Best size of 1018 to practice arc welding on?

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Hi Guys,I dont have much scrap metal, so what is the best size to order in 1018 if I want to practice burning 1/8 E7018 and 5/32" e6010?Thanks,Raf
Reply:Get a bunch of 3/8" x2" flatbar.Cut it into 12" lengths and make filets.ImoJust a couple welders, big hammers, grinders, and torches.Work will free you.Men in dirty jeans built this country, while men in clean suits have destroyed it. Trump/Carson 2016-2024
Reply:Check pricing 1st. 1018 is a nice consistent material, but can be more pricy than basic A36 or "mild" hot rolled steel. A36/"mild" is often not held to as rigorous specs and thus less expensive. Some suppliers sell 1018 almost interchangeably with cold rolled steel.Cold rolled or 1018 is nice for doing tig as you don't have that heavy mill scale to deal with, but you don't gain as much if you are doing stick/mig, though it's always a good idea to grind off mill scale before welding. I will admit with the nice clean hot rolled the school gets, almost no one grinds basic stock other than the tig guys when we run out of cold rolled.Sizes we use for joints are 3" wide flat stock that we shear into 6" lengths. We use 1/8" for steel mig/tig, and 1/4" on average for stick. All A 36 hot rolled on average, though they do get some 1/8" cold rolled for tig occasionally. We also have 3/8" thick stock they use for bevel but joints that we flame cut and grind the bevels on. We use 6" because 6-8" is about the typical weld length you get from one stick rod. Where I learned, they used the 12" lengths of angle like I mention below, because that also forced you to learn to do at least one restart on each length welded. We also had to use the rods until they were no longer than 2" and turn in the stubs to prove it to get more rods. That forced people to do restarts and saved and maximized materials. To learn restarts, we simply have guys weld 1/2 way across, then stop and restart.For very basic practice starting out, a nice piece of 12" 2x2 or 3x3 1/4" angle or a 6x6" or larger piece of 1/4" thick plate will give you lots of practice for minimal cost. Simply practice running overlapping beads or "pads" one on top of another. With angle iron, add two "feet" so the angle sits like a V for flat, then knock off the feet for use as an L for horizontal. Vertical/overhead requires some sort of stand. Flat plate works the same way.You can burn pounds and pounds of rod on this to get down the basics like arc length rod angle, travel speed, motions etc with minimal material. Once you can make nice consistent beads, THEN start on joints. Joints will eat plate at an alarming rate.When you get overlapping beads done, and move on to joints, there are a few things you can do to maximize stock. On lap joints stack them like a stair. That way each additional piece give you 2 beads. be sure and tack both sides on each corner before running a full bead, other wise the steel will pull, and you won't be able to do a good bead on the back side. For T joints weld up things like an H and keep adding to that. Again each piece added give you 2 welds vs needing 2 pieces to get 2 welds if you just do T's. Outside corners, weld it up like a continuous z ot w shape... No good way to save steel with bevels other than cut out the old weld and rebevel and reweld.Note: you will want to cool pieces between welds, or the heat build up will mess with your settings. I often have students bring me really nice beads, but what I tell them to run one on new plate and show me, it looks like crap. That's because the heat build up from running beat after bead makes things flatten out a bit more and changes how you weld. I tell students that if it's cool enough to touch it bare handed, it's cool enough to run the next bead. For practice having  several pieces you can rotate between while the previous ones cool helps, a bucket of water cools things fast and allows you to spend more time practicing and less waiting. You wouldn't do this on real welds, but for practice on basics, it won't hurt.5/32" rod is a bit large to learn on to start with. We use 1/8" almost exclusively. When I teach guys at home, I use 3/32" or 1/8" depending on the machine they have to work with. 5/32" lays down a lot of material with one pass. The point of practice in the beginning is repetition. I'd rather see some one run more beads for the same number of pounds of rod until they get the basics down. Then later they can always jump up in rod size if they have to learn to pass a certain test. You get a lot more rods for your money with smaller rods. Anything smaller than 3/32" gets really to flexible to weld with well. Stick to 3/32" or 1/8" rods..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:[QUOTE=AKweldshop;5764881]Get a bunch of 3/8" x2" flatbar.Cut it into 12" lengths and make filets.Filets? Isn't that what you do with fish?
Reply:[QUOTE=Welder Dave;5765271] Originally Posted by AKweldshopGet a bunch of 3/8" x2" flatbar.Cut it into 12" lengths and make filets.Filets? Isn't that what you do with fish?
Reply:Thank You DSW, As always, your generosity with your awesome amount of knowledge has been a great help to me. I just can't learn enough, so much too learn. I enjoy it to the point that I cant wait till I have some free time to practice, now that I have a welder. Thanks to all ,Raf