Old welding rods

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Hello all and happy holidays.  My neighbor, who's grandfather was a former pipe fitter, has moved away and he gave me about 10 lbs. of 7018 welding rods mixed with a few 0109's he found in his shop.  They've been stored in a plastic tub in an non-air conditioned space near Houston so it's always humid.   I'm going to try them for training purposes only as I learn about stick welding.What can I expect from these? I have about 20 years of hobbyist experience with a MIG welder and have become pretty proficient with the technique and identifying flaws and testing my work with the MIG.Nothing, nada, never tried once at striking an arc with a stick, and didn't sleep at a Holiday Inn Express but I have seen many YouTube videos and read up on it.  Again these will only be used for my training at home and nothing structural or dependent on my work.   I just want to establish my basic skills at keeping a steady hand and straight line.So will these work?  not work?  Burst into flames?They  *Look* ok.Thanks,


Last edited by Flyer58; 9 Hours Ago at 06:16 PM.Old Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 MIG conversion Vulcan 220 Omnipro
Reply:Do you have a DC welder?  1/8 inch?  Electrode positive and try at about 100 amps or so on clean steel and a short arc.  They are full of moisture so do not expect much, may have some pinholes... maybe not.  My guess the other ones are 6010's and those should be ok.  If you wanted to do it right they (7018) could be put in an oven to dry out and then store in rod containers that can be sealed. I forget the heat temperature and the time required.Retired - Refrigeration Pipefitter - Master Electrician-  IowaLots of Hobbys
Reply:

Originally Posted by Flyer58

Hello all and happy holidays.  My neighbor, who's grandfather was a former pipe fitter, has moved away and he gave me about 10 lbs. of 7018 welding rods mixed with a few 0109's he found in his shop.  They've been stored in a plastic tub in an non-air conditioned space near Houston so it's always humid.   I'm going to try them for training purposes only as I learn about stick welding.What can I expect from these? I have about 20 years of hobbyist experience with a MIG welder and have become pretty proficient with the technique and identifying flaws and testing my work with the MIG.Nothing, nada, never tried once at striking an arc with a stick, and didn't sleep at a Holiday Inn Express but I have seen many YouTube videos and read up on it.  Again these will only be used for my training at home and nothing structural or dependent on my work.   I just want to establish my basic skills at keeping a steady hand and straight line.So will these work?  not work?  Burst into flames?They  *Look* ok.Thanks,



Reply:Thanks,  I did read about the rod melting back inside the coating so it looks like a straw but I've never seen it yet.  That will be my initial practice of starting and stopping to accurately strike an arc.Old Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 MIG conversion Vulcan 220 Omnipro
Reply:Old rod on old scale.  No grinding wheel injured during this job.

Attached Images

Last edited by Sberry; 6 Hours Ago at 09:30 PM.www.urkafarms.com
Reply:Before this turns into the one thousandth thread talking about old welding rods and 7018 rods that haven't been stored in a rod oven you may want to read through the thread I'm going to link...it was the thread just below this one a few minutes ago.The short version is that if the flux isn't falling off, it's almost certain you'll get normal beads with it.  Heated/dry 7018 starts a little easier and probably runs a touch smoother, but you'd have to be pretty good to really see the difference (other than how easily they start).  For home projects, practice, etc they'll be fine.https://weldingweb.com/vbb/threads/7...41#post8838041Check out my bench vise website:  http://mivise.comMiller Syncrowave 250DXMillermatic 350P with XR AlumaProMiller Regency 200 with 22A feeder and Spoolmatic 3Hobart Champion EliteEverlast PowerTig 210EXT
Reply:Thanks again for the info and picture.  Since this will be my first attempt with a stick welder and the old, clean 7018 rods, I wasn't sure what to expect.  Anything from they will never start and spatter all over the shop to yes, they're good for practice and might work ok.  It looks like there's no imminent danger from the rods themselves.Sberry's picture looks like a MIG weld when the gas runs out.  Pretty rough but who an I to judge.I'll give it a go for fun and post pics for laughs. If I have a future need for stick welding it looks like some cellulose rods may store well if I keep them inside the house.   Since I don't do this for a living and don't plan to in the future I won't be buying an oven.Thanks again.Old Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 MIG conversion Vulcan 220 Omnipro
Reply:Absolutely no danger aside from the usual precautions of stick welding. If there is something wrong with the flux, it will flake back and you won't be able to keep the bead going and the welding will stop. As I mentioned in the other thread, if they are exposed to enough humidity long enough, you can get rust under the flux and that will make them all but useless. Those don't look that bad.The harder you fall, the higher you bounce...250 amp Miller DialArc AC/DC StickF-225 amp Forney AC Stick230 amp Sears AC StickLincoln 180C MIGVictor Medalist 350 O/ACut 50 PlasmaLes
Reply:

Originally Posted by Flyer58

Thanks again for the info and picture.  Since this will be my first attempt with a stick welder and the old, clean 7018 rods, I wasn't sure what to expect.  Anything from they will never start and spatter all over the shop to yes, they're good for practice and might work ok.  It looks like there's no imminent danger from the rods themselves.
Reply:I have seen a farmer use rusty rod sitting water. It worked and look good too. I would never use that type rod in my old line of work. Dave

Originally Posted by whtbaron

Absolutely no danger aside from the usual precautions of stick welding. If there is something wrong with the flux, it will flake back and you won't be able to keep the bead going and the welding will stop. As I mentioned in the other thread, if they are exposed to enough humidity long enough, you can get rust under the flux and that will make them all but useless. Those don't look that bad.