While the 3% nickel rods come highly recommended for repairs on gun parts, I found the price of them to be the deal breaker, I can order them this side of the pond from Brownells UK but have been searching for alternatives.
Just stumbled onto some 2% nickel rods from a well known maker which work out at £17 sterling ($20-25 ?) for a 1kg pack (2.2lbs)
Obviously, the price is the attraction but wonder if they'll do the job.
I'm not a metallurgist but I do know that 1% of something or other in steel alloys can make a lot of difference.
I've not got the spec sheet yet so need to get that to make sure there's no chromium in them as that will cause problems with the blacking required after some repairs.
The big question is, has anyone here used a similar rod, were they good and did they match the rods from Brownells ?
It's a long shot I know and I'll probably buy a pack as they'll be a good rod for a multitude of jobs.
I'd be more than happy to hear any feedback from anyone who's used them and if not, I'll let you know how I get on with them when I get chance to use some.
Sods law dictates nobody will bring any broken gun parts to try them on in the near future, I may have so break some old spares just to try them
Thanks in advance,
Nick.

Edit. Just had a reply from the supplier, there's no chromium in the rods.
They're the 1.6mm (1/16") Sif Ni2 rods.

Nick

Please explain this

Sods law dictates nobody will bring any broken gun parts to try them on in the near future, I may have so break some old spares just to try them

Thank you
Mike

p.s. upon further study, I think I understand now

Sod's law is the axiom that "if something can go wrong, it will", with the further addendum, in British culture, borrowed from Finagle's law, that it will happen at "the worst possible time". This may simply be construed, again in British culture, as "hope for the best, expect the worst

That's about the size of it Mike, if I painted cars for a living and bought some fantastic new blue paint, everybody who came to the shop would want red or yellow cars that month.

Nick,

I think I have a couple pounds of the rod you’re looking for sitting here in the shop.

If you PM me an address, I’ll send you a care package to fiddle with. I’ll check the composition of the rods before I mail any.
Actually, I have a brand new micro tig setup here that I’ve never even plugged in. Just too busy these days.

As they say, the cobbler’s kids go without shoes.

Clapper Zapper. Thank you, that's very kind of you offer but I'm a very long way from you, it may cost a lot of cash to send them.

Sod- as in "Green side up"?? The old joke about the landscaper who hired some Pollacks to lay down sod at the Schmuckadella Hills development in Scarsdale--

So what does grass on dirt have to do with our "Murphy's Laws" over here in the colonies? You Limeys sure have your own way with the English language, that the late Geo. Bernard Shaw declared was a factor in our separation from the Crown, a few centuries ago.

Best filler rod for 1018=1040 low sulphur bearing steels for the TIG (Tungsten Inert Gas) process in welding-- In MIG welding of similar analysis steels, AWS 70S=3, so as our Lincoln wire feed welder uses .045 wire (with 100% Argon shielding gas-same as you should be using with your TIG welder- I unspool a length of that and use it for filler rod- so far, results have been fine-- fluid puddle, best in the TIG to be welding in 1G position (downhand)--

For alloyed gun steels (AISI 4130-4140) I use Lincoln 308-16-ELC filler rod-- .040" to .056", depending on joint structure to be TIG welded--

Don't know how you Limeys interpret our USA AWS code- just as we have SAE threads, and you have Whitworth- we work in thousands of an inch, you laddies are on the metric side, righto??

Got a big hoot out of Da Trumpster's recent visit with the ROB (Royal Old Broad)- hard to believe Liz is 93-- she did have some nice words about the 75th Anniv. of the D-Day landing on the five deadly beaches of the Normandy Coast- but his now defunct Press Secretary sitting next to Old Chuckie--that was priceless-- "Hey Chuck, can you please pass the Catsup?-- maybe not. Foxie-- member- AWS

RWTF, I have some small reels of mig wire here which I use quite often, it's seems to do a good job most of the time as you say, just a case of cutting lengths and cleaning off the copper with scotchbrite and a quick wipe with Mek solvent .
I've noticed a few old parts (mainly from ancient air guns and the odd cast part) aren't so easy to weld small areas as the wire and other grade steel rods I have don't seem to flow as well and there's a temptation to lean on the pedal which gets parts a little too hot, it's probably not an issue with most jobs but I'd like to try the Nickel Steel rods as people say they flow in really well.
Perhaps i've just had a few 'dirty' castings/forged parts in a row but I'd like to try some other rods which may make life easier and still allow parts to be blacked or blued.
We have to think in stereo over here, millimeters and the metric stuff can be easy to work out sums but I still use feet and inches, pounds and ounces because they're easier to divide.
Imperial threads, good once you have a grip of what's out there, I play with Brit motorbikes so had to adapt to all the weird and wonderful combinations of thread sizes, often different on one end of a stud to the other.
It's all good fun though

Ever tried copper chill plates- and also Tempilsticks-- you want to contain the input temp. to the weld area and in the HAZ (heat affected zone) Assume you are using Thoriated tungstens and DC straight polarity on your TIG set-up-- another way to contain input heat is to use a 50-50 ratio of argon and Helium- expensive however--RWTF

Clapper Zapper you have a message in the in box.

I have found there is no economy in cheap tools or materials. Every time I try to save money it cost me double. The reason the 3-1/2% nickel rod is so expensive is because it’s worth it. Just like a divorce.

Can't speak to the divorce scenario, but I agree 100% about cheap tools and cheap filler materials in TIG welding--With quality tools and proper TIG techniques, there isn't any known ferrous or non-ferrous metal that cannot be properly welded-- I refuse to but any hand or power tool made in China, Taiwan, Japan or Korea- bad enough that most of the clothing in Cabela's, Eddie Bean, L.L.Bauer- etc is made in the orient and imported to America..RWTF

I've found mild steel rod works well for vintage barrels, actions, and the bits and blue's well. I've never tried a nickel bearing rod on a part needing blue. How does it do?

I have an idea

Household Ammonia

Dip a couple copper washed rods in it, and wipe off
Might have to soak for 30 seconds

Should be the same as removing copper fouling from a rifle barrel

Anyone want to try this?

Scotch Brite pads take copper off weld rod quickly.

Especially important when working on "Sweedish Steels", right?? RWTF