Disk Brake Rotors

[CyberianHusky]

I've got some disk brake rotors that I removed from my truck. I thought about using them for some kind of worklight pole base, which I don't really need. What have you used them for? I'm looking for ideas, since it would give me a chance to use my HH175.

Thanks!

Don

" A dog is just a dog unless he is staring you in the face, then he is Mr. Dog" - Haitian Farmer

[Ed Heimbach]

Brake rotors are cast iron, and will be difficult to get a good, high strength weld. This being said, I know that there are lots of grinder stands, work lamp stands, and supports for welding curtains made out of rotors.
A fairly good weld can be made with flux core on cast, for some reason, it just seams to work better than solid wire, possibly because of the polarity being reversed.
Be adventursome, experiment, have fun.

[Roger]

Brake drums and rotors are cast steel or is this another senior moment.

[steelhanger]

Roger, you are having another senior moment.
Go to any brake shop and look at the dust and flakes that come off when a drum or a rotor is turned, if it was steel the dust and flakes would be shavings instead.

[Guest]

Originally posted by Roger
Brake drums and rotors are cast steel or is this another senior moment.

I really don't know what they are but, take a grinder to 'em...if the sparks are red, they're cast iron...if they're yellow. they're steel

[CyberianHusky]

Based on Rocky's suggestion, this particular set of rotors is cast iron. Now, what to do with them, is my question of the day.

Thanks, Everyone

[Hobart Expert Rock]

WELD THEM TOGETHER ALL 4 OF THEM AND SET A POTTED PLANT INSIDE THEM..........EUREKA......... SETTING ON THE CORNER OF THE PORCH AIN'T NO ONE GOING TO KNOCK THEM OFF EASILY...... THAT THOUGHT HAD BEEN BANGING AROUND IN MY HEAD SINCE I READ THE POST YESTERDAY.........
EVERYONE'S BUYING YARD ART TURN THEM INTO A FLOWER.... GRIN......... ........
YOU KNOW THE OLD TRAP DOOR IN THE BARN THAT ALWAYS FALLS DOWN ON YOU........ COUNTER WEIGHT TO HOLD THE DOOR UP........
OK..............WHO HAS OTHER IDEAS PLEASE CHIME IN..... .............ROCK
[email protected]

[Bob]

add some re-bar legs and a head and make steel turtles

or

rotors usually ring pretty well, maybe a manly wind chime

[Hobart Expert Rock]

CHIME ON IN............. .........CHIME......ROCK[email protected]

[Dan]

Originally posted by CyberianHusky
Based on Rocky's suggestion, this particular set of rotors is cast iron. Now, what to do with them, is my question of the day.

Thanks, Everyone

Don

To verify your findings I looked through a couple of automotive textbooks that I have, and the answer is that rotors are made from cast iron as your spark test showed.

So with this being known and if you want to use them as a base for a stand, I would weld a flange, that has holes that match up with the holes on the rotor, to a column. Then bolt the flange and rotor together.

If your going to turn them into some type of art work, braze welding would be my prefered process to use.

If they were brake drums I would suggest a forge. My Dad made a forge from a couple of brake drums, some pipe, and a small squirrel cage fan. He built this roughly 25 years ago to use for shoeing the horses that we had at the time. He still uses it to this day for other tasks now.

Anyway, for educational purposes Im attaching a picture of a couple of diagrams showing what the results of a cast iron spark test should look like.

[bitternut]

cast iron sparks

DAN...............You let me down!!!!! I opened your picture and expected to see a nice color photo of a stream of bright red cast iron sparks.

[Guest]

Originally posted by Bob
add some re-bar legs and a head and make steel turtles

or

rotors usually ring pretty well, maybe a manly wind chime

I read a thread on the science/joining/welding news group where they were takling about making wind chimes from old oxygen bottles! Can you imagine the sound????? Talk about overkill...

[Dan]

Re: cast iron sparks

Originally posted by bitternut
DAN...............You let me down!!!!! I opened your picture and expected to see a nice color photo of a stream of bright red cast iron sparks.

Sorry, but you aren t going to see that one from my camera. I d really like to live a little longer. If my wife were to find out that I used her $300 digital camera to take such a picture , I wouldn t make it to my 35 th birthday.

[Ed Heimbach]

Dan , if 34 makes you a 'middle aged member' , then I'm looking to change my member status. How did you do that anyway, is there a backdoor in this program that allows a status change?

[GWOL]

Ed,

You can change the title under your name, but going to PROFILE, EDIT PROFILE, and put in the title you want displayed.

Hope this helps.