Welding Class Question

admin

I have always wanted to learn to weld and decided that a class was the best way to learn. They provide the welder, leathers, helmet, and gloves. The class starts off with SMAW and oxy fuel cutting. First two Class were 7024 strait polarity. By the second class I was starting to get the hang of it, so the instructor moved me to 7018. I lowered my amps to 120 and asked which polarity to which the instructor said strait. I thought it was suppose to be in reverse polarity but continued with the class. After the class ended, I looked in to the book and found it was suppose to be in reverse polarity. I also found that all rods except for the 7024 were suppose to be in reverse polarity. So the next class I inquired again and the instructor again confirmed that it is to be in strait polarity. I don't want to keep questioning the instructor about this, so can any body give me a heads up on what is happening? Has any body ever taught or does teach can clue me in to what is happening. I like to think there is a reason, but I don't want to waste more money on a class that is teaching me the wrong way. The next semester of classes are MIG and TIG welding. I don't want to get that far into it and learn the wrong things. I love the classes but still want to know how to do it the right way, which is why I took the class in the first place. Thoughts any one?Thanks for the info in advance,Matt
Reply:Hey Matt,There are quite a few controversies that may appear in a welding course. SMAW can really be done with either polarity......depends on the application. Never hesitate to question the instructor, illustrate your findings, & simply ask him to explain......after all, YOU are paying for the class & correct procedures. Don't let him try to intimidate you.....stand your ground & allow him a response that justifies his teaching. Generally, books don't lie.....ask him if all the data in books are wrong. If he is a responsible instructor, he will give you a valid answer supported by facts. Just keep asking questions.....DennyComplete Welding/Machine/Fab. ShopMobile UnitFinally retired*Moderator*"A man's word is his honor...without honor there is nothing.""Words are like bullets.... Once they leave your muzzle, you cannot get them back."
Reply:Also keep in mind that you can try things on your own, even in class.  If this is like most classes, there is 1 instructor and 5-10-20 students (varies a lot).  When you have some "alone time" try changing the polarity and work on the settings a bit and see how it goes.  If you have started to pick up what a good weld looks like during the process, then that will help you try other things too.  Especially if you find you are getting ahead of the class even a little you can take some time to experiment and learn on your own.But push the instructor first.  He may have just had a brain fart and not given you the right answer.  Most stick is done reverse if it is not AC (which has no polarity...).-DaveXMT304 with: 22A Feeder, or HF251 Hi Freq DC TIG air cooled
Reply:+1 on asking the instructor for an explanation.  Just ask him why the book says to run it DCEP.  However, I've learned that you should sometimes treat the textbook like a bible, its a guide and SOME things should be interpreted.  For example, my textbook says that the amperage settings for a 1/8 6010 is 80-120 amps.  When welding pipe, 62-65 amps works like a charm with the machine I have been using.
Reply:DCEP and DCEN are the more modern terms. Straight and reverse polarity are older terms. That is how I see it. At school, you may not be able to see the boxes that the rods are sold in, but that is where the manufacturer has polarities and amp ranges shown for any given welding rod. For 7018 rods, I would run DCEP. City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Thanks Guys,I will keep questioning him. And there is lots of alone time during class. The instructor comes buy three to four times only. Gives me some techniques to help my welds and moves on to some of the students who need him more. I will try DCEP next class and see what the difference is. Right now he has me doing 7018 in the vertical and I need to work on my movement. I keep trying to run two strait up and get runny metal. I just need more practice.Thanks again,
Reply:Hey, I'm taking a welding class too.  It is kind of an exposure type of welding to all of the disciplines.  O/A, MIG, TIG and Stick.  I have done some MIG welding and so far am looking forward to the sections on TIG and Stick.  But we started with the sections on O/A and cutting.  While at the local welding shop to pick up some supplies, a "professional welder" was at the shop while I was talking to one of the sales guys.  I was telling him about the class, and told him how impressed I was with what could be done with an O/A setup, as  had been doing both light sheet metal and even a bit of aluminum welding with the O/A.   The "professional welder" made some snide remarks about how they shouldn't even be teaching O/A welding with the current technology.Am I missing something here?  I have been pretty impressed at what an amateur could accomplish with O/A at a minimal investment compared to a TIG setup.
