Sorry in advance!

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uh um..ok all you more enlightened,as after reading posts this is my definate conclusion..while laying down your bead what exactly are you looking at in order to make your professional beads,say on a Lincoln225.Are you looking at the entire workpiece/the puddle behind it/where you want the stick to go..some many questions i have..sorry but i'm in a course were the instructor is..me!yikes!..i don't have an issue with it sticking,and so far all my welds are holding on an addition i made to lenghten a small extension for my trike to carry firewood.
Reply:G'day Arcangel,You have nothing to be sorry about.I however,am sorry to hear you have an instructor who is not up to expectations! As a welding instructor its not something I like to hear.From what I am reading, you are concerned about what your welded bead should look like. Bear in mind I am from down under so its possible some of the stuff I am talking about may have a different names or descriptions in the US.Starting with your Lincoln 225. I havent seen one down here but surmise it is a single 225 amp AC machine. AC is good for training beginners as it has a forceful arc. That means guys are less likely all things being equal,to suffer slag inclusions.Probably, you have started with a 6012 or 6013 electrode (stick to the new guys) Anyway thats what I start my new blokes on.First order of business after running through safety procedures is to practice to strike an arc and run a bead of weld. STOP ! Your teacher did run the class through the safety stuff didn't he? If not please reply an I'll go through them.If running a newbies class (is that what you fellas call beginners?) I would structure it like this:Safety proceduresWelding Helmet and safety glasses - adjusting and using flip welding helmet.Talk about the arc,setting amperage ,arc length and watching and understanding your weld pool.Strike an arcRun a straight parallel bead  - we look for even bead width, even  bead heightcrescent shape ripple pattern ( or finger nail shaped) - indicating near correct electrode travel speed and lack of slag inclusions. Talk about weld defects and demonstrate  what causes them and how to avoid same.That takes about 3 hours covering 14 students.If there is something specific you wish to discuss please come back ,it will save  heaps of typing.Welding I am good at. Typing, welll!!!! I don'tRegardsGrahameTypo king from Oz
Reply:Originally Posted by ArcangelAre you looking at the entire workpiece/the puddle behind it/where you want the stick to go...
Reply:Wow Grahame, a LOT of good starter knowlege,i appreciate all 327 words you laboured over!..ok i am using 6011's,but bought some 7018's,as i was told they're supposed to be a much cleaner rod?I have a two part flip helmet with a eye shield and a #10 lens,though now i wish i would have went for a self dimming feature built in,as right now i find in my amature state i am always lifting and closing the balsted thing to see were i want to start/left off.If by the safety issues you mean good clothing/eye protection/gloves,no flamables nearby/curious pets/sibblings/water nearby,ear plugs, etc, i usually have it all taken care of in advance.My "instructor" would kick my a** if i was seen without!!ok onward..while welding i am usually after a popping pop corn type sound,(hope that makes sense)Thanks you two for trying to help out a new dummy to this art form!!
Reply:Loctech man made apoint about arc length which I should have emphasised.The arc length is real important.The weldor must control or manipulate the stick  so that the arc length is consistent along with a consistent electrode travel speed.Once you master that, the rest pretty much drops into place. As for the safety yes that what was meant , plus electical safety, thermal heat safety precautions, and fume.A lot of blokes do damge to themselves without realising when the breathe up fumes given out by the arc.Generally metals coated with anything are not good to breathe in.A question about the 6011 as a beginner practice rod?  By Australian codes , electrodes that finish in 11 s are cellulose based , pale white coloured flux cover and arc fiercely.Not quite what I would suggest for the new fellas. 7018 s while a great rod being a hydrogen controlled stick are over kill for practice on mild steel.If you getting them for nothing,fair nuff, but really 6012 and 6013 s will do the job just fine and are cheaper to buy. also if you do a search under the Hobart and Millersites ,they show some good illustrations on stick welding and diagnosis of defects. Other than that just keep burning rodsCheersGahame
Reply:Hey,Excellent 6012/13 tip!!i will now expierment with these bad boys,i used the 6011's because i read how they require hardly any cleaning before hand/grease/dirt,will the 12/13's be as forgiven?My arc gap i basically 1/8 of an inch,is that about the standard?..ok Have a great weekend!!
Reply:Gidday ArcangelWhat you should find in practice for proper arc length, is that the thickness of the bare wire section of your intended weding electrode, is a good starting point.      What happens when you draw a longer arc is that the penetration ( the bite of the arc into the metal)  decreases and the heat of the arc pool increases. If the Arc gets too long you don't get good contact with the  molten arc pool in your base ( parent ) metal. Basically you end up with a series of slag holes interconnected by bits of weld.It can be proven with a meter that changes in arc length increase or decrease your amperage ( arc penetration ) and voltage ( heat into the arc pool )Arc length is one of the parameters that you as a welder , have direct control over and can change during the arc process.As a rule , a shorter arc length is generally preferred.Sometimes ,you may just want to go for a wide flat bead. In that, the method is to increase the amperage on the machine control and keep the longer arc length until you get the desired flat bead.On some of the big site machines that generate their own electricity there is a separate voltage control. This enables the welder to reduce the arc voltage without out having to draw  an excessively long arc. This would ideally suit an overhead weld situation.With electrodes, 6011s are really for penetrating into vee preps typicall on pipework. Practicng with them a a beginner just brings up the frustration level in my opinion, because as they heat up they lose their moisture content and begin to stick. Some the older guys had bottle or can of water beside them to dip and flick the rod in to regain the moisture. they are not really needed for home diy stuff. If welders can't learn to weld with 6012 and 13s they need to give up as they are the base level electrodes for mild steel work.Tip!  Clean the weld area before you start to weld, so its as clean as it can be. I am talking hand held wire brush.There are  different types of wire brushes to do this.There are 4 wire parallel and coverging vee to get into the fillet areas and vee preps.Sometimes I use a old sharpened file as final clean up to remove spatter,but find it is good for scraping out scale and rust where the weld will sit.If really dirty ,I often lightly run the angle grinder over the intended weld area to acheive a shiny weld site.Don.t go excess out of the weld zone, as it gives an extra bite for spatter to stick to ,confine it to, just the weld area.Tip 2 Try not to use your welding gauntletts as material handling gloves The gloves can get crap and oil on them which can transfer to the electrode surface.As always, keep on prcaticing old mate, and I'll be happyto hear that you feel you are making progress. you may wish to have a look here ,there is some really beaut info.http://www.millerwelds.com/education/library.html Now steps down off his soap box.Crikey war and peace was shorter than this.hope it helpsGrahame
Reply:A very gratudious Thank-you Grahame!..i never knew 6011's were known to be so unruly when it came to beginers/amatures,i guess this is kind of a goodnews thing for me, since i have no problem with sticking,welll maybe a slight one but no overly big issue.I know i'll follow your advice and spring for the 6012/13's right quick...i always used a grinder to pre-clean,have to do the wire brush thing like you beckoned.Question of my day:  what does "penetration", actually look like? (in ten thousand,or less words  )
Reply:Penetration is the depth of fusion of the deposited weld into the parent metal. Unless you  are perpared to destroy a weld bead you normally won't  see it with the exception of root bead penetration in  pipework.If you wanted to test the penetration of your own beads you can do it by welding a single fillet bead on a Tee piece on one side only.Place the tee piece under a hydraulic press with the weld bead sitting uppermost and press down it until the bead fractures and separates. Note that the observation of the penetration is so much easier if the vertical leg of the tee is edge ground so that the contact corner edge is sharp and square.Visually you are looking for the clean grainy looking break without slag inclusion and gaps.Its as short as I can get old mate.CheersGrahame