Best way to get this part made? Welded?

Mark A · 14 Sep 2020 at 00:48

Hi all, not been around for a while, hope everyone is doing good.

I am in need of a part producing and not sure of the best way to go about it. Its a small pipe with an ID of 25mm and wall thickness around 1.5-2mm, with a 2mm M10 washer fixed to one end, in stainless steel.

Would it be possible to weld it? Would that be a fairly strong join if its welded all the way around? The washer could be over sized, say 35mm or so if that would help strengthen the weld.

Or the best way would be to have it machined, but I'm guessing that would be mega expensive?

Also if anyone knows a decent supplier of stainless pipe for hobbyists that would be awesome. I asked a few sellers on ebay and they want £15 for a 35mm length of 25mm ID stainless pipe, which seems a ripp off. I'd then need to send it to a welder I found on ebay who will weld it for £10 + p&p

I was hoping to find something already made that I could re-purpose, like a railing end cap or similar. I have searched for all sorts, but nothing seems remotely close to what I need.

theone8181 · 14 Sep 2020 at 06:21

What are you using it for, doing the tube have to be SS?

PlacidCasual · 14 Sep 2020 at 07:45

The other question; does the hole have to be concentric with the pipe inside diameter? Also how key is the internal diameter? Nominal bore pipe of different schedules might find a close match but not necessarily a perfect one depending on your tolerance.

sovietspybob · 14 Sep 2020 at 08:37

Yeah that's wedlable with a TIG, i'd have thought that'd be cheaper than getting something like that milled.

PlacidCasual · 14 Sep 2020 at 09:28

If stainless isn’t a requirement more a nice to have and you need it concentric probably turning it on a lathe from aluminium is the easiest way. It really depends on what elements of the design serve what purpose. A bit of SS pipe and a washer will work but certain areas might be out of tolerance or not depending on what you need it for.

jpaul · 14 Sep 2020 at 10:00

end caps aren't so far off ?
https://www.andythornton.com/stainless-steel-flush-cap-25mm-atsscf2-25-304-946

PlacidCasual said:
does the hole have to be concentric with the pipe inside diameter?

does the m10 hole centre have to be coincident with the tube centre ? yes - or do you mean whats the tolerance

Mark A · 14 Sep 2020 at 13:12

@PlacidCasual It needs to be fairly strong and the washer needs to be 2mm, so I think Aluminium wouldn't be strong enough. I guess mild steel is a possibility, but the non rusting element of stainless would be a big bonus.

sovietspybob said:
Yeah that's wedlable with a TIG, i'd have thought that'd be cheaper than getting something like that milled.

Thats good to hear. Do you think it would be a strong fix with the material being so thin?

@jpaul Thanks, but those are a tad too small. The inside diameter needs to be 25-26mm as it fits onto a 25mm pipe. Something like that would have been ideal though.

It seems like such a simple part, but will end up costing me like £30 to make... I wish I had learned how to weld, it would come in so handy for stuff like this.

Is it possible to weld mild steel to stainless steel? I might as well use stainless washers if I can, but seem to remember welding rods being material specific.

Edit: I think I have found some stainless pipe that will do that isn't a total rip off. 28mm OD 1.5mm wall for £7.60 delivered and they do free cutting for up to 5 pieces

So will get that and some washers and see how it goes I think.

Thanks all

sovietspybob · 14 Sep 2020 at 14:49

It's generally not a good idea to weld different metals, i have done it but only for something that didn't matter much.

Also you'd need to be a pretty good welder to do that, i can stick stuff together with my MIG and my ARC but there's no way i'd be able to do the above, that'd take a lot more skill than most of your garage hobby welders.

jpaul · 14 Sep 2020 at 15:13

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Stainles...od-Pole-Socket-End-Support-2Pcs-/292550994370
& DIY the end cap ? If , you have room for the flange.

ValiantUK91 · 14 Sep 2020 at 16:07

Might be able get this sorted for you at work (sheet metal engineer) ill nip into the welding shop tomorrow morning see what stock we have in and see if i can sort it out for you.

Mark A · 15 Sep 2020 at 12:05

ValiantUK91 said:
Might be able get this sorted for you at work (sheet metal engineer) ill nip into the welding shop tomorrow morning see what stock we have in and see if i can sort it out for you.

Oh wow, thanks a lot

. If you do find the stock i'll pay for postage and beers!

@jpaul The flange would be too big sadly. Great suggestion though, thanks for looking for me

. I was hoping to find something like that with a solid bottom on it. I was looking at boat railing brackets and they are the same with the hole through the base.

@sovietspybob Thanks, I thought as much. I'll stick to all stainless then. The welder I found on ebay says he has an aerospace background and works to very tight tolerances, but he also charges £10 for 30 mins work, so i'm not sure.. I sent him all the details and he said it would be no problem though.

ValiantUK91 · 15 Sep 2020 at 12:25

How crucial is the centering of the m10 washer? As the outer diameter of our stainless ones are 20mm so its going to leave a gap around the edges of the tube so going be a pain in the backside to get it exactly centre while welding it

EDIT: stock was labelled up wrong the tubing is actually 22mm inner diameter not 25mm with a wall of 1.5mm

Mark A · 15 Sep 2020 at 14:05

ValiantUK91 said:
How crucial is the centering of the m10 washer? As the outer diameter of our stainless ones are 20mm so its going to leave a gap around the edges of the tube so going be a pain in the backside to get it exactly centre while welding it

EDIT: stock was labelled up wrong the tubing is actually 22mm inner diameter not 25mm with a wall of 1.5mm

Gah no worries, thanks a lot for trying, really appreciate it!

The centring doesn't have to be perfect, it'll have something bolted to it, so just needs to be centred enough that an M10 nut can turn within the tube and I can get a socket in there to tighten it. (hmm, I'd better check the diameter of my sockets, the thought never crossed my mind until now..).

ValiantUK91 · 15 Sep 2020 at 14:30

I might be able to do it in mild steel and paint it or put galv spraypaint on it for you, can even put a m10 insert into the washer saves you having to put a nut inside and tighten it can just screw it onto the bolt if thats easier

Snaggle · 15 Sep 2020 at 22:51

be easier to whip that up in a lathe and machine the washer as part of it .. would take me 30 mins to nock that up .. you should be able to go to any engineering shop and get that done

Maccapacca · 15 Sep 2020 at 22:56

Snaggle said:
be easier to whip that up in a lathe and machine the washer as part of it .. would take me 30 mins to nock that up .. you should be able to go to any engineering shop and get that done

Yes fairly simple with a lathe. Try this service

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/114229419377

silverblack · 16 Sep 2020 at 01:03

If you were welding a mild steel washer to s/s pipe you would need 309 s/s tig rods which are for dissimilar metals. However that ebay service looks ideal and a better solution.

ValiantUK91 · 16 Sep 2020 at 18:17

For some reason cant load our conversation keep getting a error, will post the part out tomorrow managed to get a few stainless nuts that aren't been used on jobs, anything else you need? We had no brass washers in so can't help you with those unfortunately.

Mark A · 16 Sep 2020 at 22:46

@ValiantUK91 Sorry, only just checked the thread and seen your message. Thanks so much, you're a legend!

Thanks everyone for the help, Valiant has very kindly sorted my part

, I should have said yesterday but i have been so busy.

Edit: That machining service on ebay looks good i'll save that for the future.

Best way to get this part made? Welded?

Tea Drinker