Hello everyone, first time posting on this forum,
I weld for a hobby and learned by myself. I am still a beginner and my welds are ugly, but I want to understand why !
I use standard 2 mm steel welding rods and weld at about 90 A.
I don't understand why I keep getting weld beads that accumulate only on one of the two parts, or weld beads with flux stuck right in the middle of it, it drives me mad. I joined a picture of these typical welds I make.
What is the main factor that causes these welds ? Poor ground clamp contact, weave movement/straight movement, travel speed too fast, parts not clean enough ?
Thank you very much in advance for your answers and your time.
That looks like a pretty big gap.
How thick is that metal? What rod are you using? 7018, 6013? AC or DC?
The smaller the rod, the harder it is to weld with, especially if you're trying to fill a gap. If that metal is at least 3mm, get some 3mm rod. 7018, 7014 or maybe even 6013.
Take a piece of steel and run a bead on the surface. Practice a few beads to get a feel for it. That'll let you tweak your heat, and your technique.
Then set up a couple of joints with no gap. You should find the larger rod way easier to use.
3mm rod can be used on metal 3mm or thicker.
There are guys on this board that can take small rod and weld great with it. They can even weld sheet metal with stick. Get some practice with larger rod.
Good luck,
Steve
How thick is that metal? What rod are you using? 7018, 6013? AC or DC?
The smaller the rod, the harder it is to weld with, especially if you're trying to fill a gap. If that metal is at least 3mm, get some 3mm rod. 7018, 7014 or maybe even 6013.
Take a piece of steel and run a bead on the surface. Practice a few beads to get a feel for it. That'll let you tweak your heat, and your technique.
Then set up a couple of joints with no gap. You should find the larger rod way easier to use.
3mm rod can be used on metal 3mm or thicker.
There are guys on this board that can take small rod and weld great with it. They can even weld sheet metal with stick. Get some practice with larger rod.
Good luck,
Steve
Hello, thanks a lot for your answers,
My rods are AWS E 6013; I don't know what that means, I just bought what was available at my local store without thinking.
My welder is AC and, after just checking it, the current was more 80 than 90 A, something like 83 A.
The steel I tried to weld in this case is 4 mm thick. As you said you gap is way too large. I'll try and buy 3 mm to see if it makes things better.
Outside of the gap issues, here is another example of a VERY ugly weld (joined picture), where I did three or four passes with some angle grinder in between. At the start there was no gap, it was a contact between a cylinder and a flat surface; and I still get these "porous" welds where flux gets deep into the weld at random spots.
Here the flat piece is about 15 mm thick and the cylinder about 40 mm in diameter. I used the same amperage and rods.
Sorry if I answer late, I live in France.
My rods are AWS E 6013; I don't know what that means, I just bought what was available at my local store without thinking.
My welder is AC and, after just checking it, the current was more 80 than 90 A, something like 83 A.
The steel I tried to weld in this case is 4 mm thick. As you said you gap is way too large. I'll try and buy 3 mm to see if it makes things better.
Outside of the gap issues, here is another example of a VERY ugly weld (joined picture), where I did three or four passes with some angle grinder in between. At the start there was no gap, it was a contact between a cylinder and a flat surface; and I still get these "porous" welds where flux gets deep into the weld at random spots.
Here the flat piece is about 15 mm thick and the cylinder about 40 mm in diameter. I used the same amperage and rods.
Sorry if I answer late, I live in France.
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- ugly weld 2
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More info on the pieces :
I cut the cylinder from a plough tooth, so I guess it's spring steel, or at least some sort of carbon steel.
The flat surface is a piece of an I beam originating from a bridge, so maybe not mild steel but a much lower carbon content ?
I cut the cylinder from a plough tooth, so I guess it's spring steel, or at least some sort of carbon steel.
The flat surface is a piece of an I beam originating from a bridge, so maybe not mild steel but a much lower carbon content ?
i think the problem here is more about joint configuration and how your going about bridging gaps.
it looks like your trying to weave from one side to the other. that won't work with small rods and big gaps, as you will get slag inclusions (those deap holes of slag).
with small rods and big gaps you really need to run a bead. clean off the slag, then run another on top of it.
a good way to practice is T joint and stack beads.
jody has some good video's of stacking beads.
on your first pic, it should have had a bead along the edge. clean, then weld next bead on top of that, then clean and weld last bead along the top.
