Thoughts on this used welder?

[California]

I can see that I am really under-equipped to deal with other aspects of fabrication using heavier metal--specifically cutting.

My welding and fabrication needs are minimal - generally an occasional farm equipment repair. I bought Harbor Freight's portable band saw. It should be around $70 using a 20% coupon. So far this meets all of my cutting needs and does an excellent quick job.

Like anything from HF, if you are a tradesman and would use this daily, then the Milwaukee that this is a cheap copy of would be preferable.

 

[joshuabardwell]

My welding and fabrication needs are minimal - generally an occasional farm equipment repair. I bought Harbor Freight's portable band saw. It should be around $70 using a 20% coupon. So far this meets all of my cutting needs and does an excellent quick job.

HF has really come up in the world. I'm shocked that you can get a portaband so cheap nowadays, and there is a fair (but not excellent) chance that it's not a total piece of you-know-what.

 

[joshuabardwell]

Today's welding victory is repairing my angle grinder's side handle. I was (carelessly, I know) using the grinder one-handed, holding the work piece in my other hand, and the grinder caught the edge of the piece, sending the grinder and the piece flying. The handle broke off. It turns out, it was just plastic, formed around the head of a metal bolt that threaded into the body of the grinder. But there was no metal reinforcement running the length of the handle or anything, so as soon as it was stressed, it broke right off.

What I did was, I drilled a hole in the base of the handle, then I cut the head off a bolt and welded it to the original bolt from the handle, so there were basically two bolts back-to-back. I inserted the new bolt into the hole that I drilled in the base of the handle, then, the handle being hollow, I put a washer and nut onto the bolt and cinched them down.

The broken-off plastic base of the handle was still sheathing the original bolt when I went to weld the second bolt to it. It instantly melted and began to burn when I started welding. I had kind of hoped that if I was careful with the arc, I could avoid that, but no dice. I ended up chiseling the top part of it off and then backing the bolt out of it and throwing it away. Mental note: anything flammable that is touching the work piece or within an inch or so of the arc will burn. No two ways about it.

The only bad thing about it is that, since I threw away the plastic sheath, it just looks like there is a bolt stuck in the side of my angle grinder, with a handle stuck to it. That has always been the case, but the sheath gave the illusion that something more substantial was going on. Oh well. At least I saved the $20 or so it would cost me to buy a replacement.

 

[CNC Dan]

So get a fresh bolt that fits, and a heavy washer, and a short length of pipe. Put the bolt through the washer and weld. Then weld the pipe to the washer. Wrap the pipe with hocky tape for some more grip. If you want, add a second washer at the other end. Remember to protect the threads from spatter.

 

[joshuabardwell]

So get a fresh bolt that fits, and a heavy washer, and a short length of pipe. Put the bolt through the washer and weld. Then weld the pipe to the washer. Wrap the pipe with hocky tape for some more grip. If you want, add a second washer at the other end. Remember to protect the threads from spatter.

That was going to be my second choice, although I hadn't thought of the washers yet, so thanks for that tip. I figured I would give a go at having the nice, ergonomic handle.

 

[joshuabardwell]

Since a few folks here seem to be enjoying reading about my progress, I will continue to post updates. I took various TBN'ers advice and got some pieces of metal to stick together, instead of just welding beads. I bought some 1" x 1/8" thick bar stock and cut it into 3" lengths. Here are the results.

All welds were done using DCEP.



One catch: everywhere it says 100 amps, it should actually be about 65 amps. I was accidentally reading off the AC side of the scale. I was also going to take a picture of the back side of the welds, but it was pretty boring. No blow-through, just basically a clean joint. On two of them, the two pieces were a little bit mis-aligned when I did the weld, so I can see penetration at least halfway, and in some parts all the way through. But I didn't think that would come across on camera.

Having had some moderate success with butt joints, I moved on to T joints. These were surprisingly challenging. The main challenge was angling the rod properly so as to get the bead to climb up the vertical piece. I aimed at what I thought was a 45 degree angle, but that was insufficient.



