Cheap welding rods

[bdog]

I have used Lincoln 5P+ (6010) for about the past ten years. Probably burned in excess of 500lbs of them. I like them a lot or thought I did. I am building some pipe fence and ran out of rods today. On my shelf I had some firepower 6011痴. A buddy brought them over years ago and gave them to me he got them at a garage sell or something. I figured it痴 just a fence these will work and will save me a trip to town.

I loaded up the first rod and kind of cringed when I struck the arc wondering how frustrating it would be working with them. To my amazement I liked the way they welded much better. I welded about 70 pipe saddles today with them and I just love how they weld. I seriously think these are going to be my go to rod from now on. I still will use my Excalibur 7018痴 where appropriate but for general welding these things are awesome and cost much less then the 5P+.

 

[wvgca]

i bought some 8011 in a 50lb can maybe ten years ago, they were 5 bucks a can ...i bought twenty cans...
still have a lifetime left, lol

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

Fire Power rods would currently be owned by ESAB and be likely a rebranded version of one of the lines like Atom Arc. But before that they were Victor/Tweco products. They wouldn't be cheap in the traditional sense.

 

[CADplans]

Lincoln bought an entire company to get the rights to a 7018 rod they wanted to sell,,

Weld the Lincoln right next to a Hobart,, you will toss the Hobart,,
I am a pretty good welder, (training and everything!! :confused2: ) , but, i can not keep a Hobart 7018 rod welding,,

I complained about them at the welding supply place that sold them to me,,
The guy said if I was a "Real Welder" that I could keep the Hobart rods welding,,

Weld your fence (or shop shelf) with 7014 ONE TIME,, you will not use anything else,,, ` ~

 

[yomax4]

I have used Lincoln 5P+ (6010) for about the past ten years. Probably burned in excess of 500lbs of them. I like them a lot or thought I did. I am building some pipe fence and ran out of rods today. On my shelf I had some firepower 6011ç—´. A buddy brought them over years ago and gave them to me he got them at a garage sell or something. I figured itç—´ just a fence these will work and will save me a trip to town.

I loaded up the first rod and kind of cringed when I struck the arc wondering how frustrating it would be working with them. To my amazement I liked the way they welded much better. I welded about 70 pipe saddles today with them and I just love how they weld. I seriously think these are going to be my go to rod from now on. I still will use my Excalibur 7018ç—´ where appropriate but for general welding these things are awesome and cost much less then the 5P+.

"Years Ago" Firepower Electrodes were made in the Stoody plant. They quickly became cost prohibitive and if I remember correctly they were sourced from MG then China

 

[user.69169]

Welding electrode Manufacturers & Suppliers, China welding electrode Manufacturers & Factories

90+% of the world's welding rods & wire are made in either China or India.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

You all have worlds more welding experience than me. But I'm very happy with my Hobart LX235 welder, haven't had any problems with it. I also like the Lincoln Electric 6011 rods from Home Depot, as they are generally the most cost effective where I am and are my general purpose "go to" rod. All that said, I've probably never done a decent weld in my life, but I attribute that to my relative experience level and the fact that I only weld steel I acquire from the dump. It's seriously rare where I get two pieces of steel of the same composition (carbon wise, if nothing else) and thickness, much less get additional bits for practice pieces in the same width/composition. Anyway, I can't fault the equipment or the rods. When I want more diverse rod types I get them from a local welding shop, but they're much more expensive.

 

[BrokenTrack]

I think all welding rods of the same type are basically the same, otherwise they could not be used in the welding industry. They have to meet certain criteria otherwise they could not be used in construction, railroad, or shipbuilding applications.

The biggest issue is not what brand they are, but that they are kept in a warming oven to drive off moisture. Here on the humid coast, we have a hard time with that, and anytime I have had issues with rod, it has been with moisture content. A trip to the drying oven cured the problem.

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

I think all welding rods of the same type are basically the same, otherwise they could not be used in the welding industry. They have to meet certain criteria otherwise they could not be used in construction, railroad, or shipbuilding applications.

The biggest issue is not what brand they are, but that they are kept in a warming oven to drive off moisture. Here on the humid coast, we have a hard time with that, and anytime I have had issues with rod, it has been with moisture content. A trip to the drying oven cured the problem.

No. There are many proprietary differences between rods of the same classification but of different brands. Weld with a Hobart 7018, a Radnor 7018, and a few other cheap ones, then go get a LINCOLN Excalibur. Big difference.

 

[rangerfredbob]

I bought an oven (household type) full of welding rods at an auction for $5 once, it came with a tin of Excalibur 1/8" 7018 and a full box of 1/8" 6011 of some type (they weld good, it's a name brand just don't remember which one) along with a bunch of other random rods... I think I have a lifetime supply, or at least a decades worth... but I agree, the Excalibur work pretty good

 

[bdog]

I know 7018 are supposed to be kept dry and I know 6010 don’t have to be kept in an oven but I think your not even supposed to put 6010 in an oven. If I recall the 6010 needs a certain moisture percentage in it to run correctly.

