Arc moves

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As I was practicing I had trouble with the arc moving,I was braced in good with 2 hands on the rod holder. Could I be seeing arc blow? It's talked about here but could someone explain what it is and how to stop it,5 wraps of the ground cable on the work???? I was using 6010 on an inside corner. Thanks
Reply:What are you welding? Is there a magnet on the steel close to where your welding? Arc blow is the condition where your work piece becomes magnetized by an outside force or your weld current. It causes your arc to go off your intended path and can even cause erratic arc conditions. It only happened when welding with DC. It can be stopped by switching to AC weld current. If no AC current is available there are several things you can do to reduce it while welding with DC.  A simple search for "arc blow"  on this forum will yield plenty of info for ha.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:That would be arc blow alright. Rapping the ground lead around the part should help. If it gets worse rap it in the opposite direction. Usually what I do in this situation is grab some 6011 and flip the machine to AC.My "collection":Homemade Stick WelderVictor O/A TorchAC 225Ideal Arc 250HF 90 Amp Flux CoreHF Mig 170Solar 2020 Plasma CutterPower i-Mig 140EHarris O/A torchHF Dual Mig 131140STAlpha Tig 200x
Reply:Originally Posted by snoeproeWhat are you welding? Is there a magnet on the steel close to where your welding? Arc blow is the condition where your work piece becomes magnetized by an outside force or your weld current. It causes your arc to go off your intended path and can even cause erratic arc conditions. It only happened when welding with DC. It can be stopped by switching to AC weld current. If no AC current is available there are several things you can do to reduce it while welding with DC.  A simple search for "arc blow"  on this forum will yield plenty of info for ha.
Reply:Used Drill stem is notorious for arc blow, basically it's a result of the continual twisting while drilling.Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkBriggs weldnpower 225/210/cvLn-25 suitcaseMillermatic 130
Reply:I heard an old farm hand tell me one time that he got some drill stem to build a corral with and he said whenever you touched a stick it would make all your arm hair stand up and it was terrible to weld. Any truth to that? He cited his opinion of radiation from it being so deep. I know fly ash from coal is slightly radioactive but it is not even that deep and been burned also.SA-250 TMDSquarewave 200Thunderbolt AC/DC1951 G.E. welder
Reply:Magnetic drill stem causes a lot problems. It might not have been arc blow but just the fact it's magnetic can make the arc do weird things. Arc blow doesn't usually happen till you get up around 175 or more amps.
Reply:Drill rod is often quite magnetized due to the rotation and rubbing in rock. It creates electric forces or static electric charge in the rod/pipe. It can be difficult to weld due to arc blow. I have welded lots of pile caps on round piles. They are similar to weld like drill rod in that the piles are static electric charged from when they are hauled down the highway on trucks and the air whistles through them causing the static charge. Once you get one pass on them, the arc blow is usually gone and they weld as normal.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:Looks like its wrap the ground cable or combine 6011 and 7018 AC ??? for use on drill stem. Thanks for the help
Reply:Originally Posted by 5090ssLooks like its wrap the ground cable or combine 6011 and 7018 AC ??? for use on drill stem. Thanks for the help
Reply:You can also move your work clamp to help with arc blow sometimes. Move it to the side away from where the arc is "blowing," so that you are welding toward the work clamp. Sometimes you can also tack-weld a mass of metal on the side away from where the arc is "blowing," if I recall correctly.
Reply:I've never had the option of switching to AC. Sometimes welding backwards helps. Usually I'll angle my rod to just compensate for the direction of arc blow.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720