Reply:don't worry about it there's nothing wrong with gas welding its a good skill to have regardless of what technology is out there 350P 30A spool gun cut master 51  syncro 250 other stuff " take a dog off the street and make him prosper and he will not bite you sad the same cannot be said for man" i didnt use punctuation just to piss you off
Reply:Wanna know about gas welding? Check out tinmantech.comThat's actually my Holy Grail. My school used to teach it, but no longer, so I'm having problems finding "courses" in that "obsolete" technology at least to get startedXMT304 (school)SP125+ (home)HF 4x6 BandsawGood judgement comes from experience and much of that comes from bad judgement.
Reply:Hey guys,Matt, just keep practicing as much as possible, make your mistakes as they are the learning tool, & learn EVERY process. Read, question what you don't understand, & keep at it until you are satisfied with the results.hp246: That, so-called "professional" weldor just illuminated you to the fact that he is indeed NOT a professional weldor. A professional weldor can weld with every process with confidence & know there is a place for each. I use O/A for welding, brazing, silver-soldering, all the very thin aluminum welding I do, & I can cut with ease. What other process can give you all that? Your response to him should have been a "Duuuuuhhhhhh!".DennyComplete Welding/Machine/Fab. ShopMobile UnitFinally retired*Moderator*"A man's word is his honor...without honor there is nothing.""Words are like bullets.... Once they leave your muzzle, you cannot get them back."
Reply:The first weld I ever made was using a O/A in BOCES on 20 gauge sheet metal. In my opinion everyone should learn to gas weld first. I have a mig but I still prefer to gas weld on older auto resto's(sheet metal). The weld is much more workable than mig,and allot of resto shops still prefer gas over mig or tig for both steel and aluminum welding.Lincoln pro mig 180Lincoln Square Wave Tig 300/wp 20/home built water cooler Victor, Purox, Harris, O/A welding/cutting setupsVintage Craftsman drill pressVintage Craftsman/Atlas 12"x 36'' lathe7''x 12'' w/c band saw Everlast 140 st
Reply:as Denny emphasized, there is no other process that can be so widely used as gas. for the guy with a cost or shop size limitation and not to mention some hillbilly on the remote mountain top with no source of power or welding in 25 mph wind, gas is the way to go. although not a certified pro i have been welding in stick, gas, mig processes for many years and tig for a couple and have in the last couple of months been trying my hand at gas/aluminum welding. to date the welds are not as pretty as tig but just as strong or stronger and are a heck of a lot more fun when you factor in the knowledge that very few PROs can do it or will even attempt to do it. most guys today are taught that o/a is just for cutting/heating because their teachers are ignorant when it comes to the diversity of o/a. friends ask why i want to learn o/a aluminum welding and my answer is "because i can". i tell newbies if they learn all the electrical processes and learn to gas weld and go even further and learn to do aluminum with it who's resume will stand out more?Last edited by jbmprods; 10-08-2011 at 01:52 PM.225NT bobcatAEAD200LEScott 125mm175, mm252 w 30A, PT225mm211, TA 181iHyper Therm 380, cut master 529100X & XX, Digital Elite6 Victor setssmith little torch, meco midget kalamazoo band sawsteel max saw evoulution circular saw
Reply:7018 should sound like sizzling bacon.Weldanpower 225 G7Ironworkers Local #24
Reply:let me ask a stupid question, but reading this post made me think.  I am not a schooled welder, but I do a fair bit of welding.  I usually weld everything dc reverse, but have never liked 7014.  I just cannot get it to weld good.  I looked at the box today, and it said DC-.  Dose that mean it wants DC straight?  stinger negative?Bruce DeLaetHeavy Equipment Mechanic and Welder1948 SA-200 short hood1949 LincWelder 1801963 SA-200 red faceMiller S-32-P
Reply:Ive always ran 7018 on dcep