7018 problems.

[Bill Edwards]

The temperature is important, I can't recall if it's 150 or 250 C for one hour but a search on the forum will confirm. It doesn't work to do it at a lower temperature for longer, the moisture won't leave until they're hot enough.

 

[Omniata]

The temperature is important, I can't recall if it's 150 or 250 C for one hour but a search on the forum will confirm. It doesn't work to do it at a lower temperature for longer, the moisture won't leave until they're hot enough.

150°C is the "norm" for at least an hour.
If no-one's cooking, leave them for longer.
Let them cool in the oven till you can handle them before storing, or, use them hot if you're welding by this point...

 

[Bill Edwards]

150°C is the "norm" for at least an hour.
If no-one's cooking, leave them for longer.
Let them cool in the oven till you can handle them before storing, or, use them hot if you're welding by this point...

Good, I was leaning towards that but I don't have the best memory for figures so start to self doubt. I do know there are too kinds of moisture, loose bound and the other one which needs much higher temperatures to remove. But all getting a bit technical for most jobs, 'normal' dry is dry enough!

 

[Omniata]

TBH, baking at 150°C for 3 to 4 hours would remove more or less any moisture, unless the local environment was above 80% humidity...

Edit: Remember though, a fan ovens effective temperature is about 30°C higher than a standard "bottom" oven... So where you would run at 150°C in a standard, use about 110°C to 120°C in a fan

 

[rtechkid]

Rods are Super6 off Ebay, dc+ Thanks. Ronnie.

I also have these and they work fine on DC- I've got an R-Tech 260EXT AC/DC and it runs them lovely on both polarities, however I run them on DC- vertical. Get them warm and make sure you keep a nice tight arc. Do you have arc force? Mine is set at 100% of the current I use which is 175A I can't fault the welding machine even though it has Chinese parts in it, what doesn't these days? The IGBT is far better than those cheapy MOSFET types, I would steer clear of those :/

 

[sardine]

I Keep my electrodes next to the wood stove.

 

[monkeh]

all you need is a bit of rough sand paper next to where you're welding, rub the ends on that to remove the flux and you're good to go. or just rub it on some brick or concrete if you have too or usr youre chipping hammer to knock the flux off the end.

 

[Richard.]

I have to ask the question. Why 4mm?
5mm steel while it's pretty hefty stuff it doesn't warrant anything bigger than a 3.2 and tbh a 2.5 will certainly put it together very well.
Your gonna find a smaller diameter rod a little more friendly on re strikes.
FYI a Fronius trans pocket 1500 isn't a 4mm machine and neither is a lorch 160.
The odd one or two fine but consistently battering it's duty cycle by maxing them out will probably shorten it's life in the long run.

 

[olek]

Dry the rods...
110°C for a couple of hours in a fan oven.

You can get "rod guards" off fleabay for a few quid with sealing washers, worth it if there's quite a bit of time between using them

Edit: Which brand/make are they?
Edit2: Anywhere between 150A & 160A you'll be mid-range, are you running DC+?

I like those old threads , they may be actual for some of us, so ... rejuvenation


This is indeed for drying, but real "cooking" is 3 hours at 300 C . or more , depending of the brand and type. (I have seen up to 400°C)

But the good news is, that generally speaking 7018 rods accept 30 hours "cooking" at 300°C (So you may be able to rejuvenate them 10 times, with the disadvantage that the coating is brittle after cooking's , (so no sticking if possible)

What must be avoid is cooking so strong 6013 or any rod that allow descending weld, as those ones are prone to contain a certain part of cellulose (to help with the descending) and that is a material that ignite around 300° and anyway will be damaged even at 250°C
In that case I was said a fast drying one or 2 hours 120 degree (a good caution, and if you do not want to complicate, you may dry all of the rods that way)

that said I will provide a table of cooking temps for the different sticks in a moment.

ABout 7018 , if they are hot from the oven they will attract moisture of the air very easily so it may be important to have sealed tubes that accept them at 100° without burning.

I have small bags of silicate to get the eventual moisture in the tubes, but they need to be in a separate portion (in the cap, with a disk with holes to avoid the silicate pouches to touch the rods once they will be full of humidity - on the metal side anyway.

To know if the bags need to be dried again (3 hours 65°C, no more) you can weight them on a precise balance (10th of a gram) my bags are 10.4g when dry and about 14 g when they need to be dried (it should be 11.4 as they are supposed to get 40% of their weight of water, but I do not take chance and dry them)
The ones with colored crystals mixed allow to see when they are saturated.

I did read that some use a hard arc with arc force at the max, it may be a caution against sticking, but I always did use 20 30% to have a more "buttery" arc with them; much arc force may oblige to use a specific way of welding, as undercut is soon creat and need to be fulfilled . What do you think ?

Regards

 

[olek]

Cooking table

Scuz me gentlemen but all in French, download it there as it seem to be cut when I insert it as an img


https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6GjQDkF_AMQMjltU1YtVVFQX1M0UnBlazl2bnlsRXF4OTFB/view?usp=sharing

 

[olek]

Let me know if you think I may translate that table, I can try to do so during august. It will be more useful
It comes from FSH Selectarc (I think) A rod maker.
It gives a drying or cooking time depending of the base metal worked.

Best regards

 

[zeppelin builder]

hey bigman get yersel some filarc or tenacitos in vacuum packs nae need tae bake innat fur 12 hours is it fur gadgie or hi spec work

 

[olek]

hey bigman get yersel some filarc or tenacitos in vacuum packs nae need tae bake innat fur 12 hours is it fur gadgie or hi spec work

I will remind that when the day come, Most electrode makers provide vacuum packs today , Still I was given an oven and it is useful .

 

[zeppelin builder]

I will remind that when the day come, Most electrode makers provide vacuum packs today , Still I was given an oven and it is useful .

it will be you can heat your croissants in it cest magnifique

 

[Richard.]

I will remind that when the day come, Most electrode makers provide vacuum packs today , Still I was given an oven and it is useful .

Vac packs are great for the first time use but you'll need your oven if your not gonna use the whole pack in a session. Once opened you treat em like any other low hy that's been stored.

 

[zeppelin builder]

most jobs write the time when issued and bin them when times up , saves baking ovens ,holding ovens and quivers

 

[olek]

here is a nice French table that say how long and what temperature, depending of the electrode type and the base metal to weld .

I may have said it yet but 7018 accept 30 hours of backing at 300 degC. (the coating is more brittle after baking if it stick chances are that one loose a good length of coating)

so depending of the intended use ,7018 can be backed from 1 to 2 hours on that table, while I think Esab 48,00 are written 3hours at 350 C , if I recall correctly.



applause (you can stay seating)

 

[zeppelin builder]

croissants 10 mis a 130c
coc au vin 2hrsa 180c
bouef bourguinon .....
escargots de bourgogne .....
jambon persille.......

avec une boutielle de la OVD rum its a good drink for welders( Overhead Vertical Downhand)

 

[olek]

ah you are hungry dont forget snails with garlic butter
Personally I like SS 309 ; 2 hours at 300 with a pinch of salt of course

sauce au lait (slag's sauce)... laitier = the milk man = slag

 

[olek]

croissants 10 mis a 130c
coc au vin 2hrsa 180c
bouef bourguinon .....
escargots de bourgogne .....
jambon persille.......

avec une boutielle de la OVD rum its a good drink for welders( Overhead Vertical Downhand)

I just wonder if you where discrete enough when you where spying our national treasure of cooking recipes, grand chief