Again, I was reading off the AC side of the scale, so where it says 100 amps, it's about 65. Where it says 130 amps, it's about 100. I used the same 3/32" 7014 at first, but had a little trouble and decided to give 1/8" 6011 a try, thinking that perhaps the thicker rod would make it easier to get the bead up the wall. Judge for yourself!

 

[CNC Dan]

Keep at it. I can see a little bit of learning. Soon, you will have a breakthrough, and have more rapid improvement.
Check out weldingtipsandtricks.com
For good vids that show what you should see.

 

[joshuabardwell]

Thanks, Dan! I will check out that web site. I recently went back and re-watched the Wall Mountain welding videos I have: "Watch the puddle," he says! Got it!

One challenge is that I can see what it looks like in the video when a very skilled welder does it exactly right, and I can see that what I'm doing isn't producing the same result, but I'm not sure what I should be doing to get closer. Just keep burning rods, I guess! By the time the rod starts burning and I have to keep moving, a lot of the "what you should be doing" goes out the window, and I'm just responding to the puddle. Like, this time I tried to make sure to weave back and forth while making the weld, but I was also supposed to pause at the sides to let the puddle tie in, and I was so busy trying not to burn through that I completely forgot that. Maybe I should spend more time "dry-firing," if you will--practicing moving the stick without the welder turned on.

 

[k0ua]

Check out these:

Stick Welding Tips from Bubba - YouTube

arc welding aka stick welding is better...sometimes - YouTube

Stick Welding / Arc Welding with Lincoln Excalibur 7018 rods - YouTube

and my favorite, because I learned the most from this one:

ARc Welding Project -Everlast PowerPro 256 - YouTube

Joshua I see progress, stay with it, we are all pulling for you.

James K0UA

 

[k0ua]

This old part film and part cartoon, also seemed to help me understand it a bit:

How Arc Welding Works - YouTube

James K0UA

 

[joshuabardwell]

... and in case anybody is wondering why I'm using 7014: it was the only 3/32 rod that they had in stock when I went looking for something thinner than 1/8". On 1/8" thick metal, I have some trouble doing butt joints without blowing through if I use 1/8" rod.

 

[k0ua]

... and in case anybody is wondering why I'm using 7014: it was the only 3/32 rod that they had in stock when I went looking for something thinner than 1/8". On 1/8" thick metal, I have some trouble doing butt joints without blowing through if I use 1/8" rod.

Nothing wrong with using the 7014,, it is called by some a "drag rod",, in fact if it is running right you can drag it on the workpiece without sticking. Burn it up, and you can try some 7018, 7018 is a little more difficult, and restrikes are difficult, you need to break the "corn" off of the end after you stop welding and before you commence again. You can sling it while it is hot, but I don't like to do that. I usually just let it cool for a few seconds and break it off with my thumb before resuming. On your 7014, it will typically need to be run a little hotter than say 6013 or 6011 for the same size rod. It will make a flatter weld with less of the "stack of dimes" look that 7018 will have. It will be a smooth flatter weld, and only good for flat work. It will lay down more metal faster than say 7018 or 6011 due to the iron in the flux.

James K0UA

 

[joshuabardwell]

On your 7018, it will typically need to be run a little hotter than say 6013 or 6011 for the same size rod.

When I bought my start-up welding supplies, I got them from a guy who no longer worked as a welder. Along with the jacket and hood, he gave me maybe 15 lbs of rods, of which, 10 lbs was 1/8" 7018. I have kind of been saving it though, because you're supposed to put it in a rod oven before using it and I don't have one of those. I guess for non-structural, non-code work it probably would work about as good as anything, but I've been holding back on it.

 

[Shield Arc]

10 lbs was 1/8" 7018. I have kind of been saving it though, because you're supposed to put it in a rod oven before using it and I don't have one of those. I guess for non-structural, non-code work it probably would work about as good as anything, but I've been holding back on it.

