ASTM 1045 Weldable?
ASTM 1045 Weldable?
(OP)
I have a client that had an axle break on a dolly. The client said that the axle was ASTM 1045. I took a look at the setup and it appeared that the axle fractured in shear. When I took a look at the axle, I noticed that it had been welded at the fracture location. I was wondering if welding this material could have contributed to the cause of the failure.





RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
Yes. In general, 1045 carbon steel can be welded provided preheat requirements are followed closely. In some cases a stress relief or post weld heat treatment may be required. The lack of preheat is normally the cause of most weldability problems with higher carbon grades of steel. Did the failure occur along the edge of the weld? If so, this would most likely be cause by lack of proper preheat during welding.
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
It is generally accepted that all welded structures are put into service with some type of discontinuities. But we also have to remember that not all discontinuities rise to the level of defects that need to be repaired.
Even with proper preheat, welding procedures and good NDE you very likely had some type of discontinuity in the toe or edge of the weld that created a stress raiser which contributed to the failure. Examination of the fracture origin in the SEM will tell you a lot.
The material become more of a factor here if improper welding procedures were used because then not only do discontinuities play a factor, but microstructure and phases can play a factor due to differences in fatigue or fracture initiation resistance.
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
For 1045 this is going to be difficult because of filler material availability. In the mid 1980's we fabricated a prototype high speed track out of C1026 and C1040 and used a .30 carbon weld wire, annealed and heat treated the blocks and none cracked. The C1026 did stretch past yield under load. We have had good success using an E80SD2 welding wire C1045 to 8620.
Ed Danzer
www.danzcoinc.com
www.dehyds.com
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
Just one question, Are we talking about a ASTM 1045 or AISI/SAE 1045 steel? Since the piece is an axle, I assume a AISI 1045 steel as base material.
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
Poor weld profile could have contributed to fatigue crack propagation, however, there does not appear to be any significant fatigue progression. Single event overload more likely.
Is the weld there just to keep the axle stub from sliding out? If so, why not key it and do away with the weld?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
Gold is for the mistress - silver for the maid
Copper for the craftsman cunning in his trade.
"Good!" said the Baron, sitting in his hall
But iron - cold iron is the master of them all.
Rudyard Kipling
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?
It's tough to tell what definitely happened after the fracture surface was painted???
There are several spots of undercut visible in the toe lines of the weld at 12 o'clock.
Any one of those undercut defects/discontinuities could have been the point of origin for the fatigue failure that occurred here.
You can reweld this successfully. A previous poster mentioned ER80 solid wire. This is probably sufficient to the task. Given a choice, I'd find some ER90 filler or stick weld it with E9018 low hydrodren rod. Given a choice I'd TIG weld this, but any skilled welder should be able to make this repair with whatever process is available.
Were I doing this, I'd start by grinding, gouging, or machining out the old weld and remove any fatigued metal at the fracture surface. Try not to recess the joint below the surface of the surrounding plate any more than necessary, as this will complicate welding. That is, unless it's practical to remove the entire shaft to repair it.
Prep the new shaft stub by beveling it at ~30° angle, using a double bevel prep. Blunt the tapered end of the joint tip slightly, to facilitate welding a full penetration root pass. I'd pre-heat the joint to ~400°F before commencing welding. Then fill each side of the bevel, alternating sides to minimize distortion. Allow the joint to cool to an interpass temperature of 500°F max between passes. Once welding is complete, Pack the joint in glass fiber insulation to slow cooling.
RE: ASTM 1045 Weldable?