picture worth a thousand words

[candyman]

& then some.

i`m probably should not post this it is real bad, but that is how you learn.

tell me all the things i did wrong & how to correct them. my first time ever welding. i bought a powerarc 200 from mark .
one of the many problems i`m havng is the rod keeps sticking & i can`t see what i`m doing, the shade # is to dark. ?
i`ve got a lot to learn & a long way to go.


oh, also when your cutting metal with a grinder, be careful that you know where to sparks are going.!!!

some may think boy that guy is a real bozo, well..

candyman

 

[rhett]

yes, we all have to start somewhere.
that will not be the last jacket, shirt, pants, boots to get ruined.
perhaps get some scrap practice metal, then tackle a project.

how about some some top notch video to help guide you
Welding Tips and Tricks - Old School Stick Welding

better yet, find a welder willing to give a little guidance. watching over someones shoulder you will learn more than burning hundreds of pounds of rods.

try starting with 6010 or 6011 rods, the arc will not be partially submerged like with 7018 and you will see a little more of the work surface. also position yourself so you are not trying to look through the smoke.

have patience and good luck

 

[J_J]

I would suggest taking a class on welding at a local school or trade center.

Don't feel bad about your burnt clothes, I did something similar by not paying attention to the sparks from a cutting wheel and set my pant leg on fire. One helpful thing I could add is to wear all cotton and pants with no cuff or use the leather protection outfits.

On the electronic welding helmets, you can adjust for different levels of light. Try and not have very much light behind you.

Some days I weld OK and not so good at other times.

 

[blueriver]

Just practice ... I'm new to it as well and just keep burning rods and you'll pick it up ... scrap is your best friend ... weld them little scraps together and then try to break em with a hammer ... you will see at first they will just pop apart and then you'll turn it up and burn threw ... then you'll find it and **** you won't break it!!

Some will be pretty and some won't !!!

 

[yelbike]

Keep trying you'll get there. I started the same way. Nice ugly welds is where you'll go next!!!:laughing:

 

[LD1]

Cant really say anything other than practice, practice, practice.:thumbsup:

I probabally would have started by grinding the orange paint off. I am not sure where you had your ground clamp hooked, but if on te orange peice, it can be a pita to get the arc to strike through the paint. You have to tap it onto the peice pretty hard.

And make sure you are doing everything in a horizontal flat position. NOT vertical. Save that for when you master flat.

And you didnt say what rod you were using. But I'd probabally start off practicing with 6013 or 7014. Those two are the easiest rods to run, and there fore the easiest to learn with.

Others may argue about their strength, but I have stuck a lot of metal with them two that is still together. So get some of them for practice. And then if you decide you want to try 7018 or 6010/6011, so be it. But if you are trying to jump right in with 7018, IMO that is 99% of your problems

 

[deereman75]

What I found helped me learn how to weld was starting by laying beads on a flat plate. Do thst until you can get them looking good. That way you just have to focus on the arc length and travel speed, and rod angle, not hitting both parts.

 

[kf4uda]

Those videos from weldingtipsandtricks.com are good. They have several on youtube covering covering stick,mig and tig welding. They welding school suggestion is a good one too. Many years back I was laid off for a few months. I signed up for welding night classes at a local Vocational school. They started me out welding beads on flat plates. Once I started welding acceptable beads, then I started joining metal. It definitely improved my welding skills. While I am not a professional welder (not even related to one that I know of), I can usually weld what I need to and do a decent job.


As said, burn rods,burn rods,burn rods.

 

[gwdixon]

I am just a self-taught farm welder so it can be done. Others that have posted have given good advice about rods to try and use.

The Everlast PA200 is about the easiest to use stick welder around so you are good to go there.

My advice:
> Find a small (4" x 4" or so) scrap piece of fairly thick metal. Grind on it until it is shiny on both sides.
> Put the ground clamp directly on the metal and then try the rod on the piece. Try to go from one side of the piece to the other without losing the arc. Then do it several times until the plate is filled with rod "trails". (Not sure what rod and what diameter you have from the first photo.) Post up a photo of it and you will get much help and advice.
> 6011 rod requires a little gap between the rod and the work (metal plate). The other rods (6013, 7014, 7018) can be just dragged along with the flux resting on the work.

On the original grab hook photo - you should probably grind off all those welds before starting over. A grab hook is not the best choice for a beginning welder to secure to plate. Special hooks are made just for that.

https://www.truckntow.com/pc-11373-147070-weld-on-grab-hook-38-pellican-hook.aspx

Also grind the paint area where welding until it is bare metal. The ground clamp also needs a bare metal hook-up.

More help after your next post photo of the practice.

