[How-To] Fill (weld) holes in 1" steel plate

You are not going to like drilling through that 70 series weld. I wouldn't want to put my annular cutters in that situation, they're easy enough to break in steel alone. I vote drill and tap, then fuse the plug with a TIG weld.
 
How many holes? It's a massive structure and doubt a couple or few holes would pose much of a warpage threat. How flat is it to begin with?Some preheating would help but again hard to get much heat into it.

Copper works but it can still stick, especially if it's a plug versus backing plate and after a few cycles. Think I'd just shove a drill bit through the hole so you had clean fresh metal and press/pound a shallow steel plug in the bottom, then fill it up in a circular motion with high feed and power. The bottom of the hole will never be a problem to drill through because it will always be attached via some weld.

......drilling through a (hard) weld in the future may be another matter.

Best,
Kelly
 
I have had to do this a lot on farm equipment...

The hole has to be flat horizontal. Vertical will not fill well. Gets to be a job on something like a field cultivator or disk harrow. :)

Use 7014 Rod. This keeps you from hitting the sides of the hole.

AL or copper backer at bottom.

Weld and fill until well proud, keep in mind a lot of the puddle is actually flux.

Grind smooth.

If the bottom needs to be nice, flip part, grind a pocket and weld again.

Grind smooth.

With practice you cannot see the repair on a painted surface.

It is also possible to move over 1/2 a hole after the repair if you use a guide plate clamped to the part to prevent drill wondering. This is the main reason to go to the trouble.

Karl
 
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