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First welder, first welds

Howdy,
I picked up a used welder a few weeks ago, an older ('78) Miller
Thunderbolt AC buzzbox. Picked up one of the HF helmets, blew out the
cobwebs in the welder, cleaned out the carport, made a worklight, and
started playing around.
I'm hoping that a more experienced welder might be kind enough to spare a
few seconds and critique some of these welds. I realize that they are
turkeyshit, but I want to know why they are turkeyshit. :)
These were made with 3/32" 6011 rod, NAPA brand (Hobart insert in the
package). The plate is 1/8" thick and 4.25" wide, and I used about a half a
rod for each pass. Current used was about 60A, using the LOW (higher
voltage) outputs on the welder.
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Any comments or suggestions would be most appreciated,
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
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Jon,
I'm no pro. But I think they look good!
However, I think you're running a little cold. Try 80 amps, then 75, then 70.
My approach has always been to run as hot as possible, provided I don't get "undercut".
V J> Howdy,
Reply to
Vernon
You aren't doing that bad, Jon. Need to work on keeping your speed constant, and running a straight line. 1/8" stock isn't easy to stick weld, really, you aren't doing that bad.
Grant
Reply to
Grant Erwin
Thanks, Vernon. I'll try bumping up the current next time. How do I tell if I am "undercutting"?
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
"Grant Erwin"
Thanks Grant. I find I tend to move, stop, move, stop, instead of keeping a steady motion. I"m hoping that I will get more fluid with practice.
One thing I am curious about is the small area just above and below each weld (the kind of "rough" area), as pointed out in this picture:
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Is that a normal artifact of welding, or demonstrative of something I need to adjust?
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
Damn..you doing good son..really good!
Bottom weld you were inconsistent in rod travel..went too slow in a few places..a bit fast in others..but damn..NICE job on the rest for a newbie.,,,hell..I dont always get beads this good.
Though.Im usually welding through rust...
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." - Proverbs 22:3
Reply to
Gunner
It looks like you are holding the stick to steep. At what angle do you hold it?
And no, no hopless case!
Nick
Reply to
Nick Mueller
I agree that the heat should be higher. Start at 75. If the flux on the electrode starts turning brown as you weld, it's TOO HOT. The higher heat will make it easier (until you burn through to make a hole). That little junk on the sides of the bead is slag. Use a wire wheel on an angle grinder (AND eye protection: wire wheels throw off wire strands at your face) to clean it out. Then you will be able to see the undercut currently filled with slag. With the higher heat, move a little faster and develop a rhythm to your weave pattern - little circles, stepping Z, whatever. Weld to music if you need a steady beat to develop it go.
Reply to
Tom Kendrick
6011 is a fast freeze rod. Are you dragging the rod or using a whip and pause?
Reply to
Justin Time
While they look a little bad, they would likely provide very adequate joints. You have a machine and a method for securely joining metal to metal, congratulations.
i
Reply to
Ignoramus6528
Thanks, Tom. That picture was actually taken after I had taken a twisted wire wheel to the thing. I'll take another pass at it later and see if I can pull more of it out.
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
Thanks, Gunner. The beginning is a bit tricky, since I'm still working on starting the damn thing. Usually takes me a half dozen or more strikes to get it going, but it's getting better each time.
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
Thanks Nick, I try to hold it at a slight angle (going by the tips in the back of the welder manual), maybe ten degrees or so. I'll try canting it over a bit more next session to see what result it has.
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
Hmmm, I'm not sure what any of that means - I'll have to brush up on my terminology.
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
Thanks, Iggy. It'll be interesting when I actually try joining things instead of just laying beads. :)
Jon
Reply to
Jon Danniken
Getting a hard start often means you have the machine set too cool for the rod. This assuming you rod is good and you have the Start Method ..chuckle... down pat.
Personally, I tend to weld a bit on the cool side, I think..shrug..and only use scratch start..as a tap start tends to make me stick the rod. But others do well with tap, but they often run hotter than I think is "proper" (ymmv). The type of rod also makes starting sometimes a bit easy or problematic. 7018 can be a bitch to start..6011 is hard NOT to start.
But as I say..Im NOT a welder..only a dauber with some years of trial and error behind me.
Gunner
"A prudent man foresees the difficulties ahead and prepares for them; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences." - Proverbs 22:3
Reply to
Gunner
Am only a farmer welder with no ticket and only a couple of weeks of schooling so I am no expert for sure.
My experience is that AC is easier for me to start by scratching (like a match) and DC is much better for me to start by tapping.
- Regards Gordie
Reply to
The Nolalu Barn Owl
yeah, make some welds and try to break them. I would not suggest to you or to myself to weld a manned spacecraft, yet, I would say that you can try first welding some joints and destructively test them, and then you can do some low risk project like a wheeled cart or some such. Something where the strength of welds is overwhelmingly above the loads that your product would encounter, and the risk of failure is low.
i
Reply to
Ignoramus6528
I'm no expert but I have done some welding recently with 6013 and have the welder, a Pickhill 180A oil cooled, set to 80V OCV and find that after having started the rod on some scrap for a few seconds I can bring the rod down to rest on the workpiece and the arc just starts up and I go on from there.
Reply to
David Billington
Fast freeze means that when you move beyond the puddle, the area that was the puddle becomes solid very quickly. Much more noticeable in the vertical or horizontal position. In the flat position, it really won't make much difference.
I prefer to drag the rod towards me so that the unwelded joint is between me and the arc. Easier to see the puddle. Whip and pause or step and pause is a motion similar to "two steps forward and one step back". Forward progress is achieved but the arc is returned to the front of the puddle before repeating: otherwise the arc would be constantly over unmelted base metal. The ratio of time-out-of-the-puddle to time-in-the-puddle controls the preheating of the metal ahead of the arc (and puddle).
Reply to
Tom Kendrick

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