Welding anodized chromemoly?

[Sierra Backwoods]

To accommodate the body lift on my project, I am replacing the steering assembly between the power steering box and the shaft on the column. This is comprised of two 3/4" ID smooth bore u-joints and a section of round bar in between them. One u-joint connects to the input of the steering box (mounted outside the frame rail) and the other u-joint connects to the end of the shaft coming out of the column.

I just got my new u-joints in from Summit and they have no set-screws in them. The the old ones I'm replacing did. They are anodized chromemoly construction and the round bar I got at the hardware store is steel, though it looks to have a shiny silver finish to it, perhaps galvanized.

Question: can these be welded together?

This is my steering we're talking about, so it has to be done right. Thanks for your comments.

[Efibroncoman]

Re: Welding anodized chromemoly?

A weld would be the strongest attachment method, although it would surely mess up the anodized coating. Another thing you might think about is, drilling and tapping a hole(if there is room) in the end of the u-joint where the rod slides into, and then drilling a shallow hole into the rod where the set-screw will sit. I thought most steering shafts were "D" shaped or splined.

[GloNDark2]

Re: Welding anodized chromemoly?

I have the flaming river ujoints on my column. I bought the ones from summit that were open/round on one side and splined on the other. I welded mine in with out issue. The the splined side goes on the column and the box with the set screws.

The last 3 rigs I built i did this exact same thing to and they all held up great.

I would recommend sanding the finish off where you are going to weld, the tapping up the ujoint to save it from welding splatter and weld it.

[crawlin68]

Re: Welding anodized chromemoly?

You will have to grind off all of the anodizing, then it should weld up ok. If you weld on the galvanized metal, DO NOT breath the fumes! Very bad for you.

[Mad Mike]

Re: Welding anodized chromemoly?

You will have to grind off all of the anodizing, then it should weld up ok. If you weld on the galvanized metal, DO NOT breath the fumes! Very bad for you.

VERY BAD for you. Also, if it is actual 4045, 4130 or similar Chromoly, you really should preheat the yoke before you weld it and then apply heat to the weld area just after welding to allow it to cool slowly. This will reduce the chance of micro-stress cracks occurring which over time could enlarge. To be on the safe side you should really drill a hole and either apply a plug weld or tap for a set screw. This may seem like overkill , but if you're driving this on the street, there's no such thing as overkill when it comes to steering components.