Comments on: Stick Welding Tips & Tricks

By: Alex12342011

Alex12342011 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:00:17 +0000

I'd have to agree with the other answers, and say that taking a vo-tech course is a great way to get the basics. But, if that's not an option, there are some good instructional materials that you can use to get you going in the right direction.

The Welder's Handbook by Richard Finch is a good starter book. Another REALLY good place to spend some time, is the Lincoln and Miller websites. They have lots of instructional information posted on those sites.

Northern Tool has a series of DVD instructional videos. I've only ever seen their Oxy-Acetylene one, but it was thorough, well filmed, and a great start for a beginner. Perhaps their stick version is just as good?

Even if you take a class, having a library of your own reference materials is a good idea. Whatever you do, pay close attention to safety (correct sheild, ventilation, etc.), and really pay attention to what separates a good weld from a bad one. Learn that for yourself, and don't just take somebody's word for it. I've seen some pretty poor welding technique that was presented to me as if it were the "right" way, when clearly it was not.

The rest is practice. It will take a good bit of it, so be patient. Welding is a great skill to have, even if you don't do it for a living. You can make/fix so many things.

Good Luck.

By: J S

J S — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 09:57:04 +0000

I get mine at the local hardware
try looking in the yellow pages under welding supplies
i go back & forth circles work ok,
just get the heat right

By: .

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 23:41:29 +0000

For the 2g you want to kind of "hang" the bead from the top pipe, do like a crescent moon angled / , the top of the arc further ahead in the direction of travel. Other wise you will have cold lap "dripping" on the bottom piece. For the 3g vert. up, make little U's coming down one side, hold in puddle shortly, then go up the other side, then just reverse the procedure. It takes time and practice, keep at it. The best electrode ( I think) to learn this with is either 6010 or 6011, they stick alot, but they don't have a lot of slag so you can see what you are doing with the puddle better. EDIT>>>>>>2g can be on plate or pipe the orientation of the weld is the same though- horizontal so the same info still applies. Just substitute the word "piece" for pipe in the case of plate, sorry, I made that a little more complicated than necessary.

By: thugshady06

thugshady06 — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:48:33 +0000

Your not using enough heat for 1.But if this is a hardened axle it prob shouldn't be welded.A experienced tig welder would be the best bet but still if its the axle get a new or used one.If its welding on the reared housing u can weld that with 6011.6011 is a general purpose rod that is a lot easier to run than 7018.Use a 1/8 rod 125 amps Good luck

By: meinsla

meinsla — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:33:28 +0000

I've lost a many of the clamp on ones, I started to tack weld them on, but be careful, too much heat will turn the chrome blue. Wrap a wet rag around them before you put the heat to them.

By: donchovi

donchovi — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:26:09 +0000

Wouldn't it be better to buy a new one? Since you're inexperienced at "fixing it", judging from this question of yours.

By: The Luckiest Guy on Earth

The Luckiest Guy on Earth — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 05:35:39 +0000

By: Robert

Robert — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:54:54 +0000

E6011 and E6013 are both almost obsolete, I can only think of one or two applications where you'd want to use them over something else. If you try to use 6011, you can watch your arc blow right through the thin car frame. (There's a reason they call this stuff "farmer rods")

In any case stick welding is not suitable for anything under 1/8". You're going to get burn-through, very inconsistent weld fusion, as well as way too much heat input to the steel. In other words, in order to avoid burning through, you'll have to go way too fast or use too low of voltage to make a consistent weld. Most of the structure in a modern car is made of high-strength steel, so heat input is a major concern. Just because a weld LOOKS good, doesn't mean it IS good.

You really want to be MIG welding, it has the lowest heat input, and performs far better on thin stuff. It also makes better welds than E601x series stick electrodes. Get a pro to do this if you must.

Secondly, exactly why is it necessary to "reinforce" anything?

Remember that cars are designed to buckle and crumple in very specific ways, to absorb energy during a crash and cushion the driver. reinforcing the front or rear end will likely make the car LESS safe in an accident, not more so. The frame of a car is designed to save your life. Why do you want to be putting amateur-quality welds in it?

Note: If you're trying to add a roll cage, that's OK, but you would need to know what you're doing. Again, you don't want a roll cage to fall apart due to crappy welds, when your life's on the line…

In conclusion, in good conscience I have to advise against this.

By: xeso G

xeso G — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 07:34:18 +0000

By: PuhuiVideo

PuhuiVideo — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 02:12:37 +0000

Thanks