Don't get to hung up on that rule! Back when I use to build bridge false work I can't tell you how many times I had to pour water out of a can of 7018 because some carpenter type left the lid of the gang box open when it was raining. Little trick for you, place the 7018 rod in the electrode holder, stick the end of the rod to the work area, do not even try to weld, just let it set there for a few seconds. You can watch the moisture boil out of the rod. Now the rod will be nice and toasty.:thumbsup:
Here is a link to some testing I did with 7018 that was never in a rod oven. In post #3 I state it took in the low 20s to break the same fillet weld with 7018 right out of the oven, it was actually 23 blows.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/welding/211904-7018-break-test.html

 

[CNC Dan]

... and in case anybody is wondering why I'm using 7014: it was the only 3/32 rod that they had in stock when I went looking for something thinner than 1/8". On 1/8" thick metal, I have some trouble doing butt joints without blowing through if I use 1/8" rod.

At my local ACE hardware stoes, they have a small selection of welding rods in 3/32 size.

 

[joshuabardwell]

Did some more work on T-joints today. I watched some videos last night and decided one thing I was doing wrong was not pulling the puddle up the vertical face. Rather, I was trying to push the puddle up the vertical face via the rod angle, while moving the rod as if it was a flat weld. I made little diagonal zig-zags, moving the rod forward and up the face, and then backwards and to the flat piece. I also held the rod slightly longer at the top, because that was what the person in the video did. I guess that's supposed to allow more filler metal to pile up at the top of the bead.





The beads are more evenly distributed between the vertical and horizontal wall than yesterday's. There is a ridiculous amount of slag inclusion and a LOT of undercut at the top of the bead (see detail below).



All welds were done DCEP 100A 1/8" E6011.

 

[joshuabardwell]

I did some more T-joints today, and a few lap joints. Just a bunch more junk, of course, but I finished this weld and when I went to strip the slag, the whole thing came off in one big clean strip. I looked at it and I thought, "You know. That looks like a weld." I still have some issue with undercut at the top, and probably a whole lot more issues that I don't even see, but this is probably the best looking joint I've done so far.



My 7014 is 3/32" instead of 1/8" like my 6011, so it's not apples to apples, but man the 7014 seems to run really nice. The 6011 is really hard to keep the slag out of and to make a nice smooth bead. I should try some of that 7018 I have; I hear it's pretty smooth too.

 

[CNC Dan]

My 7014 is 3/32" instead of 1/8" like my 6011, so it's not apples to apples, but man the 7014 seems to run really nice. The 6011 is really hard to keep the slag out of and to make a nice smooth bead. I should try some of that 7018 I have; I hear it's pretty smooth too.

Thats just the way 6011 goes. Heavy deep ripples. When you try the 7018 you can just let the flux coating rest on the metal. If you have a smart phone, miller makes a weld settings calculator that will give you the range of amps to use for different types of rods.

 

[Shield Arc]

You're actually coming along pretty good, the last picture of the 7014 weld is really not all that bad for the amount of time you've been welding!:thumbsup:


Here's those calculators Dan is talking about. Remember these are only suggestions, there are so many variables to welding it's mind boggling!:confused2:

Miller - Welding Calculators

 

[dex3361]

I did some more T-joints today, and a few lap joints. Just a bunch more junk, of course, but I finished this weld and when I went to strip the slag, the whole thing came off in one big clean strip. I looked at it and I thought, "You know. That looks like a weld." I still have some issue with undercut at the top, and probably a whole lot more issues that I don't even see, but this is probably the best looking joint I've done so far.

View attachment 285917



My 7014 is 3/32" instead of 1/8" like my 6011, so it's not apples to apples, but man the 7014 seems to run really nice. The 6011 is really hard to keep the slag out of and to make a nice smooth bead. I should try some of that 7018 I have; I hear it's pretty smooth too.

So Josh, now that you are welding some with a functioning DC welder, do you notice what we are all talking about with how much better DC welds than AC?