stick welding 101, Rod usage?

admin

ok, so I traded the free to me 110v craftsman Mig welder I got from a co-worker to my brother for his Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger. It's an older machine, but it runs and hey, I needed a stick welder, not a 110v mig.  So it's been 15+ yrs since I've run a stick welder, and lets be honest, as a 14/15 yr old highschool student, I didn't really pay that close of attention to what rod to use for what. It was more of a "this is what's in the oven, use it. Make a pretty weld." Apparently I did a good enough job of making pretty welds because my teacher had me welding on the schools car hauler trailer... Looking back, my instructor wasn't the smartest tool in the shed. but then again I was also the football coach. maybe knocked on the head a few times in his youth. So can someone please give me a down and dirty run down on the different rods, and what they should be used for. I know larger rod for larger materials, and 60xx will have less tensile strength than 70xx but beyond that, I'm lost.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Covered quite a few times but here' the basics again.6010/11: A deep penetrating, fast freeze, all position rod. Good for dirty or rusty materials where you can't get prep perfect. Often used to do the root pass to close up the root on open root joints for 7018. Some use this for sheet metal since it's a fast freeze rod. 6010 is DC only, 6011 is the AC/DC version.6013: a medium penetrating, fill/freeze, all purpose rods. Easy to use, can be run by dragging the flux on the material being welded. Doesn't have the storage issues 7108 has, but is slightly weaker. A good all a round hobby rod. Can be run either AC or DC.7014: a medium penetrating, fill/freeze, all purpose rods.  Very similar to 6013 but stronger. Easy to use, can be run by dragging the flux on the material being welded. Doesn't have the storage issues 7108 has, but is slightly weaker. A good all a round hobby rod. Can be run either AC or DC.7024: a fast fill rod. Only usable in the flat and for horizontal fillets. A very easy rod to run, lays down a lot of material in a hurry, but very runny ( hence position restrictions)  Can be run either AC or DC.7018: Low hydrogen electrode. Can be temperamental if not stored properly. Poor storage negates the low hydrogen properties. Provides a good strong tough weld, often required for many structural applications. Some rods can be run AC or DC, and some run best only when run on DC..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:Perfect, Maybe consider making it a sticky? as the other stickies don't have the rod break down.one last questionAre hardfacing rods broken down into those numeric connotations or are they a completely different beast?There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Originally Posted by ThorsHammerPerfect, Maybe consider making it a sticky? as the other stickies don't have the rod break down.one last questionAre hardfacing rods broken down into those numeric connotations or are they a completely different beast?
Reply:Visit Stoody's website for an education on hard facing rods. They make many different kinds for many different uses. Lincoln also makes hard facing.http://victortechnologies.com/stoody/In general, hard face rod is supposed to lay hard metal on top of the base metal with very little mixing. That makes it terrible for joining metal.Additionally, hard face rod often cracks when it cools. It doesn't affect the wear/impact characteristics but definitely will if it is being used to hold something together.
Reply:No intention of using hard facing for joining. but was thinking it would be a good idea to use it on the cutting edge of the drag grader project I've got in the works.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Hardfacing comes in a wide variety of flavors based on what you need it to do. Some are for metal to metal contact, like facing rollers on equipment. Some is designed for contact with stone like on a crusher, or contact with asphalt like on road milling equipment. Other rods are designed to be used in conjunction with a pattern, like a cross hatch or spot pattern to help trap dirt and soil against the blade or bucket and resist wear not only thru the wear property of the rod, but also because the trapped dirt forms a barrier that helps keep abrasive soil away from the metal and sliding on the trapped dirt. A hard facing rod for use in rocky soil is different than one for use in sand or clay, even if they are used on the same type of bucket..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