6013 vs 7014 vs 7018

[GeneV]

Not available online unfortunately... Apart from getting lucky and finding them on the shelf somewhere I'm not sure there is an option other than phoning ArcTec directly.

Sadly, that's a 10# box. Up here they're just under double what 7018 costs.

That stuff lays down a pretty bead but wow, that price tag on 10 lbs!!

 

[deereman75]

It's definitely not for everything....
But imagine you have a broken trackhoe sitting and costing you $3-500 an hour as long as it isn't running. Suddenly an extra $20 worth of welding rods on the project doesn't seem like much

That stuff lays down a pretty bead but wow, that price tag on 10 lbs!!

 

[GeneV]

I gotcha, man. I'm just saying, for a newbie like me, I dunno if really matters what I use...at least for what I take on with the welder. 6010/11, it's obvious coz I could hit dirty/rusty/painted, whatever, metal will stick together. Beyond that, 6013, 7014, 7018, or this stuff, I dunno if it matters in my amateur hands.

 

[Oldpath05]

I don't know about you guys but after welding with Lincoln 7018 rods I'm not interested in welding with any other brand. They weld so nice compared to a few others I've tried. And it's been so long that I don't remember the brands any more.

7018 rods are good for welding but on tacking and restarting it's also known as bang bang wire, for me they can become aggravating when tacking stuff together........

 

[Oldpath05]

That stuff lays down a pretty bead but wow, that price tag on 10 lbs!!

You mean thats not pocket change for you................

 

[Oldpath05]

It's definitely not for everything....
But imagine you have a broken trackhoe sitting and costing you $3-500 an hour as long as it isn't running. Suddenly an extra $20 worth of welding rods on the project doesn't seem like much

Suddenly a mig welder would become a reality for me................

 

[pmsmechanic]

7018 rods are good for welding but on tacking and restarting it's also known as bang bang wire, for me they can become aggravating when tacking stuff together........

I agree on the aggravating part. Try Lincoln 7018 AC rods. They weld a lot nicer than anything else I've tried in a 7018. When I took an agricultural welding course many years ago we were told to make sure the welder had 40 open circuit volts minimum to weld with a plain 7018. If you raise the amps the volts go down so lots of times turning the amps down makes a 7018 weld easier. If you weld with a 7018 AC it gets even easier. If you use a Lincoln rod it gets even better.

 

[Oldpath05]

I gotcha, man. I'm just saying, for a newbie like me, I dunno if really matters what I use...at least for what I take on with the welder. 6010/11, it's obvious coz I could hit dirty/rusty/painted, whatever, metal will stick together. Beyond that, 6013, 7014, 7018, or this stuff, I dunno if it matters in my amateur hands.

As much as I like mig welding I will always keep 6011 around for the what ever welding, it dont work good on bed frames though.........

 

[MF RED in MT]

As much as I like mig welding I will always keep 6011 around for the what ever welding, it dont work good on bed frames though.........

Hmmm, "bed frames", if I'm cutting up and just bolting together I'll trust them, otherwise I consider them to be "mystery metal".

Tapping one on my metal welding table they have a higher pitch sound, so they must have some higher carbon content...

And they remind me for comparison, of T6 aluminum versus 6061 aluminum, T6 is stronger (tapping on welding table produces a higher pitch sound) but only 6061 can be formed...

KC

 

[nybirdman]

Before I retired I was a certified welder(pipe).Started with 6013 about 1972,great all around rod.As we moved to nuclear work 7018 was the norm with tig root and hot pass.6013 is always used when there is a "gap";not impossible with 7018 but much more difficult.
6013;if its rusty,dirty or painted.7018 is stronger but needs a clean surface.

 

[GeneV]

Before I retired I was a certified welder(pipe).Started with 6013 about 1972,great all around rod.As we moved to nuclear work 7018 was the norm with tig root and hot pass.6013 is always used when there is a "gap";not impossible with 7018 but much more difficult.
6013;if its rusty,dirty or painted.7018 is stronger but needs a clean surface.

