Might be a little late but vertical 7018 is my preferred way to weld. If you haven’t yet possibly try practicing with 3/32 to get some control on vertical 7018 before moving to 1/8 rod. If that is not something you want to try then the best way I can describe it is almost like slowly painting left t...

If you are wearing ear plugs try taking them out and listening to the weld for a few rods. When I run my root I push the rod up until it appears to come to a point(^). Then I maintain that depth while whipping back and forth about the diameter of the rod never letting the puddle cool and slowly lett...

One tip that helped me with over head was to push the rod up further. When the tip of my rod is deep enough I see the top come to a point like an upside down V (^). Then I just keep that depth while "whipping" slightly at the front edge of the puddle without moving out of the front of the ...