Having Trouble with Fillet Welds

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Hi All,New here and relatively new to welding. Recently I bought a HF 80 amp DC inverter stick welder to do some frame gussets on a project. I've been practicing on 1/8 scrap for the past few weeks until I am comfortable risking the frame. I've burned about 5lbs of electrodes Harbor Freight 6011 3/32, 6013 1/16 and some Forney 7014 3/32 recently. To no avail, I have tried speed, arc length, drag angle etc and my fillets all look lumpy, slag included and lacking fusion on one side of the weld usually. I've sanded my base metal till it shines and still get the same results.My best welds have been with the 6011, but they always come out tall and look cold. I can run a (comparatively) nice looking stringer the full length of the rod, but as soon as it comes time to doto do a fillet, things go downhill fast. Watching chucke2009 videos till the cows come home on YouTube just isn't helping.I am hoping for some good advice on whats going on here, as I really should post theses pictures to the welding fail section.Thanks all in advance Attached Images
Reply:Too cold, turn it up!
Reply:Originally Posted by CTGT2005Hi All,New here and relatively new to welding. Recently I bought a HF 80 amp DC inverter stick welder to do some frame gussets on a project. I've been practicing on 1/8 scrap for the past few weeks until I am comfortable risking the frame. I've burned about 5lbs of electrodes Harbor Freight 6011 3/32, 6013 1/16 and some Forney 7014 3/32 recently. To no avail, I have tried speed, arc length, drag angle etc and my fillets all look lumpy, slag included and lacking fusion on one side of the weld usually. I've sanded my base metal till it shines and still get the same results.My best welds have been with the 6011, but they always come out tall and look cold. I can run a (comparatively) nice looking stringer the full length of the rod, but as soon as it comes time to doto do a fillet, things go downhill fast. Watching chucke2009 videos till the cows come home on YouTube just isn't helping.I am hoping for some good advice on whats going on here, as I really should post theses pictures to the welding fail section.Thanks all in advance
Reply:I think I'm pushing this little welder too far beyond its duty cycle at 80 amps then to get nice results on 3/32 7014 rod. I am also running the welder on a 12 gauge extension cord , which is probably a big no-no, but the only way to get power outside my house. Is there anything I can do to get more heat into the part or am I stuck running 1/16 rods?
Reply:Originally Posted by CTGT2005I think I'm pushing this little welder too far beyond its duty cycle at 80 amps then to get nice results on 3/32 7014 rod. I am also running the welder on a 12 gauge extension cord , which is probably a big no-no, but the only way to get power outside my house. Is there anything I can do to get more heat into the part or am I stuck running 1/16 rods?
Reply:It's hard for me to say whether the limited output of the machine is the primary cause of your difficulty, however, you should try the following:Choose your rod, and set up your metal. When you strike the rod, don't move down the weld until you are SURE that a puddle has formed on BOTH pieces. A lot of new welders will start to move right away, but have not formed a puddle yet. Try small circular motions until you see the puddle form, then as you move down the weld do not loose the puddle.If the puddle won't form after 2-3 seconds then I'd say you welder is not adequate to run the stick you are trying to run.Chay
Reply:If youput your location in your profile,  someone might be close enough to offer some hands on assistance.Eventual master of the obvious, practitioner of "stream of consciousness fabrication".  P.S. I edit almost every post because because I'm posting from my phone and my fingers sometimes move faster than my brain.
Reply:Thanks for the helpful suggestions. I will try and slow down initially, move in a weave pattern and work on the arc length. One thing I struggle with is being overtaken by slag with the 6013 rods even at really steep drag angles. Is 6013 the right rod for gussets? I also have a 230v craftsman mig that will do 150a, but only have the ability to run flux cored at this time.Im still determined to get the hang of stick welding, and would be thrilled if someone local could give me some pointers. Im in southwest CT and would gladly to drive if someones in the area that doesn't mind helping out.
Reply:Originally Posted by CTGT2005Thanks for the helpful suggestions. I will try and slow down initially, move in a weave pattern and work on the arc length. One thing I struggle with is being overtaken by slag with the 6013 rods even at really steep drag angles. Is 6013 the right rod for gussets? I also have a 230v craftsman mig that will do 150a, but only have the ability to run flux cored at this time.Im still determined to get the hang of stick welding, and would be thrilled if someone local could give me some pointers. Im in southwest CT and would gladly to drive if someones in the area that doesn't mind helping out.
Reply:Your little 80 amp welder doesn't have enough power to burn a 3/32 rod properly. The only 3/32 rod that welder may burn properly would be 6011. For the others, 6013 7014 etc that machine just doesn't have the juice. You need to use a smaller rod. Your also not seeing your weld puddle correctly yet and manipulating it properly with rod movement. Your 80amp hf is helping matters neither. Focus on the weld puddle, not the arc. You want that puddle to wash evenly onto both pieces of metal. Gravity will want to work against you so you may have to direct your rod a bit more to the upper piece of metal and allow the puddle to fill then pull it down as you move. Go slow and allow it to fill.You can see the T joint you tried to weld that you only got the weld on both pieces of metal in 2 small location. The rest of the weld is only on one piece of metal with large slag traps now created. The toes of the weld bead have cold roll as they are not washed into the base metal nice and flat. That's a sign that your machine is not set hot enough to burn that rod. You were also moving to fast and not allowing the rod to fill in the joint.Last edited by snoeproe; 06-15-2016 at 10:20 AM.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:Originally Posted by CTGT2005Hi All,New here and relatively new to welding. Recently I bought a HF 80 amp DC inverter stick welder to do some frame gussets on a project. I've been practicing on 1/8 scrap for the past few weeks until I am comfortable risking the frame. I've burned about 5lbs of electrodes Harbor Freight 6011 3/32, 6013 1/16 and some Forney 7014 3/32 recently. To no avail, I have tried speed, arc length, drag angle etc and my fillets all look lumpy, slag included and lacking fusion on one side of the weld usually. I've sanded my base metal till it shines and still get the same results.My best welds have been with the 6011, but they always come out tall and look cold. I can run a (comparatively) nice looking stringer the full length of the rod, but as soon as it comes time to doto do a fillet, things go downhill fast. Watching chucke2009 videos till the cows come home on YouTube just isn't helping.I am hoping for some good advice on whats going on here, as I really should post theses pictures to the welding fail section.Thanks all in advance
Reply:Crank her up, try to get it too hot to compare to the cold welds!  Then adjust (there is a very small sweetspot on the Hf 80 amp welder) to so it is just right.  Also I would advise to not buy welding rods from harbor freight, if its anything like the wire, then it would help to go to TSC and pick up some Hobart rods.Forney C5 Arc WelderLincoln Idealarc 250-250 Ac/Dc Arc WelderMiller Bobcat 225g PlusLincoln PowerMig 200Forney O/A Rig
Reply:AHP just introduced a 160 amp dual voltage inverter stick welder for $240.00. Extra amperage for very little money.Eventual master of the obvious, practitioner of "stream of consciousness fabrication".  P.S. I edit almost every post because because I'm posting from my phone and my fingers sometimes move faster than my brain.