How to Hardface With a Manganese Welding Rod

Strengthen a surface with hardfacing.

While welding and hardfacing both make use of welding tools, the purpose of welding is to join two surfaces together, while the purpose of hardfacing is to coat a metal surface with a particular material, such as manganese, in order to strengthen that material. Hardfacing is useful for metals that frequently are subject to abrasion, impact stress, or friction. If you have welding experience, hardfacing will not be difficult to learn.

Things You'll Need

• Filler metal
• Soft cloth
• Degreasers
• Wire brush
• Manganese rods
• Stick-metal arc welder

Instructions

1. Obtain filler metal, with similar chemical composition properties to the metal being hardfaced, and similar or stronger mechanical properties, from a hardware store.

2. Clean the metal being hardfaced, thoroughly. Use a soft cloth and degreasers to get rid of surface oils; in addition, scrub the metal surface with a wire brush.

3. Preheat the metal being hardfaced, to the extent recommended by the manufacturer of the welding tool. For manganese, this will generally be between 100° and 200° C.

4. Strike the manganese welding rod against the surface of the metal, to open an arc between the rod and the surface. Allow the arc to form a slight molten puddle of metal on the surface of the metal, and add filler metal to the molten puddle in the proportions recommended by the welding-tool manufacturer.

5. Continue to move the arc slowly over the surface of the metal, adding filler metal as you move the arc. The filler metal will form a protective coating on the surface of the metal.

References

• Lincoln Electric: Hardfacing Guide
• Welding Information Center: Welding Basics