Stick weld .070" Steel Tube

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Hi.  I'm new to welding and have just been playing with an AC welder at work.  We have been trying to weld together some .070" thick square tubing with no success.  It is a Lincoln Electric AC welder adjustable from 40-225 amps in 15 amp increments.  We most recently tried using E6013 rod in 5/64" diameter.  At 60amps it blows out the tubing.  At 40amps it is difficult to weld (keeps sticking) and still wants to melt through the tubing.  The resulting weld is very brittle and breaks.  Just wondering if I am wasting my time trying to do this with a stick welder.
Reply:Probably wasting your time trying to weld .070 material with .078 filler without a fine adjust.Anything worth doing is worth doing RIGHT
Reply:What type joints are you welding?  Are you burning through the side or are you having difficulty welding edges?Try 3/32 rods.  It will be more forgiving, given your machine parameters.Maintain a close, tight arc.  Try traveling "too" fast to see how the puddle follows the rod.  Then, slow your travel speed to find the correct travel speed.  This should save you some burn through and frustration.Those small rods are expensive, another reason to try 3/32".
Reply:Thanks for the reply.  I am still trying to comprehend how all of this works. Why would larger rod be less likely to melt the tubing?   I am attempting to make a square frame.  The tubing wants to melt on the open end where it is being welded to the flat side.Last edited by eldakota; 10-24-2007 at 11:56 AM.
Reply:larger rod = lower resistance = less heat. plus, with the increased amount of metal there, it helps dissipate the heat better. if the weld is still brittle, try cooling it with a flame. i know this sounds weird, but if you keep it hot for a longer time (with a torch), and cool it down slower, it will be less brittle and the weld should be stronger. also, try pre-heating the piece and set your machine to 40 amps. this will lessen the likelyhood that the rod will stick. i honestly have no expereince with stick welding, but from what i understand about it, and the gerenal welding physics, my answer makes sense. Zap and olddad, do you guys agree?hopefully that helps a bit. i woudl at least try it... if it doens't help solve the problem, you are at least trying somthing new.later,Andy
Reply:Originally Posted by aczellerZap and olddad, do you guys agree?
Reply:Originally Posted by olddadWell, since you asked...no.
Reply:FASTER TRAVEL SPEED may help you out.  Fine adjustment would help a lot, but you don't have that option.  A 110 volt MIG would be the balls!DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:Here is a thread showing some welds on 1/16 steel.On the third page I have a picture of some 1/16" welded with 1/16"  and 3/32" rodhttp://www.weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=10231Another problem with the thin rod is when it gets stuck, then the rod is pretty much burned up.
Reply:Originally Posted by aczellerwell, i feel like a dumbass
Reply:I prefer 3/32 6011 or 6010 on 16 ga material...run DCEN. They work much better for me. The whip action can really help with thin material since the heat isn't constantly concentrated on the joint.Andy, I have been known to run 1/8 rods on 20 ga sheet....more heat melts the rod than the work. It does tend to slow down blowouts if they start happening a lot.
Reply:Are you using the correct rods for a A.C. machine??  ...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Originally Posted by eldakotaHi.  I'm new to welding and have just been playing with an AC welder at work.  We have been trying to weld together some .070" thick square tubing with no success.  It is a Lincoln Electric AC welder adjustable from 40-225 amps in 15 amp increments.  We most recently tried using E6013 rod in 5/64" diameter.  At 60amps it blows out the tubing.  At 40amps it is difficult to weld (keeps sticking) and still wants to melt through the tubing.  The resulting weld is very brittle and breaks.  Just wondering if I am wasting my time trying to do this with a stick welder.
Reply:Originally Posted by eldakotaHi.  I'm new to welding and have just been playing with an AC welder at work.  We have been trying to weld together some .070" thick square tubing with no success.  It is a Lincoln Electric AC welder adjustable from 40-225 amps in 15 amp increments.  We most recently tried using E6013 rod in 5/64" diameter.  At 60amps it blows out the tubing.  At 40amps it is difficult to weld (keeps sticking) and still wants to melt through the tubing.  The resulting weld is very brittle and breaks.  Just wondering if I am wasting my time trying to do this with a stick welder.
Reply:Ok, I gotta call BS!! Having been a sheet metal weldor for almost 10 years straight, I spent most of the time welding in the 56-60 amp range. I never ever saw a single solitary rod "pop rather violently."  Hundreds of thousands of rods and not a single popper. The law of averages dictates there would be at least ONE in that many.  Quit spouting BS unless you can support it with some sort of reference, case study, whatever that is not posted on your own site. This guy is trying to learn how to do it. Stop confusing him with BS.
Reply:Thanks for all the replies.  I had a neighbor look at it over the weekend.  He tried welding a couple of pieces and showed me how he would do it.  He basically set his welder on about 40 amps and pretty much globbed the weld across the joint a little at a time.  After filling it in he then turned the amps up to about 60 and went back over the weld.  He said the first pass would be a brittle weld that would not hold, but it would help distribute and hold the heat for the second pass which he said would penetrate and hold.  Any thoughts?  We did beat it with a hammer and the tubing bent rather than the welding giving.
Reply:it's good to see that you tested your work... if it holds, you must have done something right. do you have any pictures?later,Andy
Reply:Originally Posted by eldakotaThanks for all the replies.  I had a neighbor look at it over the weekend.  He tried welding a couple of pieces and showed me how he would do it.  He basically set his welder on about 40 amps and pretty much globbed the weld across the joint a little at a time.  After filling it in he then turned the amps up to about 60 and went back over the weld.  He said the first pass would be a brittle weld that would not hold, but it would help distribute and hold the heat for the second pass which he said would penetrate and hold.  Any thoughts?  We did beat it with a hammer and the tubing bent rather than the welding giving.