Failed plastic weld

[dirtdobber]

I went for a short ride last weekend and took on lots of water. I thought perhaps something went wrong with a recent drain plug hole repair. Nope. Something went wrong with a body repair I did last year when building the machine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8csa9zKVWg

This gash is on the leading edge of the hump in the bottom of a Hustler. I like to think I hit a root or cypress knee and busted it back open, rather than the weld just failing.

Back to the drawing board

[onefunzr2]

Plastic repair can be finicky depending on what kind of filler material you're using. If it doesn't match the parent material exactly, it's no better than bubblegum stuck on there. I'm no expert in that regard cause the only thing I used my HF hot plastic welder on was the headband of my welding helmet. It took 3 different filler rods until I lucked onto the correct kind of plastic. Good luck fixing your tub.

[dirtdobber]

Thanks onefun. I used proper donor material as it was plastic from this same machine (cut from under the seat). I'm headed to HF this afternoon to get a plastic welder kit. I'll see how that works. I won't really know what happened until I get the machine in the air and get a good look....and I may not know then.

[ARGOJIM]

You need more than a weld there unless you go so slow it would be a week to make that hold, best to find a patch and go over the bad distressed plastic and welding back into good plastic with good plastic.
I had tried doing some patch welds but the plastic was so distressed and dirty it would not keep as the trash came out in the heat, a fresh tear or hole will hold though.

[Delduck]

Dobbler around here they put the gas lines underground with hdpl pipe. They were doing a job on the road in front of the farm so I drove up and asked the guy about cutting my tub in half and making it higher, I also asked about fixing holes in the tub, he told me the holes would take a second to fix and the tub extension was possible but not in the field. I'm lucky to have no holes but I wanted to know if it could be done. There's also a place in NY that does it. I know that's too far for you, but if you see them running underground plastic gas line pull over and ask. It's food for thought. Good luck

[dirtdobber]

Well guys, I have several options. First, I'm going to cut the bad spot out and reweld it. I can't let my latest purchase go unused. That requires little effort.
20170316_193116[1].jpg
Argojim is correct in that the damage is in a really bad spot from a stress standpoint. I could mechanically reinforce it.

If the reweld fails again, I have another tub but it's a lot of work to swap tubs. My spare tub is busted along the frame. It looks like a rock or something got between the tub and frame and somehow busted the tub. I can weld it up and it's not in as bad of a spot from a stress standpoint.

Whatever I do, I've got to get it done ASAP. Got a ride planned along the Mississippi River next weekend. And there's no way I'm getting in the river....its deadly.

[trevorakm1]

Phil Swift here, and this hustler looks like a perfect candidate to try out our new flex seal tape. You've seen me cut a boat in half and tape it together, now 's the time to truly test the tape on an AATV. Just kidding.

[dirtdobber]

That's a good one trevorakm1.

[Stoneyridgeboy]

May be the perfect candidate for... Alumalloy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ5sD9hQTyw

[dirtdobber]

That's almost as funny as the flex seal tape.

Got under the machine this weekend and all of my filler material from the previous repair was gone!
20170318_164832[1].jpg

IT's as if the previous weld didn't stick at all. But, the Harbor Freight plastic welder did a much better job than the soldering iron, although plastic welding upside down 18" off the floor is not much fun. If it fails again, I'll be swapping tubs.

[SeanD]

I would wipe some fiberglass filler over it as well. It's even dries dark green. After spending an hour with a soldering iron and a heat gun trying to fill just screw holes in the top of my tub, I realized that fiberglass was going to be much, much faster and more reliable than the plastic welding. I ground a dip into both sides of the holes or cracks first. This makes the filler shaped like a yo-yo, can be sanded flat on both sides, and won't pop out. Win.

This is what I used: