HELP! Miller welder

[Da dog man]

+1 for atom arc. That's all the local 502 uses. Runs much much better than Excalibur

 

[Al Smith]

In this conversation iron powder such as 7014 and 7024 have not been mentioned .7014 is supposed to be all position and 7024 flat only . One more 7028 is the lo-hi version .These rods while not deep penetration can really lay down the deposit rates and leave down a really smooth finish .However it needs to be clean metal and usually are only found in industrial facilities . I usualy have a 5 pound box of 7014 at the house and a lot of large boxes ,50 pounds at the shop of iron powder .All in 1/8"size .Another thing of being in the right place at the right time with a pocket full of money .

 

[Al Smith]

To the above let me explain during the late 80's and the recessionary period this area of Ohio was dubbed the "rust belt " literally hundreds of smaller machine shops found themselves in a vortex .Most of them where forced to just close up .The resulting auction sales provided a means for people like myself could stock up on machines,tooling ,raw materials for scrap prices or less .Now granted most of the machines were 50 plus years old but to people like myself would not make a difference if they had been made during the Cival war .If you know how to use them they work just fine .---old school Al---

 

[lehman live edge slab]

In this conversation iron powder such as 7014 and 7024 have not been mentioned .7014 is supposed to be all position and 7024 flat only . One more 7028 is the lo-hi version .These rods while not deep penetration can really lay down the deposit rates and leave down a really smooth finish .However it needs to be clean metal and usually are only found in industrial facilities . I usualy have a 5 pound box of 7014 at the house and a lot of large boxes ,50 pounds at the shop of iron powder .All in 1/8"size .Another thing of being in the right place at the right time with a pocket full of money .

Used lots of what we called “jet rod” 7024 for welding bar joists down and large rods of 7024 for stack caps at the mines. 1/4” 7024 on 1 1/2” plate sections.

 

[fredx]

I would say a 100W is more than enough- 60-75W would do. All thats needed is to keep moisture out, otherwise pallets of rods in warehouses would have to be heated and they arent. When I did QC welds @ the nuke, there was always paperwork that went along with checking out rods from the cal lab, they were documented as far a batch s/n - what heater they came out of and what the oven temp was. All a hobiest needs is moisture free rods , except for 5P as previously stated.

 

[lehman live edge slab]

I would say a 100W is more than enough- 60-75W would do. All thats needed is to keep moisture out, otherwise pallets of rods in warehouses would have to be heated and they arent. When I did QC welds @ the nuke, there was always paperwork that went along with checking out rods from the cal lab, they were documented as far a batch s/n - what heater they came out of and what the oven temp was. All a hobiest needs is moisture free rods , except for 5P as previously stated.

We usually had to sign the certified rod out and a portable 5 lb rod oven.

 

[Al Smith]

Right after I graduated from HS I was a welder at Baldwin -Lima -Hamilton that made heavy cranes etc. under the Lima brand .It was not uncommon to burn a 50 pound box of 3/16" and 7/32 " jet rod every day ,depending on the job . I ended up welding crane booms that were all xrayed and welded with 7018 mostly 5/32" .It's only a miracle I didn't burn my lungs out . I was a welder long before I was an electrician and I never forgot how .

 

[Al Smith]

I might make mention of a rod many people have never seen ,6020 ,It's essentualy 6010 with extra thick flux covering used for deep filet welds on mild steel . It runs hot and will fill around 3/4" to 1 inch deep filets .The extra flux floats any inpurities present and like 6010 easy flux removal .Back in the day ,late 60's early 70's I used a 600 amp Jackson stinger that had a hand shield and 4/0 lead .It still got so hot I had to alternate between two stingers .It was miserable job . 3/16" 6020 was at over 300 amps . I have seen but never used 6020 in 3/8" size used long before submerged arc was ever even thought of .

 

[fredx]

I might make mention of a rod many people have never seen ,6020 ,It's essentualy 6010 with extra thick flux covering used for deep filet welds on mild steel . It runs hot and will fill around 3/4" to 1 inch deep filets .The extra flux floats any inpurities present and like 6010 easy flux removal .Back in the day ,late 60's early 70's I used a 600 amp Jackson stinger that had a hand shield and 4/0 lead .It still got so hot I had to alternate between two stingers .It was miserable job . 3/16" 6020 was at over 300 amps . I have seen but never used 6020 in 3/8" size used long before submerged arc was ever even thought of .

4/0 lead had to be heavy & pretty tiring

 

[Bill G]

Used lots of what we called “jet rod” 7024 for welding bar joists down and large rods of 7024 for stack caps at the mines. 1/4” 7024 on 1 1/2” plate sections.

Almost 30 years ago when I was teaching welding I had a kid named Bobby C. that just kept sticking the rod. No matter how much I worked with him he just never could grasp it. The welding supply salesman dropped off a 50lb box of 5/32 7024 and told me to try that with him. He claimed no matter how dense someone was they would not stick it.................wanna bet. I got the kiddo through and at the start of every new class I told them that if they could not get the hang of it quick I would break out the "dummy rod"

 

[fredx]

we pretty much called 6013 the dummy rod, a totally useless rod in my opinion other than they are cheap and good for beginners to start with. Would never use them in the field, nor any of my home projects either

 

[lehman live edge slab]

we pretty much called 6013 the dummy rod, a totally useless rod in my opinion other than they are cheap and good for beginners to start with. Would never use them in the field, nor any of my home projects either

Only thing I’ve used 6013 on is a couple cracked mower decks when I didn’t have a wire feed handy. 1/16” 6013 was what I used to fix them and it was fine for that.

 

[Al Smith]

We called 6013 as "farmer rod ".It has some usage such as mentioned on mower deck repair etc .on basically thick sheet metal .Smallest I've ever used was 3/32" .I don't own a wire feed or TIG set up so it's either farmer rod or gas .With gas you can weld just about any thing .My faverite internet thing was me welding two tin cans together to shut up a couple of California smart azzes .Took some doing with an 00 tip and tie wire .Try that some time with a very short flame less than a 1/4" .Takes a very steady hand . Although I must admit it took me several tries until I got a good one .

 

[Al Smith]

Now then gas welding . These days with wire feeds it's almost a lost art .I've been at salvaging old junk since I was a teenager .Things like repairing rusted out rear tractor rims because of using liquid ballast for 40 years will eventually rust them through . Any more I just drain the calcium chloride out and air it up then use the ballast for weed killer .If you do that make sure you a use plastic sprayer because that stuff will rust a metal sprayer up .

 

[Bill G]

we pretty much called 6013 the dummy rod, a totally useless rod in my opinion other than they are cheap and good for beginners to start with. Would never use them in the field, nor any of my home projects either

I am not a fan of 6013 for experienced weldors but it was a good rod to use on AC machines from a teaching standpoint. It allowed a student to lay down a bead and work on a "row of dimes". It will stick quicker than 6011 but I also had them use 6011 as that is more applicable to field welding on dirty material.

 

[Al Smith]

I think in the matter of fast freeze rods it's more a preference regarding availibility and experance .I mean you're pizzing in the wind if you try 6010 with a buzz box . Frankly a buzz box is the usual type of machine you find on the farm .However in some industrial applications the use of big old Lincoln 400 amp AC machines were used .They were just limited to the type rods used .On certain rods like 6011-12-13 7024 etc they do just as good as a DC machine plus you don't have the DC blow effect .On industrial work it's often repitious ,same old stuff day after day ,boring work .

 

[fredx]

Work in a industrial powerplant is seldom boring and rarely repeditive-maybe so in a industrial fab shop

 

[Al Smith]

To clarify . Industries like for example fabrication of heavy military trucks,cranes etc are done in an assembley line style of work .This involves often of smaller weldments being fabricated outside of the actual main assembley .I might add it has been decades since I did that and then only for a short period of time .All I can say about that is for the time period it paid well .Meaning $3.00 per hour .However when I started my apprenticeship in the IBEW I got a raise to $4.28 as a first year apprentice .Long time ago when the minimun wage was $1.25 .Fifty years later I was making over $37 an hour when I retired at 70.5 years old .

 

[Al Smith]

In my perspective as a rule most small fab shops and small manufactors being mostly non union a production welder by comparison still doesn't pay as well as a union skilled trades welder .Just the way it is like it or not . I'm not saying the fab shop welder is any less qualified just the way it works out .

 

[Bill G]

The union Deere guys will leave Deere to go to job shops here.