Axle material

[airjnke]

Howdy folks;
I'm building a DeltaRunner & ordered some of this 4130 steel rod for axle material. Any of you old bold wolf builders have some advice on this one?Looks like it will fit right in the bearings no problem. If it is used for light aircraft axles it's certainly strong enough but is it ok to weld on with no danger of the weld area failing under load?
Thanks;
Dave
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/mepages/4130rod.php

[Odd Man Out]

Howdy
I use "linear shafting" from MSC direct. It is a touch more expensive but it is completely round -- ergo it rolls MUCH better. I highly recommend it. The URL for it is below:
http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACACHE=000000068250299
Hope this helps.

OMO

[airjnke]

Howdy folks
Thanks for the advice Odd Man Out. You guys experience is priceless. Did you weld your hubs, brake disk mount, & gear stack mount on your axles?
Take it EZ;
Dave

[John Lewis]

Howdy folks;
I'm building a DeltaRunner & ordered some of this 4130 steel rod for axle material. Any of you old bold wolf builders have some advice on this one?Looks like it will fit right in the bearings no problem. If it is used for light aircraft axles it's certainly strong enough but is it ok to weld on with no danger of the weld area failing under load?
Thanks;
Dave
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/mepages/4130rod.php

There are precautions to be taken when welding 4130 or it wil crack. TIG is probably best. The weld has to then be heated to dull red and cooled slowly out of draughts etc for stress relief. An internet search will get you more information.

All in all you may be better off using cold rolled or mild steel shafting.

I thought of using 4130 tube as an axle to save a bit of weight. My aeroplane used 3/4" in a fairly thin gauge for the axle and it's a lot heavier than a trike. I also have a tame aircraft welder to do it. In the end I used 3/4" CRS.

John Lewis

[airjnke]

Howdy folks;
John, after being around some buddies home built aircraft for a while, seems like the words "axles" & "4130" were always used in the same sentence. (or was it just "4130 airframe"?) :) Guess I'm just kinda use to it when it comes to steel. They did some machine work on their axles but not much actual welding. Thanks for the tip. I'll see if I can find some cold rolled or mild steel shafting locally.
Take it EZ;
Dave

[Odd Man Out]

Did you weld your hubs, brake disk mount, & gear stack mount on your axles?

Hi Dave
I followed plans and welded the hubs together. I made my own disc brake adapters that attach to the axle (see my other posts for a picture). For the rear cassette attachment I went a different route -- I had the end of the axle threaded and had a custom piece machined that threads onto the axle and lets the shimano cassette thread into it on the other side. Do a search of my other posts and you can find pictures of it as well.