Good solid machine. More than adequate for most jobs. :thumbsup:
welding rod question
- Thread starter Ole Orange
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Good solid machine. More than adequate for most jobs. :thumbsup:
Shield Arc
Super Member
Lately I have the hardest time posting here, I'm about to give up on this site!
Gary Fowler
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I recently bought a small box of 3/32" 6013 since guys here said they were so good for thin metal. I don't care for them at all. While they do easily weld thin metal without excessive burn thru, the slag just about has to be ground off and it is bad about trapping slag in the metal unless you run it really hot and then you are defeating the purpose of small rod to weld thin material. I haven't burned more than about 6 of the rods but I don't think the quality of weld will improve much with more experimentation with amperage and arc length. I will take a 6010 or 7018 rod anytime over the 6013. I never liked 7014 or 7024 for the same reason as the 6013, 7024 can trap a lot of slag unless you run it extremely hot and the 7014 has really low impact properties. You can put 3 passes of 1/8" rod all the way around a piece of 1/2" metal and still knock it off with a 4 lb. hammer with about 2-3 blows.
Shield Arc
Super Member
Isn't that the strangest thing:confused3:. Now with 7018 you wouldn't live long enough to beat it off with a sledge hammer!:thumbsup:
I'll agree with you on the 6013, but I've never heard of a problem with 7014. I've used it at times for many years and been around others using it. At times 7014 was used on equipment that was subject to impact. Never heard of any of the welds breaking.
:confused3:
Shield Arc
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rankrank1
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6013 is indeed easy to worm hole or get slag inclusions which is one of the reasons I try not to use it anywhere strength is important. Some brands of rods are much worse than others too for doing it. So far I like Messer (Us Forge) the best of any 6013 that I have personally ran. (Note while I like Messer 6013, I absolutely hate Messer 6011 and will stay with Hobart 335A for my 6011).
That said, 6013 does have its uses especially for thin metal when no wire feeder is available. Now if you expect it to be a beautiful weld on really thin metal then you just might be expecting a tad too much out of it. But for a repair and appearance is not so important then 6013 can work good enough to do the job.
That said, 6013 does have its uses especially for thin metal when no wire feeder is available. Now if you expect it to be a beautiful weld on really thin metal then you just might be expecting a tad too much out of it. But for a repair and appearance is not so important then 6013 can work good enough to do the job.
OP
Ole Orange
Bronze Member
Lately I have the hardest time posting here, I'm about to give up on this site!
Dont give up! your input helped me greatly, I spent all of today welding on rebuilding a utility trailer using strut for my cross beams and it was a rebuild from 15 years ago. The last time I built it used 6011 and burned through the strut every where, today I extended the bed 1 foot in each direction using 7014 and only 1 small burn through.:cool2:
On another note I saw posted here on how strong 7014 is, I tacked the corners on one of my uprights and tried to beat it off because it was crooked and no way, ended up putting the band saw to 2 corners to get it up straight.
Keep up all the good input for us non "HOBBYISTS":dance1:
Shield Arc
Super Member
Thanks for posting this, ShieldArc. I've often thought about these tests you made along with your notes, and always meant to go back and copy them for future reference. :thumbsup:
Among other things, your tests show how much better the 7018 rods are for strength over the other common rods. And the tests put all commonly used rods in perspective while answering several questions that had been brought up (particularly about 6013 and 7014).
If I remember correctly, the "cold" 7018 rods were actually used right out of an opened box that had been left open for a good while, and still took 18 blows to break it.
And seems like you said that the weld with "hot" 7018 rods were beat down flat with 23 blows, and still didn't break completely. And you had to beat it back the other way to get it to come apart.
That was a good read and an outstanding job you did, and much appreciated by everyone. :drink:
