Brass is the most common metal used in pipe fittings and when there is often a requirement to repair pipes be it in the household or in the workplaces!
Therefore, whether you are a welder or not, you still should be aware of the techniques to weld brass in case there arises an emergency.
In order to weld brass you will have to make use of the arc welding process. Therein, you will be needing a shielded arc type electrode (electrode positive), silicon bronze or aluminium bronze or phosphor bronze electrodes and high welding current and the entire procedure of welding must be carried out in flat position. But, the best way to weld brass is by the use of oxy-acetylene process, wherein you will need a flux and the torch with oxy-acetylene flame (oxidizing flame).
And this article will tell you all the necessary details you need to know regarding the welding of brass! Through the course of the article, I will tell you about all the processes to weld brass with various metals and the best welding techniques to be used with each metal.
So, without further ado, let’s begin reading….
Can you weld brass with a MIG welder?
You can definitely weld brass with the aid of a MIG welder provided you use the right shielding gas that is a mixture of argon and carbon-dioxide.
Also, be careful while choosing the filler rod as it has to match the colour of the brass metal.
In case of MIG welding brass, you need to use the SIFMIG 8 or Sifphosphor Bronze no.8, SIFMIG 328 and 968 or Sifalbronze no.32 and Sifsilcopper no. 968.
In case of colour matching with bronze, you need to use Sifphosphor Bronze no.82.
Can you weld brass with stick welder?
Welding brass with a stick welder is considered to be one of the best processes because brass being an alloy of zinc and copper it is hard to melt as both zinc and copper has different melting points. Therefore, stick welding or arc welding is perfect for welding brass.
To successfully stick weld brass, you need to use a shielded arc type of electrode and the welding process should be carried out in a flat position. During the process of stick welding, brass is deposited with a wave pattern which is actually a sign of high quality weld.
Can you weld brass to metal?
Brass is an alloy of zinc and copper and in that case it is hard to weld brass to metals like steel. Instead you can try the brazing procedure in case you want to join steel with bronze. While brazing brass to steel you would need the help of a silicone bronze filler rod.
How do you solder brass to brass?
You can solder brass to brass using a silver solder.
However, you can weld brass to brass using any of the following method:
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- Oxy-acetylene welding
- MIG welding
- TIG welding
- Flame welding using CuZn39Sn filler rod. Flames types can be neutral, carburizing and oxidizing
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See also: Why Should a Carburizing Flame be Avoided when Welding Steel?
Can I weld copper to brass?
Yes, brass being an alloy of copper you can definitely weld copper to brass.
Let me take you through the process of welding copper to brass:
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- Remove any temperature sensitive parts and then clean the tubing and fitting.
- Remember to properly cut and ream the parts in order to remove burrs.
- Proper cleaning removes any surface contaminants.
- Roughen the tube ends and the fittings to be joined with the help of a wire brush.
- Then add flux with the help of an acid brush.
- Insert the tubing into the brass parts. Make sure that the tubing seats right at the bottom of the brass fitting.
- Next you need to support the tube and the fitting assembly in order to provide a consistent gap around the joint
- Next uniformly start heating the braze area using an oxy-acetylene torch. Remember to use a reducing flame.
- Begin heating perpendicular to the tube. The copper tube will conduct the initial heat into the fitting for the even distribution of the heat along the joint area.
- Next move the flame to the fitting area and direct the flame from the fitting back onto the tube.
- Allow the alloy to be drawn by capillary action into the joint. The alloy here will flow from the outside to the inside. Heat again for the free flow of the alloy to fill in any gap.
- Clean the area using hot area. If you find any gaps, heat the area again.
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Is brass easy to weld?
The simple answer is brass is not easy to weld and the reason is brass is an alloy of zinc and copper and the melting point of both are different. Also, zinc melts faster than copper and reacts with atmosphere to produce zinc oxide which is bad to inhale.
Can you weld bronze to brass?
Yes, you can weld bronze to brass using the following welding techniques:
Metal arc welding brass and bronze:
You have to use a shielded arc type electrode with straight polarity. The possible electrodes used are phosphor bronze, aluminium bronze and silicone bronze electrodes.
Carbon arc welding brass and bronze:
Here, the metal in the carbon arc is highly heated and is alloyed to the base metal in the joint. Remember to use filler rods of the same composition as the base metal.
Oxy-acetylene welding brass and bronze:
You can use silicon copper welding rods or a brass welding rod. Next, you will require a flux and torch flame (oxidizing flame).
Gas metal arc welding brass and bronze:
Requirements:
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- Direct current
- Electrode positive
- Argon shielding
- High travel speed of the molten weld pool
- Stringer beads
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Gas tungsten arc welding brass and bronze:
Requirements:
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- Stabilised AC or direct current
- Electrode negative
- Helium or argon shielding
- Preheating o metal to 350to 400 degree F
- Fast travel speed
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Shielded metal arc welding brass and bronze:
Requirements:
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- Phosphor bronze covered electrodes
- Direct current
- Electrode positive
- Stringer beads
- Post welding annealing at 900 degree F
- Baking electrodes at 250 to 300degree F before use is necessary
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Can you weld brass to aluminium?
Clearly, the answer is NO!
You cannot weld brass to aluminium because they are chemically incompetent and will form corrosion. In case you want to join the two metals, you can make use of the epoxy glue.
How do you weld brass to steel?
As brass and steel have different points, therefore welding these two metals can be very difficult. Therefore, in order to join these two metals, you need to use the brazing technique in which the two metals are melted separately and then joined using a filler rod of silicone bronze.
All’s well that ends well!
With that we have come to end of this article and I hope you enjoyed reading it!
Do not forget to catch up with us in our next article that answers all your queries regarding welding of another metal!
Till then, take care, stay safe and…
Have a happy welding day!
