failure??? 

That was a nightmare. Aluminium castings are extremely difficult to weld at the best of times, never mind trying to repair some else's repair. It looks like that last repair was done with oxy. The case should have been scrapped in the first place and just replaced.

That was a great repair, certainly was not easy. In my youth I learned to weld aluminum MIG with a spool gun it was not easy, but I learned it, this was in the 1980's, one day at a friend's house I was talking about welding aluminum with a spool gun and how hard it was, my friend's grandmother said that it's much more difficult to weld aluminum with a gas torch....! She was a weldor at one of the Boeing plants during WWII and she welded aluminum with a freaking gas torch... much respect!

Better effort than the first guy, can't win them all👍

Wow. Thats all i can say. Anyone thats ever tried to weld cast aluminum like that knows how difficult that is.

You must be the only person in Texas with a space heater running at the moment! Nice work Isaac.

That t-case is going on market place and some poor kid will probably think it’s a good deal not knowing it’s welded. Wheels, t-cases, transmissions….only do them for people I know and I usually leave them as welded so people can clearly see it’s been repaired. It looks like a decent repair 👍

Patience of a saint Isaac . I would have definitely told them, well you shouldn't have tried to fix it before, and say you need another case because it would cost more than another case to repair it .

Isaac all your effort was not in vain , it gave us a view of what is involved in trying to fix caste aluminium, this one went the wrong way But you can’t fix everything, you are still the master of your profession, all the best from Tasmania Australia 🇦🇺

You're the man. One of the best videos ever. Everyone is so used to clean new stuff. This is reality folks.

1 time, my buddys old ranch tucks front axle shaft came apart and broke a 4 inch round hole in the tranfer case . Took it to the local welder, and he said he can't guarantee it will hold and would not touch it. Next, we Coundnt find one at the junk yard or even new housing for that truck was obsolete, so we went over to local parts store and got JB weld clay type and mixed liquid type. And got a wire mesh. We scuffed it up good and put wire mesh over the hole and applied clay tipe first,let it drye and then we applied liquid type over it and so far its been over 10 yrs still holding t-case fluid in. Last resort kinda deal 👌

Your work was a success for what you had even if they didn't use it.

1:57 that gap also probably contributed to the failure since it could be over torqued there forcing it and causing stress till failure.

Every time I watch you work I learn something valuable. Added to that you manage to inject some humor in whatever the project is. In my opinion, one of the best channels on all of RU-vid. 👍🏼

Wow! Give you credit for tackling this job. As to addressing the gap between the case i would have masked one side and jb weld the other side (gap), bolt together and let set.

I got to the end . Man Isaac, after all that work it didn't work ?... Still I hope they didn't refuse to pay though . All I can say is you're a hard working humble man Isaac . :)

I broke one of those 30 years ago. The pressed metal planetary exploded putting a square or rectangle hole right through the case. The gasket and bolt area were not affected. I just trimmed the broken parts off the ground it neat and welded in a plate, lasted ten more years, and over 100k mi. Then it was sold off.

Nice try Isaac. Your skills always shine through no matter what the outcome is! Thanks for posting and take care!

This is a great example of the difference between a professional tradesman and an amateur hack.

That base with the grooves looks like a table off of a shaper, probably a pretty good sized one.

That looks like an NVG 241 housing. There are thousands of them in recycling yards. I bought a low mileage one for $140.

Nice fix, congratulations on the new gear!

Looks like it was done with a spool gun initially.... no Bueno 😂 fixing these type of castings in the best case scenario are really tough. Look good now👌

That's the "Attack of the Spool Gun".

That "mess" turned into another work of excellence out the door!

Thank you for the content. Your schooling on the videos is fantastic.

Amazing repair!

Isaac, I admire you for even attempting that repair. If you or the customer had had access to a mill it would have been interesting to see if you could have built up weld in the area where the case was warped and then mill it back down to flat with a precision mill. Enjoyable to watch your work in any event.

A lot of work by all parties for a $200 side cover, or $500 complete transfer case. Thanks Issac for the content.

Well done Issac very nice thanks for the video ❤❤ it. Take care of yourself and family and be Blessed ❤️.

Watching what you were doing to clean it up makes me think of that cheap low temp "welding rod stuff" that is advertised all over at the moment Shame about the outcome though, its not often something like that doesnt work for you, you did some truly impressive work on that casing.

Hell of an attempt. I would have walked right off the bat. I commend your abilities!

damn surprised the repair didn't work. you made a great attempt... love your work

I can only imagine how hot it got in your shop with the heater running. Kudos on the effort which I'm sure could be measured in sweat.