 

[Craig Clayton]

Just wait until you get a Hot piece of slag down your work boot. You will be able to get that boot OFF in seconds.

Been there, Done it.

Craig Clayton

 

[deereman75]

Oh and about the jacket, thats why I always wear carhart overalls and a havy denim jacket. Add in some leather steel toed boots, and you will be fine.

 

[BrianDT]

Harbor freight has welding jackets cheap. Pick one up and save your clothing!

Take your time and practice and things will come together. :thumbsup:

 

[BXpanded]

I suggest you drop by your local welding supply house and buy yourself a welding jacket. The treated cloth ones only cost about $16. They can still get holes but you won't go up in a flash of fire and smoke. There's nothing as exciting as catching your clothes on fire!

 

[Shield Arc]

i can`t see what i`m doing, the shade # is to dark. ?

Here's the first thing you need to fix! When you can't see, it makes welding just a tad bit harder, harder than it needs to be.
I'm really big on listening to a weld, the sound of a weld going bad will get my attention faster than seeing it, but at your stage you better work on seeing for now, hearing will come latter.

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

Not all of your autodarks are shade adjustable. Even you more expensive brands offer a "cheapy" that is a fixed shade. Get one adjustable from at least 9-13 shade. My go to helmet is adjustable from 8-13.

As for the sticking... You should GRIND the area where the welds will be before you start welding to remove the rust and paint, particularly powder coated stuff which may be what you are welding with there. The difference will be night in day in both starting and how it welds.

IF you are welding that hook to whatever it is to use...don't. That hook is not considered weldable. And the welds are not good enough quite yet to trust them. They may hold, then again, they may not. Chip the slag, so you can see what is under the weld. A smooth surface on the slag does not mean that the weld itself is smooth. It could look like bird droppings underneath, or it could look like a fresh roll of dimes laid over on its side.

I see rod flux laying on top of the mount plate there...that is not good. If that much comes off you MUST trim the rod back until you have flux on the rod. Even though that can is sealed from new, I'd almost say the rods are wet, or you are having problems with pounding the rod when starting, and breaking off the flux

 

[Shield Arc]

When using doubler plates, you should avoid using 90 degree corners! A round, or oval doubler is much better. If you have to use 90 degrees corners, at least arc the tail out of each weld.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Oh so many things appear different in the welds. The first pass on the left in the first photo looks like you were too hot but the others look like maybe you turned it down too cold. Get rid of the paint and rust, even a professional welder cant make a pretty weld over paint and rust. Grind all surfaces at least 1/2" back from the weld area to clean, bright, grease free metal. Some areas of the weld look like you were also holding your arc too short,just dragging the rod. While some rods will weld this way, hardly any will to it over thick powder coated paint. It looks like you were using a 70xx rod, if so, a 1/16-3/32" arc would be preferable. Set your machine to where it starts welding without excessively sticking but not so high that it undercuts the base metal. Undercut is caused by either running too hot or travelling too fast. Adjust your travel speed according to the amps used.
Finally, get yourself some all cotton shirts. Even if you are using a welding jacket or leather sleeves, it is best to use cotton clothing underneath. They dont melt and are harder to catch fire than polyester or polyester blends.

 

[Baby Grand]

Just wait until you get a Hot piece of slag down your work boot. You will be able to get that boot OFF in seconds.

Been there, Done it.

Craig Clayton

Yup. Or goes in your ear. A good weld is supposed to sound like frying bacon, but that's cheating! Or maybe an argument for ear plugs.

Lots of good advice. I went to a trade school and spent a lot of time cursing that pesky red rod sticking to every piece I tried to spark off on ... then one day ... no more problem with that. Practice, practice, practice. After you spend a few hours cleaning up your pictured weld in preparation to try again, you should be motivated to spend more time prepping before you spark off again. Weld prep time is time well spent. And as someone stated - scrap is your friend! Get to where you are confidently and consistently putting down good beads on scrap before you point that thing at something valuable again. I suspect you're itching to finish this job, but step away and work on your technique, then come back to it when you have all the variables worked out: rod type, weld prep, heat, & weld technique.

 

[flyerdan]

If you're left handed like I am) you'll notice that the grinder will really take a toll on your clothes. I was always patching coveralls before I finally got smart and got one of those cheap blue welders aprons. Flame resistant and light enough to not be oppressive during the summer.

 

[PILOON]

Just wait until you get a Hot piece of slag down your work boot. You will be able to get that boot OFF in seconds.

Been there, Done it.

Craig Clayton

Better yet see how fast you can remove your under shorts.
I sport a burn scar in that private area.
(can laugh now but sure howled back then.)