Welding Tips and Tricks

Hi. I'm pretty new to stick welding and I am trying to figure out what thickness of rod would be better for what I'm doing.

I plan on using 6011 rod to weld together/modify a trailer frame. I would be joining 1/8" thick metal to 3/16" thick metal.

Should I use a 3/32" or 1/8" rod for this? I seemed to be making decent beads with each type. I thought I saw a table somewhere that suggested that 3/32" was good up to metal thickness of 1/4". But then, I wasn't having problems going through the metal with the 1/8" rod. Maybe it would ensure better penetration?

Is there a rule of thumb for this?

man,

fuck the table, results are all that matters here. Run at the proper heat(you are turning the machine up arent you?) the 1/8 will penetrate better, and be alot faster becuase of the larger size. 3/32 will work just fine too, but of course a little slower. But as long as you can control your arc with the 1/8 rod, and not blow through or get sloppy from overheating, I would go with that.

good luck,

-rick

I personally only use 3/32 6011 if the base metal will not hold the heat of 1/8 I work on train (some thirty plus year old junk) and rusty thin steel with a crack can end up being rusty thin steel with a crack and a hole let the job dictate the rod and heat

6011 OR 6010 HAS A VERY HIGH PENETRATION RATIO.

AND 3/32 SHOULD DO FINE JUST MINGLE WITH AMPERAGE WITHOUT OVERHEATING AS IT WILL CAUSE YOUR ROD TO PERFORATE AND YOUR ADVANCE SPEED SHOULD BE A TAD FASTER USING MORE AMPERAGE.

BEST REWARDS
BLUE BLOOD