Hey sir, I've learned a lot from you. I've been a welding student for about a year. Today I did some arc gouging. I thank you and keep the videos coming.

Thank you for sharing, i learn a lot, another great video,always a pleasure watch your video,have a nice week end 👍👍👍👍

Nothing ventured nothing gained! I’ve spent my entire life repairing machines of all sorts, No matter the outcome ya just got to keep on trucking. This job you took on wow what a mess to try and repair someone best try!

Metal magician!! You have amazing skill ....

Always learn something from you. Great job

Great work welding on that aluminum

Was waiting for you to upload a new video. Always enjoy watching you work Isaac.

I am shocked. You reserved all that tedious die grinding for your personal viewing.... LOL Great work Isaac. Few folk would even attempt the job. The previous comment hit the crux of the problem. Alum castings look so nice until you try to weld them.. It is funny the crud doesn't seem to affect the casting quality.

Great video thank you for sharing

IC Weld to the rescue, well done. I would be very happy with that repair

Good job Isaac for what you had to work with, they had absolutely cooked that cast aluminum before you ever received it, it is difficult to play second fiddle and come out on top !! 🤗

Good work👍

I do appreciate all the effort you went through to make this video. Unfortunately for the customer I know they spent more than the cost of a used junk yard transfer case just in your labor to clean out the old welds, let alone your labor cost to weld it. A new case half from the dealer is only $3-400 last time I bought one.

Tig and mr professional for the winn ,great job and awsome vidio!

I enjoyed your video !

First guy ruined that thing. It was a valiant effort!

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK

You're an artist, my friend. And I hope you got paid what you're worth for doing it. 👍

👍👍👌👌 Thanks for the video!

That stuff is my fave to repair have been doin that kind of repairs for over 50 years. Lots of antique motorbike parts. Take alot of pride in my repairs. Cast aluminum is a different kind of repair.

Good try!.. Monday morning quarterback on what I'd have tried is to cut a thin slice near that bolt boss, clamp everything down tight, perhaps even with a thin feeler gauge under a couple of the neighboring bosses, weld everything else, then weld up my cut and hope it comes out close enough to straight to be able to sand it flush. definitely not easy to work the impurities out of that cast though and sure makes a decent weld on top much harder to do

Most cases are so readily available these days that they shouldn't have wasted your time. If they had brought it to you first, you probably could have saved it. Still enjoyed watching. Thanks for your time.

Darn fine effort Issac. I think that You would have been successful if You had the first try at it. Thanks for sharing.

141👍's up IC WELD thank you for sharing

Well, can't blame you for not working out. You may have been able to save the piece of you had first attempt. I've got an aluminum oil pan from my old Bobcat. 20 HP Kohler horz.twin. the starter mount snapped off. Sort of a weak looking affair. I was able to find a " marketplace" used replacement. If something happens to this one, I'll drive down from Wisconsin!:)

Dude that is awesome

Just returning a favor bud.. I have done many repairs to aluminum casting. Transmission and transfer cases. If you have a old stove whether gas or electric it works great for preheating and boiling out the crap slowly! You can always throw it back in a couple of minutes. Two three times per side. Second you will never get all the porous welds clean! Its a nonferrous spounge. Set your cleaning action at max.. run your beeds cool slowly and even when you buf it down rarely will it leak with a few holes! Good luck pard! Ps the profax 1260 gun is awesome

nice repair

You win some,you lose some! You gave it your best shot. That's all that matters. I'm not sure what those cases cost but for the time you put into fixing it,I would think it would have been better for the customer to invest that money in a new one. Just my 2 cents! 😁👍

Good thing you had to run your heater. Heard it's been mighty cold down there in Texas. 🤣

Every time you grind away some porosity from the botched first repair you just get into more and more porosity. Wild. That first repair looks like it was done with a gas torch.

I think part of the problem is welding a cast work peice. Of course cast aluminum has pores that randomly appear after being remelted. Much respect because of the best effort possible! I guess IF you were set up to be a foundry a chunk could be cut out then modeled up then cast from aluminum and stuck in place.

You did really well on that. If they had got it to you before the other guy had a go, I think you would have saved it. Sadly with the amount of distortion, that was never going to be easy. Nice work though, some you win ...

Man you know how to pick them

I hit pole while doing wheelie and used some J-B epoxy to patch the cover to avoid trying to welding aluminium again. That cover has seen better days.

