7018 vertical up root pass

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Did some stick welding practice over Thanksgiving. I would appreciate some advice please. 1/8" 7018 105 amps vertical up, 3/8" plate 45' included angle 1/4" gap. Thanks Attached Images
Reply:hold to edges a little longer, they look good, heat and voltage are on the money.
Reply:Looks good, maybe a little more heat since the top half looks a little nicer.Miller xmt304,  Miller S22 p12, Miier Maxstar SD, Miller 252 w 30A, Miller super32p12, Lincoln Ranger 9, Thermal Arc 181I with spoolgun, Hypertherm 10000 ,Smith torches. Esab 161lts miniarc.
Reply:I usually run 1/8 closer to 120 going up-hill.  iron mike is right, hold the puddle on the edge longer, sweep across to the other side, and hold there.  Try not to pause in the middle.  This will help to keep the weld flat which makes the following passes easier and will help to eliminate getting slag trapped in the weld.Matthew MortonTexas A&M '06Logsdon Seminary '13"Who Dares Wins""AFTF""WH2PH"SA 200 (Code: 5337)TB 302CP 302 w/22A Wire FeederMillerMatic 200Miller Syncrowave 200MillerMatic 252BurnTables 4x4 CNC MachineHypertherm 65
Reply:I'd have to agree the top 1/3 looks much more consistent than the lower 2/3's. I also like to have my amps up a bit higher doing vertical, but it really depends on how you weld. I'd also agree you need to hold the edges longer and cross the middle fast.Key to vertical is being able to see and read the puddle. If you can do this, it's not all that hard. If you can't, vertical is an effort in frustration many times. Looks like you are getting it, but the bottom tells me you may not have quite had everything click yet. Practice more and pay attention to the puddle, not to making motions. Move as the metal tells you need to move..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:maybe it's the angle of the pic but looks like you're favoring the right side of the joint. keep your rod tip in the center of the bevel.  otherwise not bad.i.u.o.e. # 15queens, ny and sunny fla
Reply:Really, for a 45deg included angle, that is pretty nice. True, the top portion looks a bit more consistent, maybe just because the puddle got a bit higher, and you could watch from below a little better.If I remember correctly (and I seldom do, lately) I was ok with 45 on pipe, downhill with 5p, but in the shop, 30deg on each side, for a 60deg included angle made 7018 uphill much easier for me.I don't remember them allowing us to weave the stringer at all, pretty much straight up, as in the pic.Some guys were real successful with 130+, holding a fairly long arc, and kind of letting it fly onto the work, with a very flat result.If you had the courage, and the patience for the weld to kind of fill out, you could get a very cool stringer.I was too cowardly for that.Last edited by geezerbill; 12-08-2013 at 07:47 PM.
Reply:Think it looks pretty nice myself.Depending on where your head was during the run is probably why the lower part looks a bit less uniform.Myself..........I do better looking either straight at, or down thru, the arc.  I really don't like looking up at the underside of the puddle.  It's weird I guess, probably the opposite of most folks, but then I'm a weird doooood  It's all about where you feel the most comfortableAnother goody is "pre moving" your arms before you weld.  Make sure your arms/hands will be comfortable all the way thru your anticipated movements to complete the weld.  Dunno how many times, in the beginning, I'd wind up with too short arms because I failed to position my body in such a way to be able to extend my arms past a certain point"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by matt1mortonI usually run 1/8 closer to 120 going up-hill.  iron mike is right, hold the puddle on the edge longer, sweep across to the other side, and hold there.  Try not to pause in the middle.  This will help to keep the weld flat which makes the following passes easier and will help to eliminate getting slag trapped in the weld.
Reply:Not much I can add to the above, I used to run 1/8" at 115A, mostly because thats what a lincoln buzzbox will put out: 105, 115, or 125 on DC.  Even when I had fancier machines, 110-115 seemed pretty goodExperience is something you get right after you need it
Reply:@ Gjertson - motivating.  Weld line is axially centered, with only minor traverse "deltas".  My XMT304 CC/CV running Lincoln Excalibur 1/8" 7018 MR yields good results in 3G position @ 115-120A (root pass) on 3/8" MS.  Related, starting amperage for 1/2F position on 3/8" and 1/2" MS is 132A.  Hot and burried.  No rush.  Recommend trying a starting amperage of 120A for 3G. YMMV.Currently setting up and training to prepar for AWS Test D1-SM-F4-P-A-U (SMAW, E7018, 1" Unlimited Thickness, 3G Vertical Up).   Striving for the 4G Unlimited cert in mid-2014.  The dual 3G and 4G certs allow you weld in the flat, horizontal, vertical, and overhead positions, including pipe that has a minimum diameter of 24 inches.  Tons n tons of stick time are still required, but "seeing the light" is half the battle.Continue to provide results of your progression.  There are SMAW wizards here that will assist you in your journey.  May the odds ever be in your favor Last edited by ManoKai; 12-10-2013 at 05:28 PM.Reason: Correction:  hot pass burn-in amperage range"Discovery is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought" - Albert Szent-Gyorgyi