6013 is prone to slag inclusions and you can't 'burn the slag out.'
it looks like your trying to weave from one side to the other. that won't work with small rods and big gaps, as you will get slag inclusions (those deap holes of slag).
with small rods and big gaps you really need to run a bead. clean off the slag, then run another on top of it.
a good way to practice is T joint and stack beads.
jody has some good video's of stacking beads.
on your first pic, it should have had a bead along the edge. clean, then weld next bead on top of that, then clean and weld last bead along the top.
6013 is prone to slag inclusions and you can't 'burn the slag out.'
tweak it until it breaks
Thanks a lot, that clarifies things for me !
Weaving is exactly what I try to do, as my uncle once recommended that.
And when I get these slag inclusions I just go "maybe by making another pass over it it will go away"
I will stop weaving and try stacking beads instead.
Another question : when you weld a bead, do you make any motion with the rod, like a tiny circular motion, or do you just go in a straight line trying to keep the puddle consistent ?
Weaving is exactly what I try to do, as my uncle once recommended that.
And when I get these slag inclusions I just go "maybe by making another pass over it it will go away"
I will stop weaving and try stacking beads instead.
Another question : when you weld a bead, do you make any motion with the rod, like a tiny circular motion, or do you just go in a straight line trying to keep the puddle consistent ?
For the most part as your just starting to learn, focus less on motions with the rod, and more on just steady even travel speed while maintaining a consistently short arc. After you’ve run 40 or 50 lbs of rod you’ll probably have enough experience to begin to add things like rod motions IE side to side, forward and back, or circular, or some variation/ combination of these motions to your bag of tricks. Each different motion or pattern will affect the bead in different ways and depending on weld position, body position or metal configuration. What works for one combination of variables won’t work for all.
I have more questions than answers
Josh
Josh
Arc welding is a fusion process using the heat from the arc to melt & fuse or mix at least 3 pieces of steel (in this case) together in a joint. Base metal 1, base metal 2 & filler rod. Once you get the arc going pay attention to what it is going on under the arc, you will see the metal melt under the rod, that is your puddle, wash the puddle on both edges of base metal 1&2, letting the melting rod fill & build up the welding area. Don't watch the arc! Watch the puddle under the arc!
This is the advice I needed most starting out, and shared the most since.cwby wrote:Arc welding is a fusion process using the heat from the arc to melt & fuse or mix at least 3 pieces of steel (in this case) together in a joint. Base metal 1, base metal 2 & filler rod. Once you get the arc going pay attention to what it is going on under the arc, you will see the metal melt under the rod, that is your puddle, wash the puddle on both edges of base metal 1&2, letting the melting rod fill & build up the welding area. Don't watch the arc! Watch the puddle under the arc!
with 6013, especially the double coated rods, its very easy for the slag to slide around the side and if you go sideways to much you weld over it and you trap slag.Solmyr999 wrote:Thanks a lot, that clarifies things for me !
Weaving is exactly what I try to do, as my uncle once recommended that.
And when I get these slag inclusions I just go "maybe by making another pass over it it will go away"
I will stop weaving and try stacking beads instead.
Another question : when you weld a bead, do you make any motion with the rod, like a tiny circular motion, or do you just go in a straight line trying to keep the puddle consistent ?
so keep it fairly straight.
also keep in mind the arc is blowing the slag back. if you have next to no rod angle the slag can slide forward.
so watch the rod angles and don't be afraid of running a fair bit of rod angle.
tweak it until it breaks
Your not watching your puddle and manipulating your electrode to move the puddle where it needs to go. Don’t watch the arc, watch the puddle behind it.
Your also moving too fast and not allowing your puddle to build/flow onto each of the pieces of metal.
Your also moving too fast and not allowing your puddle to build/flow onto each of the pieces of metal.
God****ed 6013s.. and a huge gap to boot. 6013 are really prone to slag entrapment, you'll see it in the puddle swirling around often displacing or being confused with molten metal. You'll notice it's a very fluid slag and it'll easily run ahead of your electrode if you travel too slow. I don't have much experience with them, and I avoid them whenever possible however one bit of advise is actually to travel faster than you would with other rods. It's better to do a multi pass weld laying down only a small bead each pass than end up with big globs of metal on either side of the joint and nothing but slag straight down the center.