Aluminum Stick welding

[Shield Arc]

Picked up some 1/8-inch Lincoln Aluminweld 43 rod the other day. Did some playing around with it this morning. I've had this 1/4-inch aluminum plate for at least 30-years laying in the junk pile. Took a stainless steel wire wheel and cleaned it up, and tacked up some lap joints. I played with the arc force, but it seemed to work best at 0.0 on the arc force, and 125-amps. I ran it with a back and forth whip motion, (like 6010) with a lot of rod angle trying to force the slag behind the puddle. This stuff burns fast, you have to make sure your hands are not in any kind of a bind, because you won't have time to adjust. You also have to hold a very close arc, I found it ran best when I just jammed the rod right into the puddle! This weld is 4 3/4-inches long, one rod! She don't go very far.

 

[ericher69]

Tried it years ago and did not like the results. I only ran a few rods but I guess I didn't really give it a chance

 

[Shield Arc]

I don't like the results either! I need to spend more time with it. Next time I think I'll do a side to side weave instead of a back and forth whip. It burns up so fast, and there is such a heavy slag, you have to really search for the puddle through the slag.

 

[undercut]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm just starting out so my first purchase is going to be a straightforward inverter stick welder. Welding aluminum is not in the cards for me except for possibly using this process so I'm keen on finding out the "scoop" on what it is like and what the potential applications might be. I'm not too concerned about the look of the weld ... at least not at this juncture. This is quite informative. Thank-you!

 

[Shield Arc]

my first purchase is going to be a straightforward inverter stick welder.

What brand of inverter are you thinking about buying?

I've never done much aluminum work, (and not very good at it)! But when I do, Tig is my go to process, then Mig is second.

 

[mrmikey]

We call them gull$hit rods because the weld usually looks like seagull *****

I must say tho, those welds aren't too bad looking for a stick rod.....Mike

 

[Shield Arc]

Thanks!
Might look better if I didn't have to beat the crap out of the weld with a chipping hammer.

 

[ericher69]

Thanks!
Might look better if I didn't have to beat the crap out of the weld with a chipping hammer.

Are the welds strong with good penetration. Have you tried cutting your lap joint? Or could you severe the weld so that we can see how much penetration you got

 

[dex3361]

I had to do some welding with aluminum stick rods about 20 years ago and I remember it was like time was sped up about 5 times. I really botched up the test runs till I got a handle on the speed. I had to run it cold to be able to control the puddle.

 

[rankrank1]

Is Stick welding aluminum the best looking weld in appearance - probably not but your welds do look better than most.

Is stick welding aluminum the ideal process- again probably not but as you have shown it will work in a pinch and your welds look more than adequate for most backyard applications.

Regardless this is by far the cheapest way to weld aluminum since you do not need any special gas or other special accessories and a repairman like me does not necessarily get caught up in looks as I am interested only in if it will work and if it is structurally sound....

Long story short - looks great to me based upon per dollar invested to achieve this result.

 

[undercut]

Is Stick welding aluminum the best looking weld in appearance - probably not but your welds do look better than most.

Is stick welding aluminum the ideal process- again probably not but as you have shown it will work in a pinch and your welds look more than adequate for most backyard applications.

Regardless this is by far the cheapest way to weld aluminum since you do not need any special gas or other special accessories and a repairman like me does not necessarily get caught up in looks as I am interested only in if it will work and if it is structurally sound....

Long story short - looks great to me based upon per dollar invested to achieve this result.

Very, very well put. Fits my needs perfectly - for now.

What brand of inverter are you thinking about buying?

Well, I've been looking at Everlast and Longevity. They both have products in the entry level price point and both companies have very nice people in their forums. This forum has some pretty nice people too!

I hope to finalize my decision once I've saved enough - should be within a few weeks (fingers crossed!) I have a small backlog of things I want to do that will allow me to both practice and get some things accomplished. Win win! Cheers.

 

[Shield Arc]

I'm not impressed at all with this stuff! Maybe I need to go back to school.

I did cut the lap joint weld in half. Can't really see much. But the fillet weld is horrible! Only took one blow of a 4-lb hammer to break the top plate off.:thumbdown:

 

[Shield Arc]

Here's a Tig weld I did when I first got my Dynasty 300, (7-years ago). I can't remember any details, but looks like the top plate in the second picture took several hits.

 

[dstig1]

Wow - lots of porosity in that one!

 

[Shield Arc]

Yes, shocking! Maybe it's the base material, I have know idea what type of aluminum it is.

 

[undercut]

I'm not impressed at all with this stuff! Maybe I need to go back to school.

I did cut the lap joint weld in half. Can't really see much. But the fillet weld is horrible! Only took one blow of a 4-lb hammer to break the top plate off.:thumbdown:

Yikes! Fortunately, I don't see a lot of aluminum welding in my future. Will need to keep an eye on this front, though.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Someone here posted a link to a video of a guy using a torch to weld aluminum just like brazing rods, although he may have been using a propane torch (cant recall, got the CRS syndrome). I cant remember the name of the company now but I contacted them and they sent me a price list of like $45 (?)per pound so I didnt pursue it. No distributorship, direct from them. Maybe someone with good search engine can find the post. The welds looked easy and strong, actually welding up a 1/2" hole in a soda can with them and same with fillet welding plates where the plates were weaker than the weld.
Looked like good stuff but the guy doing it so easily had probably welded a million pounds of the stuff.

 

[Shield Arc]

Well, I've been looking at Everlast and Longevity. They both have products in the entry level price point and both companies have very nice people in their forums. This forum has some pretty nice people too!

I hope to finalize my decision once I've saved enough - should be within a few weeks (fingers crossed!) I have a small backlog of things I want to do that will allow me to both practice and get some things accomplished. Win win! Cheers.

If you can possibly swing it, get which ever brand you can afford with adjustable arc force, and hot start. Those two options make life so much easier on a new guy starting out. Maybe if you're lucky you can catch Longevity's first of the month sale and get a Stickweld 250.:thumbsup:

Someone here posted a link to a video of a guy using a torch to weld aluminum just like brazing rods, although he may have been using a propane torch (cant recall, got the CRS syndrome). I cant remember the name of the company now but I contacted them and they sent me a price list of like $45 (?)per pound so I didnt pursue it. No distributorship, direct from them. Maybe someone with good search engine can find the post. The welds looked easy and strong, actually welding up a 1/2" hole in a soda can with them and same with fillet welding plates where the plates were weaker than the weld.
Looked like good stuff but the guy doing it so easily had probably welded a million pounds of the stuff.

Here is a video I found on youtube.

More Aluminum Repair Rods - YouTube

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

The Aluminum rods take a fine touch to be sure. I have a buddy that had to use them to weld the local air port beacon light tower supports...It's still going round and round, but he had to get some practice in before he made it a success. It's like trying to shake water out of a garden hose....

As far as the Everlast units go, we have our PowerArc 300 available with adjustable arc force control, and hot start. It'll give plenty of amp adjustabilty. We give everyday discounts to TBN members.

 

[Shield Arc]

It's like trying to shake water out of a garden hose....

Yep, that pretty much sums it up!:laughing: It must be my lack of stick welding skills. I'm more of what you'd call a trigger puller, ever since those dam LN-22s came out I pulled more triggers than burned rod. I need to spend some more time with this aluminum rod, soon as I catch up on my honey do list I'll cut up some more aluminum and get after it.