Straightening a 914, no one around here has a cellette Options

[rick 918-S]

This is all good information.

Thanks for the offer George I may need your help.

What ever I do I plan to be there to watch and supervise.

John

Wish you were closer. I'd pull it for you. You could always tow dolly it up here.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

I'm going to rent the Celette fixtures sometime around the end of February I think for the 6. I think I am going to try to talk Scotty b into towing out his rear hit car. It could be an interesting week. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

[rick 918-S]

Just adding to the above, I think you are also going to have to cut the cage. I'm helping remake a Caterham frame now that was wrecked then attempted to be straightened on a bench. The end result was doubling the number of buckled tubes and cracked welds (as compared to the original accident). The weld cracking was a bit scarier as not all was easy to see (unlike the painfully obvious tubes) and wouldn't have been found without a cafeful inspection. For reference, Caterhams are TIG welded, fillet brazed, and them most likely stress relieved, so their joints are significantly more ductile than the MIG welds on most cages.

I believe that Caterham was more likely gas welded like an air frame. Specially if it's 4130. The best process for 4130 is gas welding. Tig works if properly stress relieved. The heat concentration with tig is too small causing the welds to cool fast rather than naturalize with the tubes. Lots of guys tig tube I know but I'm referring to the likely method back in the day. The best method is still old school.

You're correct. The frame is a 2001 which per google looks to have mostly been bronze welded. The interesting part is that most of the welding appears to have "steel" filler. I agree that gas welding on 4130 is better since you don't need to stress relieve. We've built a few tube chassis and the stress relieving after TIGing takes forever; it seems like it would be quicker to have a good torch guy gas weld the whole thing and skip the relieving step. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Is there a way to tell if something is TIG or gas welded
Sorry for hijacking John...

Well that depends on who welded it. Tig welds tend to be just slightly smoother than gas weld due to the rod flow in the flame verses the arch flow of the tig. But there are some very talented air frame guys out there.

The filler rod your seeing may be silicon bronze.

[sixnotfour]

There are lots of frame pulling systems capable of pulling a 914, The measurement system is the Labor intensive part of it.. Celette fixtures have the benefit of being peg in hole, and bolt on and pull to fit.

[ThePaintedMan]

Wish you were closer. I'd pull it for you. You could always tow dolly it up here.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

I'm going to rent the Celette fixtures sometime around the end of February I think for the 6. I think I am going to try to talk Scotty b into towing out his rear hit car. It could be an interesting week. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

Road trip!!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/aktion035.gif) I'm always up for one (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[rhodyguy]

that's what all the married guys used to say...