Thanks! A little practice is helpful for anyone. When an exercise gets to the point that it's boring, I start to notice all sorts of interesting things I don't usually see.
Practice, Practice, Practice! Thats what I need to do! I Used to weld 3 processes as part of my profession, but slowly worsening vision made me nearly blind by early 2023. The last good welding I did at work was early 2018. I kept dabbling with it at home & medically retired summer 2019. Thankfully I got insurance for the eye Dr., got laser treatment for both eyes in Dec.2023 & am much improved in vision! I have old SMAW welding rods & tried welding again with mixed results. I could definitely see better but am still fighting a lazy eye that won't accurately focus in the same place. Mainly I should do what you did in this vid. & burn up lots of rods on flat plate to blow out the cobwebs, knock the rust out & get my groove back. I think it's kind of like trying to ride a bike after 15 years of not riding. Very wobbly & ugly, but quickly getting better & nicer, sturdier welds! When I can afford it, I need to buy fresh rods too! Thanks Tim for your timely, helpful vids. Paul from S. Central Tx..
I was genuinely afraid of stick welding since my previous exprience with it was disastrous. Your videos gave me the courage to not give up and by the time I got really better. Thank you for making it affordable even for the unskilled people.
@TimWelds your content has consistently been the most helpful to this beginner welder, thank you! I have a question about safety, apologies if this was mentioned somewhere I haven't seen yet... I see you leaning on your welding table, and you're certainly not the only one. I realize electricity follows the path of least resistance and the ground clamp should "pull" all the current away from your body, but do welders sometimes get shocked this way? Wouldn't it be safer to put a plank of wood or some other insulating material on the table to isolate you from any potential stray currents? Similar question about holding the electrode with your glove...you're near a table that is now a ground, so I don't understand how this is safe. Appreciate your thoughts/opinions. Thanks!
Great video thanks for posting, I am in welding school and I've been watching your videos the they really help reinforce what I am Learning. Right now I'm struggling with 2G and need all tue help I can get. Thank you again 👍🏾
Thanks! Awesome, keep up the good work! 2G can be super frustrating, especially tying in both sides on an open root. Hang in there, it took me a really long time to learn and I'm still learning every day.
My job is currently moving my position from machine operator to stick welder, I have small mig and tig experience but I’ve never stick welded before, they said they will teach me but any outside tips or advice anyone is willing share definitely helps! I’m not nervous but I want to impress my superiors with more that I could know before hand, although it doesn’t give the physical skill I’d absolutely love to know more before going in to it.
Thanks Tim for all of your videos! This one will come in handy for my welding class later today. I have been having problems with running straight consist 7018 welds.
No flat plate here - 40mm x 2mm L-shape is all I have. 2.4mm 6013s which I've tried in both polarities. 90 amps indicated (90-93 measured). Am getting better after few days, but my welds look more like rugged mountain ridges rather than your nice flat hills... Slag is a pain to remove as well sometimes - it ain't "peeling off" 😂 At least, the rods here are sold in 2.5kg packs and relatively cheaply.
Great video. I have to spend a weekend soon and go through a few pounds of 7018 and get some arc control back. ( I have an essential tremor that makes me loose muscle memory fast). Right now I am about to go down the arc blow rabbit hole, see you on the other side..
Thanks! The arc blow rabbit hole can run pretty deep, but this is one of the best articles I've seen on it: www.lincolnelectric.com/en/welding-and-cutting-resource-center/welding-how-tos/prevent-arc-blow
Tim, I enjoyed this very much, really like this content. I would have liked to see that last T joint cut in half to see whats going on on the inside. IK thats not typically done for production, but some guys do it anyway. Thanks for all your videos, truly a treasure 🙏
At high school in 1987 I could weld so good, now doing diy at 53years old I battle :-( Does the brand (quality) of the rods matter? My friends say I should only buy certain Brands of rods, but those Brands cost 5x more 😢😭
The arc shot beginning at 8:33 is the best I've ever seen of the weld bead being formed. It's an especially clear view of the molten metal coming off the rod and flowing into the weld pool.
Hi Tim! After watching a lot of your videos, I decided I would get a welding machine. There are a lot of welding helmets out there. What kind of welding helmet do you recommend?