Oh NO, NO, NO Hey man that transfer case is Magnesium. You need magnesium filler rod. I ran into the same problem several years ago, had one that had a small hole worn into by the chain, I cleaned, stainless brushed and tig welded with 4043. Was putting my stuff up and heard a little pop sound , the filler metal popped up a little . Tapped it with my hammer and it popped out. I figured it out finally and ordered some magnesium filler rod. It worked

Can’t help it bud.. every person has a different perspective but not everyone has really done aluminum cast! Again it stinks and most times breaks in the hardest to weld places! Rims, boats, door frames are considered a clip excursion. Always easier to weld but create hydrogen when welded. Seen some X-rays of new welded and it’s a sponge! Believe me after 30 years of welding it it is what it is bud.. swiss cheese pard! I love how you take anything on just to try. Gets me in trouble all the time but love it when it works out! A heavy coat of black paint will work wonders on cast aluminum pin holes. Thanks for your time bud. Your patience alone is worth $

Welding, Aluminium Crankcases, Gear Boxes etc can be a pain ??? The primary work in my shop was previously Repairing Aluminium Casings. The jobs that look like would be a absolute pain actually went really well. Where as Cases that should be fairly straightforward were absolute Nightmare. Unfortunately, with some jobs I had to simply give up and hand the part back to the customer without completing the Repair ?? It's not a great feeling to simply give up from the sake of failing ??? But, some Cases were totally un-repairable no matter how much effort I put in.

You are just so sensitive to the metal and do such dainty work I think those like yourself deserve far more credit than you receive.

It will be interesting for us also ;)

You gotta try some Plantex flap wheels with Kangaru oil! It removes material so fast and no gumming! A simple cleanup with acetone and away you go.

It should work Isaac Thats a Ford Transfer case there's a gasket anyway Could silicone it too .

Couldn’t they get another case ?love your work🇬🇧👍

I have fixed transmission cases with JB Weld if the crack /hole is not structural. They have lasted for years.

Atleast it was an interesting learning experience. If it was me doing it would have just JB welded it feom the first break for a "cold" weld, if it holds oil keep trucking. The first job was a good example in epic porosity.

I have found if you use the gas ax to burn the oil out with the oxygen cutting lever depressed not trying to heat the part up gust burn oil off it works well to clean up cast aluminum

wow, nice job there! the first attempt on that repair would have been better if done using JB weld...LOL

Looked like they try fixing it with some of that low temp aluminium brazing rods.

It reminds me of a dentist , you and that grinder , in fact they could show this episode to dental students ! Thank you for the video as always !

Bet it's hot in Texas without the space heater 😢😅😂

The previous welder welds by the saying, "The bigger the glob, the better the job." Well, not in this case.

At first when you put that aluminum in front of the heater, I thought you would have tried to trick us into thinking it melted from getting to hot. lol It was a good effort in trying to fix it though.

I agree. Should have been melted down. That said I have had “MINIMAL” success in the past by taking the support ribs from one side of the case and building matching ribs on the other side especially around the bolt holes. Then building up the low spots a filing them down as I went along. As I said minimal success. Good luck

Those cases are near impossible to repair and very easy to break

MM77 Approved 👍🏼👍🏼

It looks like someone believed the commercials and tried to repair it with those aluminum brazing rods without nearly enough heat.

cast aluminum is tough to weld, it was completed with the best skill set!

I think that was that aluminum melt rod, I've been seeing people use that in place of welding!

A very tricky job and not one that is always a success. You dud auch better job than the first person. We learn nothing if we don't try l suppose.

Isaac, me thinks that transfer case is just so many pop cans, you're going to beat yourself to death trying to fix it.

A difficult repair at best nevermind it's second go at being repaired, cast aluminum never welds well and there's no guarantee that it will be successful, still an excellent example of the challenges this type of repair offers

My initial thought is it does not look like aluminum but alumiweld or similar 'repair' rod, especially when the thin piece on the inside was chiseled out. The bubbly outside look seems to say excessive heating with the torch because the casting had gotten oxidized and the alumiweld would not stick?

With aluminium it is possible to heat it up so hard soap burns on its surface then quench it. This will remove all the work/age hardening the aluminium has received. Also during this heating process it will show up if there is any oil trapped in the aluminium as it bubbles out.

the master of disaster at work that was a mess

Why would someone have that welded? You can buy a used one for the cost of welding and save the man doing the work a whole lot of frustration.

Since you’ve started the channel, do you take odder jobs as a change up to what you would have before?

I'm thinking the original repair was with one of those weld sticks and an propane torche you see at the the county fair booth. They probable have a use but not in this case.