Opinions of welds please

[Windmill John]

Hi All,
Can you tell me what you think?
This is a 3mm sheet; I know I haven't clean the slag off properly but...
I've shown the currents. Any opinions appreciated.

For the 2.5mm rod, I can see that 40A has not penetrated and know it should be about 80A, but I think the 60A seems okay.

 

[zzr1200]

Hi WJ, are you using a DC inverter welder and is the electrode connected to the +ve or -ve lead of the welder?

If you unsure of your welder type state make/model..

 

[Windmill John]

Yes it is an inverter, a Parweld and correctly connected, earth to negative, electrode to positive,

 

[Badger1bear]

where abouts are you in sussex John windmill :-)

 

[Windmill John]

Why, are you going to come and insult my welding in person

 

[madkayaker]

He might well be wanting to show you how to do it!

 

[Badger1bear]

Why, are you going to come and insult my welding in person

I do like the hands on personal approach to insults LOL

 

[PTvor]

I'd try narrowing down the current a bit more. Some rods seem to like the current pretty much spot on, others are forgiving.

It looks to me as if you have uneven travel and varying arc length.

3mm seems a bit thin for easy practice with 3.2 mm rods.

There isn't a 'correct' about rod positive and rod negative. Try both and see which you get on with with tose rods. Generally rod negative is used for thin stuff and rod positive for metal over 3mm. There are several threads on here about it. A surprising number of general purpose rods specify rod -ve, or rod -ve for roots.

 

[Windmill John]

Wow two insults back to back.... It's like being married
Working where I work, I couldn't find scrap metal, so ordered a sheet!
Thought I'd try 3mm to see penetration and quite frankly, I'm brand new to welding.

Uneven travel PTvor! I'm happy for a newbie. Only second time having the helmet on, still choosing the right level.

I got 3.2 and 2.5 rods with the welder. This sheet of metal is for me to practice on to get an idea.

 

[Windmill John]

Would I be that far out to say 2.5mm with 60 amps isn't too bad?

 

[Badger1bear]

Wow two insults back to back.... It's like being married

I dont think they were insults buddy we all have to learn sometime and no doubt there will always be someone who knows a little bit more than we do. Seeing written replies on a forum can shed some light on a problem but seeing a process performed correctly either on youtube or in real life first hand can make a world of difference

If you dont learn something new every day then you havent been listening

 

[Windmill John]

Only kidding
I'm used to discovering so many people with more skills.....

 

[PTvor]

It's my observation on here that if you ask a question, you usually get honest answers and ones that attempt to be helpful.

The more information you can give about the type of welder, type of rods etc the better the answers you are likely to get.

For the first or second time trying the welder new out of the box and with the Parweld rods (not generally reckoned to be the nicest) it looks pretty good.

 

[Windmill John]

You're now back in my good books
There's a lot more space on the sheet for practice.

 

[keith19]

As PTvor says, tune in the amps more precisely, as rods can vary so much between brands, or even between batches of the same nameless cheapies. Start around 65A with the 2.5 mm rods and see how you go.

Your 60A run doesn't look too far off; maybe slow down a little, too.

 

[PTvor]

Try the local scrapyards and fabricators for offcuts.

The scrapyards might be reasonable and have decent clean stuff, weigh it and sell it for twice the scrap value.

The fabricators are likely to have all sorts of offcuts, bits of angle, pipe, box, in various thicknesses and if you explain what you want it for and offer to pay for it, they can be very understanding, especially if you take it back all welded together and bung it back in the bin.

It's a shame and works out very dear, using new steel for practice, and you will get through quite a lot getting the hang of it.

 

[Windmill John]

Thanks chaps, just waiting to get back in the shed for more practice.

 

[rich r]

I'm no expert, but comparing your photos to what I was doing when learning, I'd say to slow down and concentrate on keeping the arc short. Use your other hand to steady the electrode about 10cm from the end until it's short enough to control with one hand - that'll give you more control over going in a straight line.

You may find angling the electrode at about 30-40 degrees helps until you get control of the arc. Then gradually make it more and more vertical as you get better. It's harder to control the arc length as it's more vertical, so it gives you chance to learn how the arc responds to the movement of the electrode.

I tend to use about 55-60A for 2.5mm rods on a horizontal surface, but I'm on an ac buzzbox, so it's not going to be quite the same as your much better welder

 

[Windmill John]

Okay, another pic if that's okay.
All runs 2.5mm rod
Three in middle are 60A
Let's ignore the 40A at the top!
The two on the right were slower.
You know, I thought I could try anything, but do find it hard to get a neat run.
I know, give it time....

 

[rich r]

They're already looking better - keep practising!

I'd say slow down a little more and concentrate on moving the rod smoothly. You can see where you've gone at a constant speed and direction, and where you've jumped ahead a bit. Try scratching a line into the plate so that you have something to follow.

Oh, and when you get to the end, go back over the last 5mm or so, in order to fill in the crater that gets left when you lift the rod away.