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Stub shaft material for a field cultivator

mds30br

Plastic
Joined
Mar 6, 2013
Location
Connecticut
Looking for best material for a stub shaft (non rotating, low speed,) for a field cultivator wheel. Material will be 2" o.d. at the thickest point and about 14" long with two bearing journals and a threaded end.
Thanks in advance,
Mike
 
4140-ht is:
1. available
2. machinable
3. enough strength for the task at hand, tough and not brittle.
 
I think a piece of simple 4140 or even a piece of 1045 or Stress proof would easily do the job although to be honest, I have no idea what kind of duty a field cultivator sees. If it has to fit some bearings or bearing journals then it's going to have be 100% on size which typically means a TG&P item..shaft.

I've never seen 4140HT shafting before, but I've barely been around the block twice!

Stuart
 
If the stub shaft gets welded in, I would use C1018 or C1045 (with preheat). I would also use C1045 if it is not welded in, as typically manufacturers use C1018, so that using C1045 is an upgrade. For a proven problem situation where the shaft is frequently getting bent in harsh conditions, then it may warrant using C4140 and there is certainly nothing wrong with using it unless you are welding on it in a haphazard manner without any forethought.
 
Thanks for the advice, guys. The shaft is not welded, but held in place by a through 5/16" through pin that goes through a shaft housing, the shaft itself and out the other side of the housing. Fortunately, bending was not the issue but the bearings went on the wheel and weren't caught until the shaft was worn nearly to the point of being unrecognizable. I was able to get the previous shaft back into some semblance of order (they needed to get back in the field ASAP and machining a new shaft could be delayed until the fall or next season), but had to go by very rough guesstimates. Shredded my steady rest (pipe wrench used to try to remove the shaft from the housing left some huge grooves that along with a lot of heat, hammering, and wrenching). The one journal I machined was perfect, but the other was at a point in the shaft where a pipe wrench had been used to try to break the shaft out of a housing and had .100-.200 grooves in it, and the cheap bearing was oblong slightly so the fit was sloppy. The original threads were broken off inside a sacrificial nut by repeated hammering while trying to extricate the shaft from its housing.
My father in law says that this implement goes through more bearings and shafts than anything he has seen. I think there is too much slop in the system allowing for more wear more quickly.. and the cheap bearings may also have something to do with it.
Good times!
Mike
 
If the stub shaft gets welded in, I would use C1018 or C1045 (with preheat). I would also use C1045 if it is not welded in, as typically manufacturers use C1018, so that using C1045 is an upgrade. For a proven problem situation where the shaft is frequently getting bent in harsh conditions, then it may warrant using C4140 and there is certainly nothing wrong with using it unless you are welding on it in a haphazard manner without any forethought.

I agree completely. It would be very rare for a farm equipment manufacturer to use 4140 in an application like that. Nothing wrong with using it
if you want to go the extra mile but it's definitely an upgrade...
 
I agree completely. It would be very rare for a farm equipment manufacturer to use 4140 in an application like that. Nothing wrong with using it
if you want to go the extra mile but it's definitely an upgrade...

It broke before, so an upgrade is on order eh ?

Also, 4140-ht is pretty darn common, and easily available, the others listed
above, maybe not so much.
 
It broke before, so an upgrade is on order eh ?

Also, 4140-ht is pretty darn common, and easily available, the others listed
above, maybe not so much.
C1018 = cold rolled, in common vernacular
C1045 = Superior shafting, ground and polished, also very common as precision shafting and also used under chrome plated cylinder rod.
 
It broke before, so an upgrade is on order eh ?

Also, 4140-ht is pretty darn common, and easily available, the others listed
above, maybe not so much.

2 Things.. First is that the shaft didn't break, they ran it until the bearings ate into the shaft..
That is not the shafts fault..

2nd.. Any time you upgrade the strength of one component, you run the risk of pushing the failure down the
line.. And if the "system" was designed correctly (for easy repair), the thing that does break(or wear out) should be
the cheapest and easiest part to replace... No point in "up grading" a $5 shear pin if it costs you a $1000 gear
box the next time you hit a rock.


In this case.. Having dealt with some AG stuff, its almost all 1018, I figure its because its cheaper to
add $2 of material to get the strength instead of up grading material ($$$) heat treating the material(time and $$$),
and then having more difficult welding, and possibly machining, and possibly warping..
Its not like a tractor needs to be light enough to fly..

And extra strength isn't going to save you from neglected maintenance and trashed bearings.
 
If your the kinda guy who thinks bolts make great hitch pins then 1045 will probably work for you. If your the kinda guy who uses lasers for laying out wrapping paper then 4140-ht is a great option.
 
I can get 4140-ht locally in many sizes.
1045 not so much, and it will be annealed if I can get it.
 
C1018 = cold rolled, in common vernacular
C1045 = Superior shafting, ground and polished, also very common as precision shafting and also used under chrome plated cylinder rod.

Did you copy & paste your list from google there numbnutz ?

I fully understand what they are, and their limitations.

Getting it in a hurry is quite another.

Why didn't you post your list from a supplier's inventory, within 50 miles
of the OP ?

THAT would prove helpful eh ? More helpfull than lecturing to me.....
 
Did you copy & paste your list from google there numbnutz ?

I fully understand what they are, and their limitations.

Getting it in a hurry is quite another.

Why didn't you post your list from a supplier's inventory, within 50 miles
of the OP ?

THAT would prove helpful eh ? More helpfull than lecturing to me.....

I stock all 3 and don't recall any of them being rare, or with a long lead time to access, except for precision ground C4140. Every scrap yard that peddles a bit of iron stocks C1018. I'd hardly think it to be rare. Lots of small metal suppliers don't handle alloy steel bar at all. Your experience may vary.
 








 
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