By the time you've run multiple beads, distorted your bucket and ground it to shape, you would have welded on a new edge and worn it out again. On a mini-ex bucket or lightweight bucket, it's hardly worth hard facing as it will ruin the profile of the cutting edge. One trick I've used is to cut sect...

I run quite a lot of 6013, all sizes, and find that 2.5 run okay on DCEP, but 3.2 and bigger get a bit lively, and run far better DECN. I agree 70 Amps is a bit low for 2.5 (think that equates to 3/32"), I'd be min 75, on a vertical up, but more normally 80-90. They don't need baking. Generally...

If the shipping was'nt so insane we should start a rod exchange program ! we could send you some decent Bohler / Eutectic / Oelikon / Filarc / Murex / Soudometal / Esab ........... could go on for pages ! - & in return you could send us the mythical 6010 or Excaliber that most in the UK have &a...

Nice job. What make of rod and current? Of course, you know it'll never hold.

A few years back I welded the floor back into a Cat 637 scraper bowl. 5 & 6mm 6013's. Stayed there until the machine got sold on. I never took pictures, never did in those days, unfortunately. I think 6013 must be a broad brush classification as there is so much variation in quality. Obviously i...

@Diesel D389, Sorry, but you're a little mistaken there. I've welded on the most up-to-date equipment and vehicles just by disconnecting the battery, and no issues. If you do have the twitches, all you need to do is disconnect the harness from the ECM, but you still need to unhook the battery to sav...

That is awesome. What grade of stainless, what make and size of electrode, current and polarity? I've tried to stick 3mm 316 before and it was all I could manage not to burn through.

The only 7018's I've laid hands on have been Phillips/Filarc, BOC and Eutectic (686?). The Eutectics were by far the easiest to use, with good restrike. I don't doubt we could get Lincolns if we were prepared to wait and pay. I just find Esab 46.00 and Zodians are so user friendly for most of my work.

Thanks, AK, I've been lurking a bit. I wonder if we've got a bit of a reverse situation over here, in that for 6013 we can get Zodian, Bohler, Oerlikon, Esab, and they are very high quality sticks, as the Oirish fella shows on his thread on that other forum. However, we can get 7018's cheaper than t...

Don't know why anyone thinks 6010 is stronger than 6013? Same tensile strength. A lot of coded work in Europe, not just Ireland, is done with 6013's. We don't seem to have too many boilers/pressure vessels/high pressure transmission lines blowing up over here, so 6013's can't be too bad, can they? I...

There are a lot of electrodes that will run on AC and do a good job. When I started we had an oil cooled AC with 55 & 80 volt tappings, and we ran 7018's on 80 volts. AC isn't always a poor man's option. As said, there are tricks to avoid arc blow, once it happens, but with AC you don't get it i...

I've found that with 2.5mm, polarity doesn't make much noticeable difference with 6013 and 7018's, but when you get up to 4.0 & 5.0 mm it makes a big difference. The 7018's I use (BOC) won't run straight polarity and the Zodian 6013's are like a gouging rod if you run them reverse.

As Noddybrian says, in the UK 7018's tend to be for DCEP, DCEP or AC. That said, on DCEN you seem to need quite a step up in current, and DCEN isn't much use for anything other than flat or h-v fillet. On AC they' make a lot of spatter. Can't beat DCEP.

I've tried it, but it seems you need to jack up the current to get any penetration. By and large if you stick to the rod manufacturers guidance, you get the best results. professional welder here has to agree that you can't go wrong following mfgr's instructions and recommendations. i'll bet the jo...

I know, it takes some believing...

We use some Chinese 316 preformed elbows. They often rust after welding whereas locally sourced doesn't.

I've tried it, but it seems you need to jack up the current to get any penetration. By and large if you stick to the rod manufacturers guidance, you get the best results.

@ AKweldshop. Hey - no offense taken - it's all good - it's funny how most other countries have good quality 6013 that work adequately when used in context but have never even seen a 6010 let alone run them - I guess there is a marked difference between products used across the world ( and some of ...

I'm in the UK & can only comment on what I've used - but it was a good brand - obviously some brands span the world - others tend to be localized to their country of origin or specific to an importer & their dealer network - during the buy out wars in the 80's the likes of Esab & Boc tr...

okay guys , lets talk structural welding for a minute , you wouldn't use 6013 to weld pressure vessels or heavy steel structures and , I'm sure there's no such thing as a v groove structural welding test ,you know 1/4 with a backing strap using 6013 . But sure lots of people use 6013 for general mi...

Only used three, Eutectic, Murex and Filarc. Eutectic was easy to use but prone to spatter, Murex I still use, not the easiest but if your machine is set right the welds come out okay, and for out of position one of the best rods IMO. Filarc - enough said.

I do start a fillet with more drag angle then reduce it as soon as I start moving. I do the same with 6013, 7018, stainless, whatever. As for 6013's, I've welded farm machinery and heavy equipment with them for over 35 years and never had a failure.

"Pipe welding procedures" by Hoobasar Rampaul is the best book I've seen on pipe welding. Have a look on Amazon.

Aleksi, I take my hat off to you for trying to better yourself by whatever means you can. Today at age 52 I tried to SMAW with my left hand for the first time, just to see if I could. Guess that gives it away that I've never been a pipelines. I actually got on better than I normally do with my right...

I wonder if we have a bigger choice this side of the pond. In the UK there's Murex, Esab, Bohler, Oerlikon, Eutectic, BOC, all good consistent electrodes. Lincoln are available here as well, but I doubt I've burnt a full 5kg box in 35 years. Mind you, I haven't seen Eutectic for a few years, so not ...