How about 6013 vs 1714? Is it mostly the same except for the tensile strength, or does 1714 require clean metal while 6013 you could still get away with it being less than perfect?

 

[GeneV]

You mean thats not pocket change for you................

Ha! Well I could afford it, but I do need to justify the expense to feel good about the purchase. Otherwise, I feel baaaaaaad!

 

[deereman75]

Issue is more where they break. Suitcase feeder with flux core wire would work.... The welding itself isn't really that bad, most of it is the cutting apart and all the other prep work

Suddenly a mig welder would become a reality for me................

 

[MF RED in MT]

Issue is more where they break. Suitcase feeder with flux core wire would work.... The welding itself isn't really that bad, most of it is the cutting apart and all the other prep work

I choose 99% mig welding with shielded gas, you can "do pre-welding metal cleanup" (if you are using old and dirty base materials) with shielded gas mig, or "post-welding metal cleanup" with flux core mig or stick rod.

And 99% of my welding is in my garage, if I had to weld something outside I'd just use flux core wire in the mig.

I can purchase a lot of spool wire and gas for the price of some of these high price sticks...

KC :2cents:

 

[deereman75]

The problem isn't always clean (although there are spots where plasma or air arc gouging is as much cleanup as is possible, no room for a grinder. More so being outside. Wind plus gas equals porosity

I choose 99% mig welding with shielded gas, you can "do pre-welding metal cleanup" (if you are using old and dirty base materials) with shielded gas mig, or "post-welding metal cleanup" with flux core mig or stick rod.

And 99% of my welding is in my garage, if I had to weld something outside I'd just use flux core wire in the mig.

I can purchase a lot of spool wire and gas for the price of some of these high price sticks...

KC :2cents:

 

[Oldpath05]

Hmmm, "bed frames", if I'm cutting up and just bolting together I'll trust them, otherwise I consider them to be "mystery metal".

Tapping one on my metal welding table they have a higher pitch sound, so they must have some higher carbon content...

And they remind me for comparison, of T6 aluminum versus 6061 aluminum, T6 is stronger (tapping on welding table produces a higher pitch sound) but only 6061 can be formed...

KC

Must sleep on a waterbed........... I made all sorts of stuff with bed frames, small atv trailers, atv racks, shelf brackets, anything I want strong and yet light......

 

[Oldpath05]

The problem isn't always clean (although there are spots where plasma or air arc gouging is as much cleanup as is possible, no room for a grinder. More so being outside. Wind plus gas equals porosity

Yeah stick is better on dirty steel but if can clean with grinder, mig the only way to weld. At BIW someone somewhere is mig/pulse welding outside all the time around the clock, wind and rain is always diverted with temp made up shielding out of tarp or something, sometimes snow is removed first for welding, good thing some prefer outside work...........

 

[deereman75]

I'm certainly not denying mig has its place. I do as much of my welding as possible with my powermig 260 and either solid wire or dual shield.
But there are lots of time stick welding is just required. Either due to access or material properties.

Yeah stick is better on dirty steel but if can clean with grinder, mig the only way to weld. At BIW someone somewhere is mig/pulse welding outside all the time around the clock, wind and rain is always diverted with temp made up shielding out of tarp or something, sometimes snow is removed first for welding, good thing some prefer outside work...........

 

[Oldpath05]

Nice mig welder, whats your stick welder in case I missed it in previous post?........ Lincoln Power MIG 26 MIG Welder - K352-1 — Baker's Gas & Welding Supplies, Inc.

 

[deereman75]

Nice mig welder, whats your stick welder in case I missed it in previous post?........ Lincoln Power MIG 26 MIG Welder - K352-1 — Baker's Gas & Welding Supplies, Inc.

I currently have an Idealarc 400, and just recently added an Invertec V-155. I made a thread on it the other day.