welding rods

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kbrothers
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welding rods

Post by kbrothers »

Have been working on FEL project sub frame Hobart Stickmate LX Had 1# hobart 1/8" 7014 welds were OK Picked up Lincoln 1/8" 7018 rods and can't get them to run right tried DC and its a little better but ugly welds It is really cold in the shed now also Any help suggestions appreciated Thanks Ken in Pa

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vince_o
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Re: welding rods

Post by vince_o »

Ken

Your running them on DC they should run like butter mealting. Im thinking Supper Dave gave me some 1/8 rods that I run somewhere around 120 amps, my fine tune is around 7 or 8. I dont have an oven but Ill set some on my heater for a bit to warm them up. Do that and never have a problem. Maybe Mike will chime in and help, hes been a big help to me, sorting threw all the BS on the welding sites.
"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word."
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vince_o
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Re: welding rods

Post by vince_o »

I got this off the hobart site, I keep a copy in the shop with me. Some of the rods I have the settings are worn off the box, so this really helps. I mostly use the 3/32 rods and havent had any troubles with them.
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"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word."
-Andrew Jackson

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chief
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Re: welding rods

Post by chief »

To keep you welding rods drive, get an old refrigerator and put a 60 W bulb in it, and that will keep the moisture out of welding rods, any moisture in them will make them run bad

OhioBinder
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Re: welding rods

Post by OhioBinder »

Been a long time since I did much welding but If I remember corretly the 7018 rod is a reverse polarity DC rod.
Might check that.
David Gregg
NW oIHo

kbrothers
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Re: welding rods

Post by kbrothers »

I just got the ros and opened up the metal sealed container so I didn'T think they would have moisture and the Hobart 7014 rods ran a lot better Am thinkiking the paint on my steel is a big part of the problem read the 7018 is made for clean steel am going to try some 6011 or 6013

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mmzullo
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Re: welding rods

Post by mmzullo »

Cleaner the steel, better the weld!

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vince_o
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Re: welding rods

Post by vince_o »

The 6011 is good, if you can run a nice bead with it. I use it alot to tack with. The 7018 is stronger, but dosnt get in as deep. Also this makes for flexable weld, wont break as easy. Id clean the steel and run the 7018's, just my .05 worth, inflation you know
"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word."
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Farmallgray
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Re: welding rods

Post by Farmallgray »

I have an AC welder and I run 7018s without much trouble. They do like to stick though. I run 3/32 at 90 amp and 1/8 at 105. They suck for tacking though. I use 6013 for tacking then final weld with 7018. I keep some 6011s around for out of position welding, but otherwise I hate them. If I use them a lot they make me sick. I would love to upgrade to a DC machine some day. But my used $25 lincoln 225 has paid for itself many times over. I originally learned on DC and had a lot of trouble when I had to start using AC, but now I'm pretty decent with it.
See my IH, Cub Cadet and tractor pulling youtube videos;
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BigMike
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Re: welding rods

Post by BigMike »

6010 is a fast freeze deep penetrating rod and works good when you cannot get the parts as clean of grease or paint as you would like.
6011 is an AC version of 6010.
7018 is a DC rod.
7018AC has flux designed to run on AC.
7014 is a general purpose rod.
6013 is a shallow penetrating rod.
If 7018 is being used for "code" work it has to be stored in an oven and the weld code will specify how and if rebake is ok.If left out to absorb moisture it may not run very good and the hydrogen level will be elevated increasing the possiblity of hydrogen embrittlment.I doubt any of us need to worry about these things as the bigger issue will be our skill level(I guarantee this on my stuff :lol: )

If 7014 is working and you are getting good penetration that's what matters.Vince is correct that 7018 on a DC machine should run like butta......the only rod easier would be 7024 which will darn near run itself.Keep in mind that the steel you are using is most likely 35 to 40,000 psi so any of these rods are almost double the psi of the steel.

Todd,are you using 6010 or 6011?I tried to run 6010 and 7010 on an AC machine.....no dice,just stuck.Tried them on a DC machine and it ran good.

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vince_o
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Re: welding rods

Post by vince_o »

WAIT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Did Mike say I was correct :headbang:
"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word."
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BigMike
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Re: welding rods

Post by BigMike »

Sure,you know chips,you know beer and you know butta :lol:

mikeyb
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Re: welding rods

Post by mikeyb »

Good one BM! :lol:

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vince_o
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Re: welding rods

Post by vince_o »

I like to run the ac rods on my dc settings on my welder. i still have a hard time running my verts, but I try to not get in that situation. Super Dave gave me some 1/8 7018, atom arcs they run nice, but not as nice as the Lincoln ac 3/16 rods. I find the 3/16 size to work just fine for about anything I need to do. If I need a little more Ill do a weave or stack the welds. Running the 1/8 I tend not to move fast enough and it looks like butter thats been in the microwave too long. Im sure its all me and need more time under the hood.

Ive gotten the 6011s down ok, I notice that the differant brands that I have run real differant from eachother. I use it alot to tac or just weld with on real rusty steel. But Ive learned real fast if its worth welding, its worth some good prep time. That makes all the differance.
"It's a damn poor mind that can only think of one way to spell a word."
-Andrew Jackson

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