Cheap welding rods

[bdog]

I have used Lincoln 5P+ (6010) for about the past ten years. Probably burned in excess of 500lbs of them. I like them a lot or thought I did. I am building some pipe fence and ran out of rods today. On my shelf I had some firepower 6011痴. A buddy brought them over years ago and gave them to me he got them at a garage sell or something. I figured it痴 just a fence these will work and will save me a trip to town.

I loaded up the first rod and kind of cringed when I struck the arc wondering how frustrating it would be working with them. To my amazement I liked the way they welded much better. I welded about 70 pipe saddles today with them and I just love how they weld. I seriously think these are going to be my go to rod from now on. I still will use my Excalibur 7018痴 where appropriate but for general welding these things are awesome and cost much less then the 5P+.

 

[wvgca]

i bought some 8011 in a 50lb can maybe ten years ago, they were 5 bucks a can ...i bought twenty cans...
still have a lifetime left, lol

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

Fire Power rods would currently be owned by ESAB and be likely a rebranded version of one of the lines like Atom Arc. But before that they were Victor/Tweco products. They wouldn't be cheap in the traditional sense.

 

[CADplans]

Lincoln bought an entire company to get the rights to a 7018 rod they wanted to sell,,

Weld the Lincoln right next to a Hobart,, you will toss the Hobart,,
I am a pretty good welder, (training and everything!! :confused2: ) , but, i can not keep a Hobart 7018 rod welding,,

I complained about them at the welding supply place that sold them to me,,
The guy said if I was a "Real Welder" that I could keep the Hobart rods welding,,

Weld your fence (or shop shelf) with 7014 ONE TIME,, you will not use anything else,,, ` ~

 

[yomax4]

I have used Lincoln 5P+ (6010) for about the past ten years. Probably burned in excess of 500lbs of them. I like them a lot or thought I did. I am building some pipe fence and ran out of rods today. On my shelf I had some firepower 6011ç—´. A buddy brought them over years ago and gave them to me he got them at a garage sell or something. I figured itç—´ just a fence these will work and will save me a trip to town.

I loaded up the first rod and kind of cringed when I struck the arc wondering how frustrating it would be working with them. To my amazement I liked the way they welded much better. I welded about 70 pipe saddles today with them and I just love how they weld. I seriously think these are going to be my go to rod from now on. I still will use my Excalibur 7018ç—´ where appropriate but for general welding these things are awesome and cost much less then the 5P+.

"Years Ago" Firepower Electrodes were made in the Stoody plant. They quickly became cost prohibitive and if I remember correctly they were sourced from MG then China

 

[user.69169]

Welding electrode Manufacturers & Suppliers, China welding electrode Manufacturers & Factories

90+% of the world's welding rods & wire are made in either China or India.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

You all have worlds more welding experience than me. But I'm very happy with my Hobart LX235 welder, haven't had any problems with it. I also like the Lincoln Electric 6011 rods from Home Depot, as they are generally the most cost effective where I am and are my general purpose "go to" rod. All that said, I've probably never done a decent weld in my life, but I attribute that to my relative experience level and the fact that I only weld steel I acquire from the dump. It's seriously rare where I get two pieces of steel of the same composition (carbon wise, if nothing else) and thickness, much less get additional bits for practice pieces in the same width/composition. Anyway, I can't fault the equipment or the rods. When I want more diverse rod types I get them from a local welding shop, but they're much more expensive.

 

[BrokenTrack]

I think all welding rods of the same type are basically the same, otherwise they could not be used in the welding industry. They have to meet certain criteria otherwise they could not be used in construction, railroad, or shipbuilding applications.

The biggest issue is not what brand they are, but that they are kept in a warming oven to drive off moisture. Here on the humid coast, we have a hard time with that, and anytime I have had issues with rod, it has been with moisture content. A trip to the drying oven cured the problem.

 

[Mark @ Everlast]

I think all welding rods of the same type are basically the same, otherwise they could not be used in the welding industry. They have to meet certain criteria otherwise they could not be used in construction, railroad, or shipbuilding applications.

The biggest issue is not what brand they are, but that they are kept in a warming oven to drive off moisture. Here on the humid coast, we have a hard time with that, and anytime I have had issues with rod, it has been with moisture content. A trip to the drying oven cured the problem.

No. There are many proprietary differences between rods of the same classification but of different brands. Weld with a Hobart 7018, a Radnor 7018, and a few other cheap ones, then go get a LINCOLN Excalibur. Big difference.

 

[rangerfredbob]

I bought an oven (household type) full of welding rods at an auction for $5 once, it came with a tin of Excalibur 1/8" 7018 and a full box of 1/8" 6011 of some type (they weld good, it's a name brand just don't remember which one) along with a bunch of other random rods... I think I have a lifetime supply, or at least a decades worth... but I agree, the Excalibur work pretty good