Results with cheap rods

[fuff66uk]

I have only ever tried arc welding with the cheap rods from aldi (powercraft) and the results were not too great also i found it very hard to strike the arc.I know practice makes perfect as they say but am i making life harder for myself than it need be with using these cheap rods?Would a decent branded rod make life much easier for me?

 

[scarecrow]

yes it would try some fincord m
lots of good brands here http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=8918

 

[fuff66uk]

Thanks scarecrow

 

[shenion]

Cheap rods have a less stable arc. The hardest part is the flux hardens quickly ahead of and on the sides of the weld pool and wont burn off. Becomes a real problem for inclusions on fillet welds.

 

[rtbcomp]

Quality of the rods makes all the difference.

If you want to peactice use thickish metal (3-4 mm) and turn the amps up, this would be more forgiving to operator error.

 

[GeorgeB]

I have only ever tried arc welding with the cheap rods from aldi (powercraft) and the results were not too great also i found it very hard to strike the arc.I know practice makes perfect as they say but am i making life harder for myself than it need be with using these cheap rods?Would a decent branded rod make life much easier for me?

I've only ever used rods from Aldi and Lidl and get along fine with them. I'd be most interested to know if there's much improvement by spending a lot more on 'branded' rods. It's easy to start an arc using a cheap Chinese inverter (a bit more difficult using an AC transformer) but I've never found that the arc goes out with either type of machine.

Here are my results from work I did this morning with 2mm Aldi rods. I'm making a couple of cabinet handles. It's work-in-progress and the rough metal edges will be smoothed out in due course.I find it difficult to run a perfectly straight weld bead, or cut a straight line with a hacksaw! I can't see it would make any, or much, difference if I used expensive rods.

 

[fuff66uk]

I take my hat off to you GeorgeB,my welds look nothing like that but i think a better welder wouldn't hurt lol mine has high and low and thats it,no variation just 2 settings,not that i'm making excuses for my poor welding,i'm not

 

[GeorgeB]

i think a better welder wouldn't hurt lol mine has high and low and thats it,no variation just 2 settings,not that i'm making excuses for my poor welding,i'm not

I've seen MIG welders with only a high/low setting but I don't think I've seen many arc welder like that. What type of machine do you have? Amperage settings are critical for any particular thickness of metal. The steel for my cabinet handles is 1.5mm thick box section and 3mm steel bar, cut from another box section. I used about 40 or 50 amps with those cheap 2mm rods.

 

[fuff66uk]

I was unsure exactly what spec the machine was but Wozzaaah on here told me it's a wizarc 100,with 2 power settings the max being 100A
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=5779

Not sure if the link will work

 

[fuff66uk]

Ohh blimey it worked lol

 

[malcolm]

I think this is the welder: http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=5779 I'm not quite sure why they provide the 50 amp option.

I should try it on the 100 amp setting with 2.5mm or 3.2mm rods on some 3mm or 4mm steel and see how the rods are. If they work you can get some welding practice in.

I know there are some on here who will encourage you to tackle the Moggy bodywork with your nightmare setup but personally I'd suggest it might be easier asking on the forum if there could possibly be a setup a little more orientated towards that sort of work.

 

[Richiew]

Great welds George. As an absolute novice at arc welding I couldn't get away with the Aldi rods. I found a branded box helped me enormously, they were Bohlers.

I think it's easier for the more experienced to cope with the variable quality bottom end rods but I also think they are an unneccessary hurdle for someone just learning.

 

[GeorgeB]

I was unsure exactly what spec the machine was but Wozzaaah on here told me it's a wizarc 100,with 2 power settings the max being 100A

I don't know why they produced a machine with so little adjustment when machines that can go from around 35A - 130A or a bit less, are already quite low cost. It should work fine on metal of a thickness which coincidentally matches the two output settings. As already suggested you could test any rods on steel of around 3mm thickness. There's no way I'd suggest using that machine to restore a motor vehicle, though. The metal is much too thin. A MIG welder is the obvious choice, even though arc welding may be possible by using a machine like an inverter which can be turned down to low amperage settings.

 

[fuff66uk]

No disrespect to Malcom but i think you are getting me mixed up with someone else my friend,i don't own a moggy,i wish i did lol,i'm not planning on any bodywork repairs just building myself a trailer and various projects.I have a mig which i get on ok with but my arc set is a different story lol,i just wanted to be able to arc weld too

 

[Uniqueusername]

Definitely.
Practice with only the best rods and cleanest steel.
Once you're any good you won't settle for crappy rods and dirty steel LOL

The phrase "just for practice" make my blood boil, unless you really do want to practice crappy welds on rusty ****e that is !!

Oerlikon Fincord or Fincord M would make anyone look good.(lots of other makes just as good)

 

[weld_it]

the arc welder in the picture is the same one i have and i find it very difficult to weld the thiner steel on the min setting, 1mm to 2mm steel no chance it still blows through. 3mm to 4mm steel is ok using 2.5mm rods.

 

[snowcat]

On the subject of rods and I must get around to doing a bit in the arc welding Wiki, cheep rods are generally a no no...

Its not to say some will not run fine, however the major problem with these rods is consistency, there bought up from whoever so just because one box you buy comes from one place box no 2 does not...

White boxed electrodes however are generally different, In the Early's 00s I had a large stick job and would buy 6013 electrodes made by Lincoln boxed by BOC I must have ran around a ton of them and used to buy them for a little over a tenner a carton (3 boxes) a lovely rod right till the point BOC outsourced to china they honestly thought no one would notice.. they were crap... The trouble is novices tend not to notice faults caused by rods and immediately blame themselfs...

Learn with something decent (bohler, Lincoln, ESAB etc) then try a cheepy if you get on then all well and good but at least your know what to look for....

 

[TechnicAl]

On the subject of rods and I must get around to doing a bit in the arc welding Wiki, cheep rods are generally a no no...

Its not to say some will not run fine, however the major problem with these rods is consistency, there bought up from whoever so just because one box you buy comes from one place box no 2 does not...

White boxed electrodes however are generally different, In the Early's 00s I had a large stick job and would buy 6013 electrodes made by Lincoln boxed by BOC I must have ran around a ton of them and used to buy them for a little over a tenner a carton (3 boxes) a lovely rod right till the point BOC outsourced to china they honestly thought no one would notice.. they were crap... The trouble is novices tend not to notice faults caused by rods and immediately blame themselfs...

Learn with something decent (bohler, Lincoln, ESAB etc) then try a cheepy if you get on then all well and good but at least your know what to look for....

Excellent point.