Welding Tips and Tricks

Hello all, still a newbie at welding. today was welding a piece of 3/4 inch black pipe to one end of a railroad track that is my make shift anvil. I was able to finally do it. but it was a pain to try and get the electrode into the crevice where the two pieces met. It would either stick to one side or the other. any suggestions would be appreciated. I'm only a hobbyist, not a pro.

Size of your welding rod? At most, I’d use 3/32”, and strike the rod on the flat, moving quickly to the joint. 3/4” pipe is pretty small diameter so welding around it is quite tricky even for the pros. Just burn the rod in the joint with a nice tight arc and the rod will fill it in the rest of the way.

Thanks, will try it next time.

Maybe try cue sticking the electrode. Grab it a couple inches away from the end of the electrode to steady it. That has haloed me some with that type of work. Just be sure to take your hand off because they get hot quick.

Farmwelding wrote:Maybe try cue sticking the electrode. Grab it a couple inches away from the end of the electrode to steady it. That has haloed me some with that type of work. Just be sure to take your hand off because they get hot quick.

Thanks, will try it next time.