Welding Tips and Tricks

Using google you can find out what any of the stick electrode classification designators mean. But not allot of information on how it affects the way they run or the characteristics of the weld. This as well as the different grades of electrodes from different manufacturers. I would like to see a detailed breakdown of several different types. Arc shots showing the weld puddle, slag removal, what the weld looks like, and break test of some sort on a basic fillet weld to determine breaking force. I saw your video on Excalibur 7018 versus Hobart 7018. But can we take that a bit further?
There are allot of different Lincoln 7018 rods and allot of different Hobarts. Also Home Depot sells Forney and its far cheaper than both Lincoln and Hobart. You could expand to Weldcote or any other manufacturers as well.
But my primary interest is in how the different grades within each manufacturer performs. There is the Lincoln 7018 you get on the shelf at Lowe's, then Excaliber and Jetweld and several others. How do they differ from a technical aspect as well as from a garage hobbyist perspective?

For example lets just focus on 7018 rods that you can get at major box stores of most welding supply:
Lincoln
Excalibur 7018 MR (AWS 7018 H4R)
JetWeld LH-70 (AWS E7018 H4R)
Jet-LH 78 MR (AWS E7018 H4R)
Excalibur 7018-1 MR (AWS E7018-1 H4R)
Lincoln 7018 AC (AWS E7018 H8)
Hobart
Hobart 18AC (AWS E7018 H8)
Hobart 718MC (AWS E7018 H4R)
Soft-Arc 7018-1 (AWS E7018-1 H4)
Hobart 418 (AWS 7018-1 H4R)
Hobart 7018 XLM (AWS 7018-1 H4R)
Forney
Forney E7018AC
Forney E7018

Where would each be useful. And not just for AC or DC. Run the electrodes on each polarity that is suggested. How does it compare of AC versus DC or DCEN versus DCEP.
Often times i am shopping the internet, farm auctions, craigslist ect. for deals on electrodes just so i can get more practice. But that being said i don't mind paying a couple dollars more for a box of Excalibur 7018-1 MR if they are going to run better and produce a stronger weld than a run of the mill 7018.
Especially things like these:
Excalibur 7018 MR (AWS E7018 H4R)
JetWeld LH-70 (AWS E7018 H4R)
Jet-LH 78 MR (AWS E7018 H4R)

On paper they all seem the same. Whats the difference in the electrodes?

This could also be done with 6010/6011 comparing, fleetweld 180, 35, 35LS, 5P, 5P+ and how they all differ.

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/sti ... -rods.html

That is a good starting resources. The different electrodes within a brand like excalibur and millenium is just essentially small variations in composition to make a more stable arc and easier arc to start. With these variations it tends to be more based on experience and preference. Generally the bigger brands like Lincoln and hobart are better and forney and the lesser brand sare more home hobby use it seems to me. Same with mig wire and flux core wire. Some companies do a little cheating to make a cheaper product. For a small railing system or something this is no problem but pipelines are a different story. Depends on the job mostly which to use though. Hope this helps.

-Nick

Welding can be very personal and some people like rods their friends don't.

Try a few and see if the small variations matter to you.

I like Lincoln and Washington Alloy better than Hobart for stick. But that's just me

I mean I like Hobart for 6013s and 7014s and 6011s but Lincoln for 7018s. Its gonna be expenxsive but you will find one you really like eventually. Eventually you will find a rod that starts really easy for you and is perfect for you and you can stop looking if you find ¨the one¨

So far i have 3/32" Lincoln fleetweld 37 (6013), 3/32" Weldcote (7018), 3/32" Lincoln Fleetweld 180 (6011), and 1/8" Hobart 418 (7018). The 1/8" Hobart 7018 runs like butter. They lay down a beautiful weld and will run with a very tight arc or even dragging the flux on the base metal.
The problem is i have so many types and sizes its hard to determine if its the brand that i like or just that size and type of electrode. Guess i just need to spend more money and buy more electrodes till i figure it out.
I am thinking about getting some of the forney 7018s. I can get them $23.21 for 10# at Home Depot. The Hobart are $29.99 for 10# at Tractor Supply and $24.99 at rural king. The Lincoln Excalibur is $37.89 for 10# at Lowes. So if the Forney will run ok they are the cheapest choice. But i hear the Excalibur run the best. That is one of the reasons why i would like to see some comparison. The Lincoln Jet-LH 78 MR-RSP 7018 are $10.25 for 5# at weldingsupply.com. Which makes them even cheaper until you figure shipping.
The whole -1, -A1, MR, N... I would love to see how the puddle, slag removal, and strength differs between them.

Does anybody have an opinion on pinnacle rods? It does not seem like their 6010, or 7018 burn nearly as nice as the Lincoln excaliburs, but not sure if thats just me.

FireKracker50 wrote:So far i have 3/32" Lincoln fleetweld 37 (6013), 3/32" Weldcote (7018), 3/32" Lincoln Fleetweld 180 (6011), and 1/8" Hobart 418 (7018). The 1/8" Hobart 7018 runs like butter. They lay down a beautiful weld and will run with a very tight arc or even dragging the flux on the base metal.
The problem is i have so many types and sizes its hard to determine if its the brand that i like or just that size and type of electrode. Guess i just need to spend more money and buy more electrodes till i figure it out.
I am thinking about getting some of the forney 7018s. I can get them $23.21 for 10# at Home Depot. The Hobart are $29.99 for 10# at Tractor Supply and $24.99 at rural king. The Lincoln Excalibur is $37.89 for 10# at Lowes. So if the Forney will run ok they are the cheapest choice. But i hear the Excalibur run the best. That is one of the reasons why i would like to see some comparison. The Lincoln Jet-LH 78 MR-RSP 7018 are $10.25 for 5# at weldingsupply.com. Which makes them even cheaper until you figure shipping.
The whole -1, -A1, MR, N... I would love to see how the puddle, slag removal, and strength differs between them.

Hello, I'm Gabby with Forney Technical Services. We benchmark our electrodes against Lincoln and Hobart and ours do run a little bit different. Our 7018 wets out a little bit better, has low spatter and easy slag removal. It doesn't dig as much as others but overall it's a good choice and a good value. Let me know what you think!