Looking for Welding Advice

[Big Wave D]

JoelD,
Looks like you can now use your improved welding skills to "fix" your C-clamp that gave its life for this project.

Nice Job!

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I wish my welding looked at great. I am trying to learn again. I have found some good info over at WeldingWeb™ - Welding forum for pros and enthusiasts - Powered by vBulletin

 

[IXLR8]

Joel,
I had a "bucket buddy" made and then I made up a boom to go into that. It has worked out great for lifting things.

BUCKET BUDDY;

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...ng/93535-bucket-buddy-instead-weld-hooks.html

BOOM POLE;

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/projects/132347-built-boom-pole-have-tractor.html

 

[Gary Fowler]

I suppose you are adding more hooks than the one in the photo. I would put one more on each side centered at the lift point attachment. Also the skip welds should be at least 2" long and preferable 3" on 12" centers and staggered across from each other on each side. This equalizes the forces along the entire length. Also for a stronger weld, weld from each end to the middle, in other words dont leave the end of your weld with the puddle exposed. THis is a weak point in the weld and susceptible to start of a crack.
7014 make pretty welds but sometime become highly brittle after welding. 7018 are much more ductile. For carbon steel with a DC machine, you cant bet the 6010/ 7018 combo. Use the 6010 for tacking and first pass and for anything needing deep penetration and then grind out all the slag and fill it and cap with 7018 carefully removing all the slag between passes and you will have a weld that will last a lifetime. One other tip, the angle of the rod is usually centered equally between the two base metals except if you are welding overhead then you want to point it toward the top piece more. I don't know if that is a clear explanation or not.

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

pffffft...double post...:shocked::shocked:

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

Gary,

A 7018 should not be used unless it can be stored in a rod oven or come fresh out of a sealed metal can with the old fashioned soda can pop top on it. That's why they are known as low hydrogen.

A 7014 if the metal is prepped is a fine rod. Most cracking or brittleness from it is caused by contamination...or poor fit up.

Otherwise, you could successfully weld it all the way out with the 6011, though it might not be as pretty. Strength won't be an issue if it is properly welded.

 

[tubewelder87]

hello new to the forum not new to welding. I really like your 7013 welds but if you will slow your passes just a little more and when you flick your rod make them a little smaller you will get a little better fill and not have that concave look. what the call in my world undercut. And like some of the other guys said you need those skip welds alittle longer and closer together. But in the farm world that is a awesome job that you should be proud of!!!! I agree with the guys on the 7018 it welds the smoothest and also is some of the strongest welds that you can make. and with all of the talk about keeping them in a oven. I always heat my rods when i make xray welds other than that i dont worry about it or i just put the torch on them and heat them up till i think they are about 300 degrees (plenty hot to evaporate any moisture)!! the moisture will cause a little problem where the base metal and weld metal meet but is so small that I dont think it will hurt anything in the tractor world. but this is just my two cents worth!!!

p.s. just wanted to say again good looking welds!!!

 

[Gary Fowler]

I guess I can agree somewhat with Mark on the 7018 about storage but I wouldnt say not to use them at all. If you use 7018 you should invest in a rod storage oven and keep it powered up at all time so the rods stay hot. For most of the folks on this site, underbead cracking because of high moisture in the coating will likely not cause a problem with their welds. Proper storage is essential for all rods though, not just 7018 if you want consistently good weld results Even 6010, 6011 and 6013 need to be properly stored in a dry place. They dont require and should not be heated, but they have to stay dry otherwise you can get core wire rust under the flux and that will give you some bad porosity in the welds. Here is a website that gives a run down for most rods and how to store AND recondition them. I work in construction in the quality control side of things and we dont allow reconditioning of rods. They have to be kept hot after the seal is broken. Any rods left out have to be thrown away. This may seem wasteful to some, but a 50 lb. can of rods can cost more in repairs of bad xray welds than 500 lbs of rods.
Recommended Storage of Electrodes

 

[gauthier]

I use 6010plus rods on about everything,amps,you need however many you need,is the answer,less on thin stuff[blow through],more on thicker stuff[no blow through,more penatration],start at about 90 amps for 3/32,maybe 110 for 1/8th,if they ain't running right adjust[hotter = easier to run,more penatration,colder=harder to run,less chance of blow through. Same with any rod,7018 or 6010. Most steels tensil strength[mild steel,stuff most would be welding on] is way lower than 60,000 psi[which is what a 6010 is],around 36,000 I think give or take is what most steel commonly used are,7018 is 70,000,but...you don't need a rod oven with 6010,you use it on dcep.[not an ac rod].

 

[yomax4]

Please note. You are not Stuck with 6011-7018 rods. There are many specialty companies that offer just what you are after ie: MG 80T, 80,000 tensile, Good Ductilitiy, runs like 6013, Welco 83-88, 80,000 tensile 6011 and a hundred others. Keep 7018 in a controlled temp location and or buy 7018MR for Moisture Resistance and you will be ok. If you still have trouble and you do a Ton of Welding...Buy MIG and forget about it...