Can anyone please advice of a good welder in Georgia (anywhere)?

I contacted one guy in Batumi but he advice me that I need TIG welder, whatever it means, and that he can't help me. Shame as he spoke good English.

It's not urgent but within next few months I need to get it done.

Alternatively I could also get it done in Armenia if there was the right person there.

Thanks in advance

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Welder in Georgia

Let me know when you are in Tbilisi - will direct you to a fabricator / welder.

Travel safe!

TIG means Tungsten Inert Gas and it probably means you broke something made of aluminium.... Alu can only be welded with TIG. Will be a bit difficult to find in under developed area's!

Thanks for your reply guys,
I will get in touch with you Cliffi when I'm in Tbilisi. Thanks.

The problem I have is a little bit embarrassing; some time ago when my sprocket fell off the drive shaft while riding in a middle of nowhere, I decided to get it welded by some village welder. ::

It seemed as the only option at the time and I was scared that this could happen again and cause some serious trouble if I didn't. It was a brand new sprocket so it wouldn't be such a big problem if I could continue on it for another 30.000 km or so with proper care, but unfortunately because of welding the sprocket is not properly aligned which is slowly damaging the chain through constant chain wobble.

So what I need to do is to gently grind the weld off, remove the old sprocket and come up with some way to attach a new one without welding the sprocket on (maybe by welding some steal bolt on top of the drive shaft). I have all the parts (new sprockets and a new chain) so just need somebody who can work his magic. New weld is optional if nothing else works, but only as a last resort. I can always in future take the engine apart and replace the shaft but if possible I would prefer to avoid it do to amount of work required.

I know, it's all messed up, but I need to find a way to get it fixed.

What do you think? Is TIG the right way to go?

Thanks for your help

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Are the splines okay ???? Post a picture up if possible.

Don't bolt a sprocket onto the end of the shaft. That will never work.. It will just be torn off.

What is the bike and how is it meant to be held on ??

As it's already welded, then no doubt the splines are heat deformed and fused with the sprocket so grinding is likely to make a bigger mess and do more damage.

If the shaft is damaged too much then all you can really do is keep breaking off and welding on sprockets until you can get a new shaft. Just make sure you buy STEEL sprockets. And when welding. Allow plenty of cooling or you will damage the oil seal and that will just ruin your day even more..




If the splines are deformed, and if possible, then I suggest you move the sprocket over on the output shaft a little and then you can space out the read sprocket to match. Using shims, washers etc. Just make sure you use longer bolts.

If the splines are okay, fix a new sprocket and you can weld on the END of the shaft to stop the sprocket falling off.


To replace the shaft, you're talking a bottom end rebuild. Expensive and not to be done on a hostel floor...

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Thanks Ted, your reply is very helpful.

I was hoping that splines are ok, but now I'm not sure at all. I don't have much experience with welding so not sure how penetrating the weld can be, but I really hope that it's not bonded too deeply. What do you think?

I'm attaching a picture, maybe it can give you some idea. Be warned, it looks ugly.




By the way, the new sprocket I got is JT Sprocket, High Carbon Steel. I assume it's good for the purpose.

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oh my god... What a mess...

That is WELDED... Permanently... You're not grinding that sprocket off without taking the end of the shaft with it. He's turned the shaft molten from the very end. That's not just tacked on...

What's it like from the other side ????

I think you're best off cutting off the sprocket and the end of the shaft with it from the other side then welding on a new sprocket just to get you somewhere where you can have a new shaft installed.

Quite simply.... You need a new shaft.. It's F**ked.

Ted

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I appreciate your advice. Now I have a better idea where I stand.

Hhmm, what do you mean the other side? I don't think I can say what it's like from the other side, can I?

So in conclusion, you don't even think that cutting this sprocket off and welding on a new one could be a semi-permanent solution (let's say, another 15-20k).

May be a problem with installing a new shaft in this part of the world and I don't plan on going west for another year or two. Probably the next place I can have it done is Japan, but first I need to put some more miles on the bike.

As a last resort I can just leave the damned sprocket as it is and keep changing chains every 10k before they die (that's the mileage I done on the current chain).

So to weld or not to weld, that is a question?

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You can't leave that front sprocket as it is. It's dead. I'm surprised it isn't already throwing the chain and slipping.

You HAVE to change it as a matter of urgency.

If you put good chains on bad sprockets, it will just destroy the chain very quickly.

You need a new shaft.. It's that simple... An expensive PITA, but that's the truth of the matter.


If you can't change the shaft, then you will have be very careful and re-weld a new sprocket on the front. Put the chain on and make sure it is in line before it is welded on. That is what you will have to keep doing. But it's not something I would recommend.

I can't think of anything else you could do.

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Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Just a quick update. I managed to get the work done in Tbilisi, actually thanks to Cliff who directed me to the right person. Thanks Cliff.

Also worth sharing contact details for Dato who worked on my bike. He's a 4x4 mechanic (fabrication / welding) and he is very good at what he's doing.

His phone number is 899 94 48 17. He doesn't speak English, but I believe his Russian is very good.

He did an excellent job on my sprocket & saved me a lot of trouble.

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Picture of the solution ??

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Hi, it took about 15 minutes to remove the sprocket. He needed to grind the old weld to remove the sprocket. He helped himself with a little tool that grabs the sides and pulls while at the same time pushing in the middle (don't know what's called).

Once removed, he made sure that the new sprocket is balanced while welding on. It took a while to get it right but after about 1h it was all over.

I'm pretty happy with the result. Rode already about 6000km and it looks good.

Here'a the picture showing how it looks. I reckon that it should be pretty easy to remove this weld in future, if needed.



PS. I had some more pictures but my wife by accident deleted them.

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He used a bearing puller... Glad to hear you're moving again. And what when this front sprocket wears out ? More grinding and welding ?

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Something I don't have to worry about just yet. Anyway, the bike would have reached 100.000 km on a clock by then so will be close to it's retirement time.

More grinding and welding? Maybe, why not. It's effective, I feel safer than with a silly retaining circlip I supposed to use and it's inexpensive.

Minuses:
-pain to take off and replace (good welder is needed)
-can damage the bike when changing

Beside these I have no problem with a welded sprocket. It gives me a peace of mind.

The current weld seems like it would be easy to remove, so I reckon it should be relatively easy to change for another sprocket if needed.

In my humble opinion I can continue like this for some time. Not an ideal situation, but suits me just fine.

Thanks for your previous advice, luckily it wasn't as bad as you thought.

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