[Private_collector]

That's really beginning to worry me, guys. Magnesium would mean I could do a far lesser quality repair to the corroded bit. I will snap off a small piece of corrosion and take it across the road to my welders place for testing. I tried a small chunk myself, using my propane torch, and it didn't react in any way, but I know from experience that it would probably need more heat than i could subject it to, before 'flame on'. Anyone ever throw an old VW gearbox case into a bonfire? Wear sunglasses if you ever plan to, and be prepared to wait a while for the reaction to start.

When there was still decent hope it MIGHT have been aluminium, I was doing some mental planning on exactly HOW the repair could be fashioned best, and decided I would require purchase of some plain sheet aluminium to craft the new sections. The only place I know of in town that could easily supply me a small piece, has now closed down, and i was lamenting their passing and cursing my lack of luck with regards to the effort now needed to scunge just a small bit of aluminium plate. While puzzling over where to start looking, I suddenly realised that while I was sitting there cleaning parts, I was in fact directly facing a far larger piece of plain 6mm aluminium plate than I could ever expect to need. It was leftover from making my shield, and I had resisted throwing it out some time ago. With any luck, my metalworker/welder neighbour can bend 6mm on his enormous metal folder, and I will use that to fill the area left vacant by the corrosion. If the original item IS magnesium, I have a plan that should see a nice piece of aluminium grafted into place without requiring any welding.