First stick welds in 16 years...looking for feedback *56k no way*

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These are the first stick welds I've put down in 16 years.  I know a few things wrong with them...specifically some of the starts I wasn't steady on and buggered them up.  All of these welds are on 3/16" mild carbon steel plate.Spec's: 1/8" E7018AC (Radnor) rod - 105amp - Lincoln AC225 Welder (Tweco electrode holder and ground clamp), all welds are pull, not pushHere's the pics...some filets, some flat, some butt joints and an outside corner:Any feedback/recommendations would be appreciated --Wintermute"No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience." - John Lockewww.improvised-engineering.comManufacturer Agnostic:Blood----------Sweat---------Tears----|------------------|----------------|----Lincoln Red, Miller Blue, Esab Yellow
Reply:Last two images:--Wintermute"No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience." - John Lockewww.improvised-engineering.comManufacturer Agnostic:Blood----------Sweat---------Tears----|------------------|----------------|----Lincoln Red, Miller Blue, Esab Yellow
Reply:after all this time, it doesn't look bad in the least.On the outside corner welds, if I saw the pic right, push the puddle over the top of the plate.  It looks weird under the hood, but it turns out allright.  You think you're burning back into the plate, but you're not.There will be some rod manipulation, bad thing according to some folks but ignore them.  And you'll have a nice full weld tieing in the whole piece.Stick is hard."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:to kill the high bead, turn the amps up, or slow travel down, and change rod angle.  Personally, I think turn it upyou[re the one looking at it when you do it"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Clean your base metal.  Grind it down to nice shiny bare metal.  Get all the mill scale off.  That will make the puddle flow better and help to eliminate some of the porosity.  7018 isn't very forgiving when it comes to dirt and contaminants.Work HARDER, not smarter! ------------------------ Miller Bobcat 250Millermatic 251Lincoln Precision TIG 185Hypertherm PM 600Hobart 135 HandlerOxweld 400 FlameMaster
Reply:I'm with Sam.  Kinda like riding a bike.  Just takes a little to get your balance back.I probably would have run a little hotter with the 1/8" and machines can differ so you should play around with the heat and see what happens.  The center of the bead in the last shot looks like the arc got a bit long resulting in the pitting.MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:NOt bad for first beads in16 years.I bet my first OA beads in 12 years wouldnt look that good.
Reply:Samm, Duane, Leadhead, Larry,Thanks for the feedback.  I'll give those suggestions a shot and see how the next set turns out.  Gotta practice more this weekend so we'll see if I can get back to making a consistent and clean bead.Thanks again for the feedback --Wintermute"No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience." - John Lockewww.improvised-engineering.comManufacturer Agnostic:Blood----------Sweat---------Tears----|------------------|----------------|----Lincoln Red, Miller Blue, Esab Yellow
Reply:On your restrike,  start your  rod ahead of the bead about an inch or so, long arc the rod back to the old crater, pause briefly to heat up the weld, and then pull it in close.  That will reduce the porosity at the restart.Esab Migmaster 250Lincoln SA 200Lincoln Ranger 8Smith Oxy Fuel setupEverlast PowerPlasma 80Everlast Power iMIG 160Everlast Power iMIG 205 Everlast Power iMIG 140EEverlast PowerARC 300Everlast PowerARC 140STEverlast PowerTIG 255EXT