New to welding

[BMan2005]

It's just practice running beads to learn to read the puddle better

7018 Welding Flat and Horizontal - YouTube

 

[Shield Arc]

Jody is an amazing welder! :cool2::cool2::cool2::cool2:

 

[MinnesotaDaveChalmers]

Jody is an amazing welder! :cool2::cool2::cool2::cool2:

I agree! I also think he's well rounded as a welder - no one-trick-pony going on there.

More importantly, he's curious enough to be willing to learn even more - I find this to be a rare quality in students that I teach...

 

[KubotainNH]

It's been driving me nuts not to be able to do anything lately, but we have a kid coming in just over two weeks, our first . I'm sure I'll have plenty of time for practice then since the wife will make me shut everything else down and stay home more for a bit. Haha.

Pretty dog. Congrats on the new family member.

 

[Shield Arc]

Dave I got a 17-year old grandson. He lives about 150-feet through the woods behind me. He only gets good grades during basketball season! I would love to teach him how to weld. All last summer he slept in until noon, or 1:00 P.M. I have no idea what he is going to do when high school is over. If he would let me teach him how to weld, he could get a job welding somewhere!

 

[MinnesotaDaveChalmers]

Dave I got a 17-year old grandson. He lives about 150-feet through the woods behind me. He only gets good grades during basketball season! I would love to teach him how to weld. All last summer he slept in until noon, or 1:00 P.M. I have no idea what he is going to do when high school is over. If he would let me teach him how to weld, he could get a job welding somewhere!

I see that all the time at every school I've taught at....

When my kids get irritated at the lazy attitudes of their classmates I tell them to remember that those kids are their workforce competition :laughing:

 

[BMan2005]

Do you back step with 7018 when you reach the end of the metal and snuff the electrode into the weld, or do you quickly snap it away after you see it's filling the end?

 

[Shield Arc]

I always back up some, and close up the arc length. To fill the crater.
Welding inspectors will have a fit when they see under filled craters.
Look at post 16, and 20. farmersamm hasn't learned to fill the craters in yet!
Need some critique

 

[BMan2005]

Got a chance finally to mess around some more with the welder. Ran some 6011 vertical. I figured out quick I needed to step out of the Puddle more on my whip running vertical or I had some tear drops instead of dimes. Does that sound right for anyone else or does this mean something else?

 

[Shield Arc]

WOW! Those don't look bad at all, good job!:thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[BMan2005]

WOW! Those don't look bad at all, good job!:thumbsup::thumbsup:

Way to nice, But I'll take it for sure!

I tried some Hobart 1/8 7014 vertical up just now and :thumbdown::thumbdown::thumbdown:

But I remembered reading to run it vertical down some where with the amps turned up and boy did that make a PURDY weld! Pure child's play. Lol. It literally almost runs itself.

 

[dragoneggs]

Way to nice, But I'll take it for sure!

I tried some Hobart 1/8 7014 vertical up just now and :thumbdown::thumbdown::thumbdown:

But I remembered reading to run it vertical down some where with the amps turned up and boy did that make a PURDY weld! Pure child's play. Lol. It literally almost runs itself.

Holy crap, BMan! I'm impressed... looks like you have been welding for as long as SA. :laughing:

 

[Shield Arc]

But I remembered reading to run it vertical down some where with the amps turned up and boy did that make a PURDY weld! Pure child's play. Lol. It literally almost runs itself.

Coming from the structural welding world, I don't believe in welding vertical down hill. Now pipe lines, and a lot of pipe is welded vertical down hill every day.
This is 7014 vertical up hill.

 

[Shield Arc]

Here is some more 7014. For the majority of the welding that members here will do at home. Anything that can pass a bend test, is good enough.

 

[BMan2005]

Holy crap, BMan! I'm impressed... looks like you have been welding for as long as SA. :laughing:

Well there goes SA being nice about my welding..... LOL!

I do appreciate the good words man, I read and watch videos every night trying to learn. Don't mean it follows me to the garage unfortunately. Haha.

Coming from the structural welding world, I don't believe in welding vertical down hill. Now pipe lines, and a lot of pipe is welded vertical down hill every day.
This is 7014 vertical up hill.

That looks Awesome, especially for what I had it looking like, just globs and undercut.

I didn't plan to do it for anything very structural. Maybe 1/8-3/16" steel at most. It really dug in for running it down, but I know (not from experience) that it doesn't bite near as well as vertical up. Was thinking it may be a way to dress a 6010/6011 also if I didn't want to open a can of 7018. Thinking & playing

Here is some more 7014. For the majority of the welding that members here will do at home. Anything that can pass a bend test, is good enough.

Thanks for sharing that SA. I think it'll be a good rod around here for most stuff. I bought a can of Excalibur 7018 the other day I plan to use when time allows. Going to beef up my brush guard on the tractor.

 

[BMan2005]

I'm done for the night and may be a bit before I get to practice some more. But all of these were ran vertical up. Used the 6011 at 65 amps for a root pass on everything and 3/32 Lincoln jet rod 7018 at 60 amps for a second pass in a weave over the 6011 on T & lap joints. That one weave with the blobs was my first attempt at a weave and I got stuck at the top and it showed! The rest are not great but I was definitely Happy for them to even come out like that.

What can I do to get the weld to flow better/smoother bead?

Edit* on the lap joint picture with the blobs I ran a few stringer beads practicing and when I ran out of a rod I decided to finish that one weld doing a weave and got the blobs.

 

[Shield Arc]

Just something for you to try, to see if you like it. When doing fillet welds, or V-groove welds with 6010, or 6011. Run a U pattern. At the bottom of the U close up the arc length, so it fills in better.
I used a U pattern on this pipe weld.

 

[Shield Arc]

What can I do to get the weld to flow better/smoother bead?

When running vertical up hill with 7018. I watch about 3/8 to 1/2-inch below the melting puddle. To see how it lays. If I don't like the way the metal lays I change the rod angle, up or down to see if the metal will lay better. Now remember when you get to the top of the plate, the puddle is a lot hotter / flowing, than at the bottom of the plate. So most likely you will have to point the rod up more to control the puddle.

 

[BMan2005]

Just something for you to try, to see if you like it. When doing fillet welds, or V-groove welds with 6010, or 6011. Run a U pattern. At the bottom of the U close up the arc length, so it fills in better.
I used a U pattern on this pipe weld.

Do you slow down also like a slight pause at the bottom of the U? Or just close up the gap as you get in the bottom then start to lengthen it away from the plate as you go back up at one fluid speed?

I tried the inverted T I think is what it's called. Where I go up, come back half way and wiggle side to side with a slight pause each side letting the puddle flow in. It definitely laid more metal in but I was inconsistent and felt like I could fall out of practice with it pretty easy.

 

[Shield Arc]

At the legs of the U I have a longer arc length. This helps cut out any wagon tracks on the weld underneath.
At the bottom of the U I close up the arc length to fill in better. I try very hard to keep moving, never pause!