 

[yomax4]

Low Hydrogen electrodes like 7018, 8018 etc. Maintain their quality by being stored around 200 degrees. Others like 6010, 6011, 6013 actually enjoy a little moisture. Keep them dry but no need for the oven.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I havent used a Hobart rod in years (actually since 1984) but at that time they welded very well. We used Hobart welding machines and rods on a chemical plant construction job doing xray quality welds and had no problems. They do weld a bit different from Atom Arc and Lincoln but not so much that they were a problem. I have no idea of the quality of them today though.

 

[lilranch2001]

Fire Power rods would currently be owned by ESAB and be likely a rebranded version of one of the lines like Atom Arc. But before that they were Victor/Tweco products. They wouldn't be cheap in the traditional sense.

Atom Arc 7018 has been my go to rod for as long as I can remember, the contractor I worked for only purchased it, and when I became the boss, its the only rod I purchased as well.

I havent purchased any in 5-6 years, I still have one fresh unopened can in my welding drawer, along with the remaining rods from the previous can in my oven

 

[bmg88201]

I guess the 5P+ is good for stuff around the house, I was a pipe welder for 30 years. Lots of heavy wall and high pressure applications, I tried to put a stringer in with a 5P+ once and threw them in the ditch. Just give me an old regular 5P (red rod) and a Lincoln 7018 or 8018BL or a 9018. Of course I was never on a job where they would let you run a 5P stringer down hill, that's only application the 5P+ has a decent use.

 

[airbiscuit]

Lincoln bought an entire company to get the rights to a 7018 rod they wanted to sell,,

Weld the Lincoln right next to a Hobart,, you will toss the Hobart,,
I am a pretty good welder, (training and everything!! :confused2: ) , but, i can not keep a Hobart 7018 rod welding,,

I complained about them at the welding supply place that sold them to me,,
The guy said if I was a "Real Welder" that I could keep the Hobart rods welding,,

Weld your fence (or shop shelf) with 7014 ONE TIME,, you will not use anything else,,, ` ~

I have an AC welder, and always have a hard time getting enough penetration. I like 6011 rods - not so much 6013. Does the 7014 penetrate better than 6013?

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

I have an AC welder, and always have a hard time getting enough penetration. I like 6011 rods - not so much 6013. Does the 7014 penetrate better than 6013?

Yes. But keep in mind that the reason most people don't get proper penetration is lack of technique, not the rod. And keep also in mind more penetration means nothing if you have slag entrapment and improper fill. I've welded dog bone ends on a tractor back on with 6013 and never had an issue. Used to do it regularly for the FNH dealership I managed. Seemed no one else could ever weld. These went back mostly on industrial tractors that were abused badly and the balls were falling out the ends and we replaced them with weld on ends with the balls in them.

 

[BrokenTrack]

No. There are many proprietary differences between rods of the same classification but of different brands. Weld with a Hobart 7018, a Radnor 7018, and a few other cheap ones, then go get a LINCOLN Excalibur. Big difference.

I honestly do not think there is much of a difference.

When I worked for the railroad I flew all over the world and had to us the welding rods that were available, and they all welded the same.

To me this is no different than diesel fuel we put in our tractors. it all comes from the same pipeline, but some tractor lovers swear by BP and sweat at Irving, where as others swear by Irving, and at BP. The little differences that they put in additives that make it different just before it goes onto the truck do not really make a difference. It is just people fall into marketing ploys.

7018 is 7018, is 7018...

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

I honestly do not think there is much of a difference.

When I worked for the railroad I flew all over the world and had to us the welding rods that were available, and they all welded the same.

To me this is no different than diesel fuel we put in our tractors. it all comes from the same pipeline, but some tractor lovers swear by BP and sweat at Irving, where as others swear by Irving, and at BP. The little differences that they put in additives that make it different just before it goes onto the truck do not really make a difference. It is just people fall into marketing ploys.

7018 is 7018, is 7018...

Actually, no, there are several classifications of 7018 within the 7018 class. But again, there are different compositions of rod chemistry between brands. A 7018 (or 6010 for that matter) isn't a 7018. They have to meet certain "specs" for each classification of 7018, but companies definitely have leeway in choice of and amount of certain arc stabilizers, deoxidizers etc. No, they don't all weld the same. Heck, even the flux color varies before and after the weld. Old 7018's used to have a yellowish, glass like flux. There are even AC versions of 7018. I've welded with 7018's side by side in some testing, and given the same settings, I can tell you they don't weld the same. They don't even list the same amp ranges across brands.

 

[yomax4]

True That. And not only do they run differently in the same AWS Classification they have other properties like H4R and H8R. Some have Low Manganese and others have Military specs etc. So they can run very different and have many different recipe's but still fall into the broad AWS Spec for 7018.