Thank you for a nice detailed video! Question: Is there a reason why I shouldn't hold on to the rod itself, to steady it? Is it a safety issue, even if I am very careful not to put my fingers close to the arc, or something else?
Thanks! A lot of people, myself included at times, hold the rod loosely with a dry welding glove without any issue. The rod itself can get a bit toasty, though.
The only thing that would make these videos even better would be english captions. I may not be hard of hearing but many people are and they're kind of being left out from this great information. In my own case, reading the captions on videos helps me focus more on the content and retain information better.
You should do a video of capping a 6011 weld with a 7018, Very hard to get it to look good at least with 3/32" rod but I noticed my test beads look pretty much like yours so I am starting to think it is just not a good size rod to cap with?
I'm curious as to how you're getting rid of the smoke in that little garage? I want to start practicing in my tiny garage also but how will I get rid of the smoke?
I have an industrial fume extraction filter. They're expensive, but I do a lot of welding and it was worth it for me to buy one, then Fume Dog sponsored the channel with a better one. Before that, I attached some flexible duct from the hardware store to a ventilation blower from Harbor Freight. I just placed the blower at my door blowing outward. The whole thing cost about $100 and while it was a little less convenient than my current setup, it worked just as well. A lot of folks have done the same thing and mounted it up high with a hole cut through the wall. Here's a video about my DIY setup: ruclips.net/video/cjqtnxb3xg0/видео.htmlsi=_R2vaYHmuRacu5IC
I'm trying to learn to stick weld it's very difficult sometimes I can get a decent weld then I'll try it again and it will look like crap, it's very difficult!
I have some blue demon 7018 3/32" rods. The packaging says the amperage is only 60-80. I have identical size radnor 7018 which has a range up 115amps. Is that some kind of mistake? Seems like same size rods should be same amp range?
No, I had more than a dozen welding machines and that just didn't make sense, so I gave some away and sold some to let others make use of them rather than just letting them sit on the shelf. I did keep it for about 2 years and used it a lot. It never let me down and was great for the money, but I'm not sure how it stacks up against others at similar price on the market today.
If you look at the optical clarity specs, any of them with a 1/1/1/1 or 1/1/1/2 rating will generally be really good and there are a lot of them available at many different price points. I use Miller Digital Infinity hoods, which are great for benchwork, though a bit heavy and tipsy for out of position stuff. They aren't cheap and I don't know how much better they are, but they work for me and take a beating. @MakeAndFixItYourSelfProjects mentioned a YesWelder auto darkening hood, they sent me one a while back to try and I was surprised how clear it was.
@@el_70rio If it helps, you need really good sight on the weld, magnified reading glasses worked for me and get up close (1ft to 2ft), cheap welders are under current by about 10%, so if you are using 6013 2.5mm, about 100A on the display. Can get it some days, then other days the welds look like crap.
Ah don’t give up it just takes time I use to think that back in high school wanting to be a welder. 2 years later I’m a tankshop welder.. practice makes perfect I burn so many 5p rods over and over intel I finally got that prefect weld. It will come in time
If stick doesn't give you satisfaction, try MIG. Take a class at a community college or something. Nothing is easy or natural; everything takes practice.
I’m confused. Just before the fillet weld you wanted to use 6010 but at 10:34 you discussed 7018? Rearranged leads to address arc blow? A switch of polarity? I saw no change in ground clamp position.
I just used 6010 to tack it up, all the weld beads were done with 7018. The work clamp moved from the end to the beginning, but I might have mixed up a clip so that it didn’t show that way since I filmed the video twice to get all the shots.
I truly enjoy your videos but as an instructor I would never start a beginner on running beads. They need to first learn how to strike an arc. I would have them just do Tack up and down to start so that they get use to not sticking and used to starting the weld.
Thanks a ton for the comment! I completely agree. What you described is actually the first exercise in my online courses and I have several videos about it too. I’m not suggesting stacking beads as a starting point, just an exercise to improve consistency and learn to see.
Along with the excellent tips and techniques, this was a great reminder that even top-notch welders need to practice and drill.
Thanks! A little practice is helpful for anyone. When an exercise gets to the point that it's boring, I start to notice all sorts of interesting things I don't usually see.
