Whats the difference between soldering, brazing, and welding?
A. Soldering is a joining process using a filler metal which is a different material than the base metal, and has a lower melting temperature- below about 850 degrees F. This material is melted into the joint and creates a low-strength mechanical bond between the unmelted base pieces. Brazing is a similar process, but uses filler metals that have a melting temperature above 850 deg F and therefore result in a higher strength mechanical bond, but again the base material is not melted. Welding is a process where the base material is actually melted and coalesced together to form a single piece, either with or without the addition of compatible filler metal. The resultant weld has substantially the same properties as the base material including material strength; a weld is basically as strong as the base material.
