O.k., I've decided to go ahead and grind off all the brazing and old rivet heads on my 1914 axle housings. I have them apart, and am going to the sandblaster this week to get them down to bare metal. Once I primer them, I need to re-rivet them back together. I was planning on using some kind of non-hardening sealant between the housing and the tube, but not sure if that's wise when hot-riveting. Does anyone have a good sealant they would recommend that is not flammable?
Bill, I use a Loctite flange sealant. It is non hardening, comes in a red tube, costs a bit, but you will have enough for a lifetime supply. I think the no. is 510.
Check a recent post on repairing a 1914 diff and you will see a photo of a housing I had worked on and the tube of sealant used.
Hope this helps.
Allan from down under.
Temperature should not be much of an issue. When I riveted my '13 housing back together a couple years ago, I put the rivet in place, set up the bucking, aimed the torch at the end of the rivet, and hammered. The housing never got hot enough that I couldn't touch it.
That is my experience.
Drive carefully, and enjoy, W2