+1 for an arc blow video. Or anything else you can find in welding textbooks. The science behind welding is super interesting.
Sounds great! I'll add it to the list.
I've never welded in my life but you make me feel like I could :)
These videos are super useful ...all the way from Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 thanks Tim
Practice, Practice, Practice! Thats what I need to do! I Used to weld 3 processes as part of my profession, but slowly worsening vision made me nearly blind by early 2023. The last good welding I did at work was early 2018. I kept dabbling with it at home & medically retired summer 2019. Thankfully I got insurance for the eye Dr., got laser treatment for both eyes in Dec.2023 & am much improved in vision! I have old SMAW welding rods & tried welding again with mixed results. I could definitely see better but am still fighting a lazy eye that won't accurately focus in the same place.
Mainly I should do what you did in this vid. & burn up lots of rods on flat plate to blow out the cobwebs, knock the rust out & get my groove back. I think it's kind of like trying to ride a bike after 15 years of not riding. Very wobbly & ugly, but quickly getting better & nicer, sturdier welds! When I can afford it, I need to buy fresh rods too! Thanks Tim for your timely, helpful vids. Paul from S. Central Tx..
Thanks! Glad to hear that the laser treatments worked well for you. It's amazing what they are able to do these days.
I was genuinely afraid of stick welding since my previous exprience with it was disastrous. Your videos gave me the courage to not give up and by the time I got really better.
Thank you for making it affordable even for the unskilled people.
Awesome! Keep up the good work!
@TimWelds your content has consistently been the most helpful to this beginner welder, thank you! I have a question about safety, apologies if this was mentioned somewhere I haven't seen yet... I see you leaning on your welding table, and you're certainly not the only one. I realize electricity follows the path of least resistance and the ground clamp should "pull" all the current away from your body, but do welders sometimes get shocked this way? Wouldn't it be safer to put a plank of wood or some other insulating material on the table to isolate you from any potential stray currents? Similar question about holding the electrode with your glove...you're near a table that is now a ground, so I don't understand how this is safe. Appreciate your thoughts/opinions. Thanks!
Chipping the slag is so satisfying. Great video, now I have some practice to do this weekend!
Thanks Jeff! My favorite slag is on vertical 7018. The slag drips can look like something from a horror movie sitting right over top a slick bead.
Great video thanks for posting, I am in welding school and I've been watching your videos the they really help reinforce what I am Learning. Right now I'm struggling with 2G and need all tue help I can get. Thank you again 👍🏾
Thanks! Awesome, keep up the good work! 2G can be super frustrating, especially tying in both sides on an open root. Hang in there, it took me a really long time to learn and I'm still learning every day.
Thanks for the video. Been practising for a day and getting better
My job is currently moving my position from machine operator to stick welder, I have small mig and tig experience but I’ve never stick welded before, they said they will teach me but any outside tips or advice anyone is willing share definitely helps! I’m not nervous but I want to impress my superiors with more that I could know before hand, although it doesn’t give the physical skill I’d absolutely love to know more before going in to it.
Thanks Tim for all of your videos! This one will come in handy for my welding class later today. I have been having problems with running straight consist 7018 welds.
Thank you! Keep working at it and try to enjoy the learning process, as frustrating as it can be at times.
Same 🤦🏾♀️
No flat plate here - 40mm x 2mm L-shape is all I have. 2.4mm 6013s which I've tried in both polarities. 90 amps indicated (90-93 measured). Am getting better after few days, but my welds look more like rugged mountain ridges rather than your nice flat hills... Slag is a pain to remove as well sometimes - it ain't "peeling off" 😂 At least, the rods here are sold in 2.5kg packs and relatively cheaply.
Fantastic video as always and I will be giving these tips ago this weekend big thanks for your help and advice 👍👍
Thank you so much!
Great video. I have to spend a weekend soon and go through a few pounds of 7018 and get some arc control back. ( I have an essential tremor that makes me loose muscle memory fast). Right now I am about to go down the arc blow rabbit hole, see you on the other side..
Thanks! The arc blow rabbit hole can run pretty deep, but this is one of the best articles I've seen on it: www.lincolnelectric.com/en/welding-and-cutting-resource-center/welding-how-tos/prevent-arc-blow
Great video as always... Love the new lighting set up as well looking good
Thanks Alex!
