picture worth a thousand words

[gwdixon]

It is called "stick" welding for multiple reasons, not just because the rods look like sticks.

3/32" 6011 is recommended to run 40A - 85A. Too hot and a stuck rod will fry.

Try this with 6011 as part of your practice:

Gently and quickly scrape the rod across the metal. (Some say "like a match" but you don't need to press so hard.) Just enough to get a spark. Do it again and again to get the feel of how to start a spark.

After you can make a spark each time, stop the scrape at the time of the spark and lift the rod just a bit off of the metal. Don't mind if the arc goes out the first few times you try it. Soon you'll be able to strike an arc and keep it going for a little while.

To keep from sticking, keep it a little away from the metal. You'll likely "long arc" it at first and metal BBs will fly and flashing will happen. Just shorten the distance to the metal at that point.

Remember, you are just practicing and burning up rod is part of the process.

 

[rsewill]

These are some great posts from capable people gere. I am a mere tenderfoot and not in the same league as these guys but would like to offer my experience. I am retired now but spent a long time in the remote country with a stick welder and no guidance. My welds were dreadful and the guys here are right with the "practice" comments. Then we moved to a closer area and I took a welding class at a tech school. We started with stick welders but my stick welding skills still sucked. I just couldn't get enough practice in.

Then, I used a MIG wire-feed welder and that night--nearly from the get-go--my welds looked way better. And they were better with good penetration and pleasing appearance. They were so good that I ditched the stick welder because the practice reqired exceed the time I could give to it. Guys that are good stick welders are a class unto themselves. It's now easy for them because they have already devoted the time, energy and frequent practice to stay that way. I'm just a casual user and forget what I learned by the next time I weld.

Wire feed is very forgiving that way. That is, after you understand the basics of clean metal and proper setup. In retrospect, I should have gone to wire feed earlier and should have found a good welder and paid him to teach me. Short of that, I am now a good wire-feed welder in most positions and I am, for the first time, happy and confident about my welding. Were I to take up stick now, I feel I would get it right. Sure I could use a bigger welder for thicker steel and yes, I would like to be able to stick weld but for my skill level, and frequency of use, wire feed worked for me. Just my two cents on this.

sixdogs, my skills and training are similar to yours. I would never go back to stick from my Miller 200. But if the material you are welding is a quarter inch thick or more I find I can do similar work with either stick or wire. And about the same speed. The best stick is with a 3 phase DC welder but I don't see much difference with 3 phase wire feed. So, I would suggest the casual welder go with wire just like the pros do.

 

[candyman]

koua,
no i`m in ohio.

gwdixon, shield arc,
guess i was running to hot know better next time.

candyman

 

[Shield Arc]

Depends on what I'm doing. Open root pipe / plate I'll run as low as 55-amps, sometimes 65-amps, depending on the gap and land, with 1/8-inch 6010 / 11. For the hot pass I'll run around 72 to 75 -amps. Just general welding with 1/8 inch 6010 / 11 I'll run around 80-amps.

Remember now I'm not a professional weldor, so take my advice with a grain of salt.

Here some 6010 run with a PowerArc 200.

 

[IslandTractor]

Remember now I'm not a professional weldor,

Coulda fooled me.:thumbsup:

 

[gwdixon]

Coulda fooled me.:thumbsup:

HE LIES!!!! (Well, sort of....:laughing

He is retired from years and years of welding experience and expertise. Have him tell you about it. Hiding behind the "retired" moniker.

 

[Gary Fowler]

My advice is get rid of the 6010 and 6011 3/32 (save them for really thin stuff) and get some 1/8". They are a little stiffer and can usually be broken off when stuck if done quickly where as the little 3/32 get hot so quick, that the only way to get them unstuck is the jerk them out of the rod holder, let them cool and then break them off. With any size if you dont get it to break free in a couple of seconds, then it is so hot that it will just bend back and forth. After a couple or three tries at striking it, the tip is so hot that even a professional will have a hard time lighting up as it wants to immediately freeze to the weldment. 3/32" 60xx rods are likely the hardest rods to weld with as they dont lay down much metal, they shake around due to the flimsy size and get too hot as they burn unless you run the amps really cold and then you need a really steady hand to keep them going.
3/32 7018 is ideal size to learn with as they dont carry a big glob of slag and metal and the can run from about 75 amps to 125 depending on your skill level and are fairly forgiving of arc length although they run best with a really short arc distance from the plate(almost dragging the rod flux on the plate, in fact they will weld fine doing just that). 70xx rods also dont need a lot of rod manipulation (in fact dragging is the recommended way with a little weave of not more than 3 times the core diameter allowed ie 1/8 rod would allow 3/8 weave distance) I weld exclusively with 6010 and 7018 for my farm repairs as they will weld anything that comes with a tractor and equipment except plastic and aluminum which I suppose a few of the newer tractors may have on them. I only stock 1/8"- 6010 and 3/32 and 1/8"- 7018. I can use those 3 sizes for just about any thing I want to weld. If you need to weld some gauge sheet metal, then maybe a 3/32 6010 would be in order unless you have a MIG welder.

 

[candyman]

shieldarc,

not a pro, huh. for a new welder you are doing quite well. !! awesome welds. !!

gary,

my welding { if that is what`s it`s called } will be on the farm i need to make a rear ballast weight out of a 55 gal. barrel & i have f.e.l pallet forks that i want to weld brackets on & be able to use it on the 3 pt. hitch.
i`m gone to town today i`ll see about different rods.

oh, sat. when i got back to the farm with the 6011 rods, i tried to weld over some holes i had drilled incorrectly, imagine that, anyway got everything ready fired up the gen. ready to weld, struck the arc, wow man that flash is awful bright, { you know where i`m gone with this ] so i struck it again, d%m what in the world is gone on now i`m seeing a big spot in front of me, took off my helment & guess what, it is set on grind mode that did smart for a few minutes ...

got the holes welded shut not pretty . thank you all more great info.

candyman

 

[IslandTractor]

I know you have a nice stick welder but some tasks, like filling drill holes in sheet metal, are more easily done with a low powered mig fluxcore unit. Used 110v machines can be had for a hundred bucks and would increase the versatility of your welding tools.

 

[k0ua]

Welding holes shut takes some practice. I like to use the "easy rods" like 7014 for that. Less frustration. Another thing you can do Candyman, is cut your rods in half and peck the flux off on the end of the one that is completley covered to attach your stinger. Shorter rods are easier to work with as you have better control of the end. This will help with the "sticking" problem a bit. You should try some 7014 and see how they work for you. They will typically want to be run at more amps than 7018 or 6011. They lay down bead faster as there is iron powder in the flux. Hang in there.

James K0UA