Sticking welding rods.

admin

I've got an old ESAB Bantam TBH 140 AC welder that I have been using for a year with no problems with 2mm R43 rods.These rods ignite fine and I am able to produce nice welds with these rods.The other day I bought a box of Kjeldberg E-7018 rods (2 mm) and they just stick and refuse to ignite. There is no marking on the label to tell me wether these are AC, DC or both. They also won't work on another AC welder thet I've tried.So I bought box of Luna R48S 2.5 mm rods and they stick and refuse to ignite properly too, despite the fact that the label states they are suitable for both AC and DC current. I'm aware of the fact that rods designated for DC only can be tricky on AC, but these rods are simply impossible to use at all on any current setting.The welder has clean contacts and appears to be in good working order.
Reply:Some 7018s do not work well on AC, especially on small welders which tend to have a low open-circuit voltage. I don't know what R43 or R48S rods are in US terms, but 6011, 6013, and 7024 will usually work best with small AC welders.JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps
Reply:I haven't measured the open-circuit voltage, but it is a small welder so I guess the voltage is low.
Reply:Originally Posted by Silicon-basedSome 7018s do not work well on AC, especially on small welders which tend to have a low open-circuit voltage. I don't know what R43 or R48S rods are in US terms, but 6011, 6013, and 7024 will usually work best with small AC welders.John
Reply:Open circuit voltage is 50 volts.Bought a large pack of 6013 today. Works great and even re-ignites nicely.
Reply:what ive noticed with 6013 is you have to have some oscilation in order to not have inclusions and double-beaded welds. crank up the amps use a whip adn pause or a cursive e type motion for laps joints. makes for very pretty and strong welds.