Yeah! Welding is mostly practice, practice..... Great video, Tim. Stick drill, mig drill, tig drillllll all these drills are crucial ;)
Thanks!
Tim, I enjoyed this very much, really like this content. I would have liked to see that last T joint cut in half to see whats going on on the inside. IK thats not typically done for production, but some guys do it anyway. Thanks for all your videos, truly a treasure 🙏
Great instructors, thanks for sharing, all the best to you and your loved ones
At high school in 1987 I could weld so good, now doing diy at 53years old I battle :-( Does the brand (quality) of the rods matter? My friends say I should only buy certain Brands of rods, but those Brands cost 5x more 😢😭
The arc shot beginning at 8:33 is the best I've ever seen of the weld bead being formed. It's an especially clear view of the molten metal coming off the rod and flowing into the weld pool.
Ah. Im 52 and i just took up stick welding. Keep doing it over and over.
I got some projects that require just practise. This will be a good start.
Tim i always love watching and learning. I definitely need to get my arc on again. Been a few years
Thanks! It's always a better day when you weld something :)
Fair Dinkum, you make it look so easy... top tip show good Sir.
Yes, I would like to see a video on arc blow.
Great tips. Now to get in some practice time.
Thanks for the detailed description and videos.
Yes, please. I get arc blow all the time... I use 6013.
This is exactly the video I needed! Thanks
Definitely be interested in a video on the magnetic effect of the leads and the blowout.
Awesome! I'll put something together in the next little bit.
Thanks for your advice.
No problem! Thanks for watching and for the comment!
Nice, Tim. I’m not much of a stick guy myself. If I feel I have to use it I do. Likely I’ll never use up the stock of rods I have.
Thanks Mel!
Yes would like to see fix to arc blow
Thank you very much!
You're welcome!
Can you please type.what ampere kind of stick sowe can follow it easily
Thank you.
Hi Tim! After watching a lot of your videos, I decided I would get a welding machine. There are a lot of welding helmets out there. What kind of welding helmet do you recommend?
Thank you for a nice detailed video! Question: Is there a reason why I shouldn't hold on to the rod itself, to steady it? Is it a safety issue, even if I am very careful not to put my fingers close to the arc, or something else?
Thanks! A lot of people, myself included at times, hold the rod loosely with a dry welding glove without any issue. The rod itself can get a bit toasty, though.
You should do a video showing tips for vertical and butt joints
I’m trying to learn stick welding and getting scraps when I can. What’s the difference in all the rods and diameters??
The only thing that would make these videos even better would be english captions. I may not be hard of hearing but many people are and they're kind of being left out from this great information. In my own case, reading the captions on videos helps me focus more on the content and retain information better.
thanks a lot
Are you weaving or any movement or just running a straight bead
Just a straight bead. Weaving is usually only needed on vertical up with stick welding.
You should do a video of capping a 6011 weld with a 7018, Very hard to get it to look good at least with 3/32" rod but I noticed my test beads look pretty much like yours so I am starting to think it is just not a good size rod to cap with?
Informative as always, thanks
The rough spatters when welding you didn’t finish that aspect in the video, please I need to know more about it
Could you do video on arc rods 308l 1.6 or tell me a bit more about these rods
Uk
I'm curious as to how you're getting rid of the smoke in that little garage? I want to start practicing in my tiny garage also but how will I get rid of the smoke?
I have an industrial fume extraction filter. They're expensive, but I do a lot of welding and it was worth it for me to buy one, then Fume Dog sponsored the channel with a better one. Before that, I attached some flexible duct from the hardware store to a ventilation blower from Harbor Freight. I just placed the blower at my door blowing outward. The whole thing cost about $100 and while it was a little less convenient than my current setup, it worked just as well. A lot of folks have done the same thing and mounted it up high with a hole cut through the wall. Here's a video about my DIY setup: ruclips.net/video/cjqtnxb3xg0/видео.htmlsi=_R2vaYHmuRacu5IC
I'm trying to learn to stick weld it's very difficult sometimes I can get a decent weld then I'll try it again and it will look like crap, it's very difficult!
Good one. Liked the vid
I do ok with 6011. My problem is I can’t seem to see the puddle with 6013.
6013 is kind of difficult to see the puddle because the slag runs over it. I think 7018 is much easier to read the puddle.
Good job
Thank you!
I have some blue demon 7018 3/32" rods. The packaging says the amperage is only 60-80. I have identical size radnor 7018 which has a range up 115amps. Is that some kind of mistake? Seems like same size rods should be same amp range?
Would love to see an arc blow video
Awesome! I'll add it to the list!
Nice video
What are the electrodes that pipe liners use? I want to practice root and cap? Can someone clarify?
It depends, but usually E6010 for the root pass and E7018 for the fill and cap.
@@TimWelds Is it usually one pass of 6010 inside the bevel all the way around, and then filling everything else with the 7018?
Do you still have your little Deka welder?
No, I had more than a dozen welding machines and that just didn't make sense, so I gave some away and sold some to let others make use of them rather than just letting them sit on the shelf. I did keep it for about 2 years and used it a lot. It never let me down and was great for the money, but I'm not sure how it stacks up against others at similar price on the market today.
I get my scraps from a shop with a laser cutter from the skeletons at scrap price
Why is the rod sticks every time trying to start the arc that's very aggravating
Beginner here. What size of electrode do you recommend if I am going to weld a 1.5mm steel?
6011 3/32
@@irishlush364 how about a galvanized iron steel? Do you recommend the same?
@@aaal695 that's what I'm gonna use on galvanized coated steel
@@irishlush364 thanks!
@@aaal695 I ran it on galvanized yesterday at 70 amps.i grinded the galvanized off where I was gonna weld it did decent
any lenses for my welding hood you can recommend me?
If you look at the optical clarity specs, any of them with a 1/1/1/1 or 1/1/1/2 rating will generally be really good and there are a lot of them available at many different price points. I use Miller Digital Infinity hoods, which are great for benchwork, though a bit heavy and tipsy for out of position stuff. They aren't cheap and I don't know how much better they are, but they work for me and take a beating. @MakeAndFixItYourSelfProjects mentioned a YesWelder auto darkening hood, they sent me one a while back to try and I was surprised how clear it was.
I am thinking of giving it up, no amount of online tutorials seems to make me any better, too many variables to get a good weld.
Same bro😢
@@el_70rio If it helps, you need really good sight on the weld, magnified reading glasses worked for me and get up close (1ft to 2ft), cheap welders are under current by about 10%, so if you are using 6013 2.5mm, about 100A on the display.
Can get it some days, then other days the welds look like crap.
Ah don’t give up it just takes time I use to think that back in high school wanting to be a welder. 2 years later I’m a tankshop welder.. practice makes perfect I burn so many 5p rods over and over intel I finally got that prefect weld. It will come in time
Never quit, you can do it!
If stick doesn't give you satisfaction, try MIG. Take a class at a community college or something. Nothing is easy or natural; everything takes practice.
Can u rest to rod on your glove?
You can hold it actually
Thanks Tim…..
I’m confused. Just before the fillet weld you wanted to use 6010 but at 10:34 you discussed 7018?
Rearranged leads to address arc blow? A switch of polarity? I saw no change in ground clamp position.
I just used 6010 to tack it up, all the weld beads were done with 7018. The work clamp moved from the end to the beginning, but I might have mixed up a clip so that it didn’t show that way since I filmed the video twice to get all the shots.
I truly enjoy your videos but as an instructor I would never start a beginner on running beads. They need to first learn how to strike an arc. I would have them just do Tack up and down to start so that they get use to not sticking and used to starting the weld.
Thanks a ton for the comment! I completely agree. What you described is actually the first exercise in my online courses and I have several videos about it too. I’m not suggesting stacking beads as a starting point, just an exercise to improve consistency and learn to see.
Did you forget to add the scrap metal link?
edite: Nope! i see it now :D whoops
Glad you found it! I buy most of my coupons there, but whenever I come across cheap metal, I'll use that too :)
whined me up our easy you make it look
It's easy for me know, at least on a good day, but it wasn't always that way. I struggled for a long time to learn.
Can't watch video for words cover's it up
Yes. Arc blow :)
I'll add it to the list! Thanks for watching!