Welding Tips and Tricks

Any suggestions on getting this cover looking better? 2 inch 6g test in 3 weeks. Thanks, Gary

Welcome, Gary,

It looks (and I admit it's hard to diagnose from just a picture) like you're moving too slow across the middle of the bead. If you're going to weave (and I prefer to), you need to focus your time on the sides, and whip quickly across the middle. Slow motion from one side to the other builds up the center of the weld, and the heat concentrated there makes the time you spend on the sides add more to the middle while you're waiting for the toes to fill. The tighter you can keep your arc the narrower that hot zone will be. You'll need to find the rhythm that works for you but a rule of thumb to start from is to hold one side as long as it takes you to say, "one, two", then move very quickly to the other side and repeat. Now, if you have a Savannah, GA drawl, or a New York snap to your speech, adjust accordingly...

It also helps (especially in a test) to take any measure permitted to prop your arms comfortably so you have full control. In the field, you will often freehand and even one-hand it, but tests are about taking out all the variables that can screw you up.

More advice will show up, I've no doubt, and other eyes may see something I don't. Be patient; We don't move at a facebook pace here.

Steve S

Greatly appreciate the advice! Will give it a go. Root passes are fine(easy to see where I'm going) cover passes are a struggle

I'm doing the same thing right now. What part of the pipe are we looking at in this picture? i.e. top, bottom, side, etc.

Golfnut7777 wrote:... Root passes are fine(easy to see where I'm going) cover passes are a struggle

That statement is informative. Seeing where you're going on the cap relies on making sure your fill pass(es) don't break the edges of the prep (bevel). You want your fill passes to stop just short of complete fill, so you still have a sharp clean edge to see when you cap. Failing this, you can always use your wrap-a-round and a soapstone or silver-streak to draw lines to follow.

Steve S

Thanks again for the advice. This is from the bottom view. The good news is it at least looks like stringer beads, the bad, they look a little rough. Tried the 1,2 count stalling a bit at the top. The first pic starting the post is a side view. Any critique greatly appreciated. Thanks again, Gary

The only thing that immediately comes to mind is to get your heat down as much as possible to avoid that undercut. Pause where your puddle is about 1/16 over the top line, add a generous amount of filler, and swivel down quickly with the understanding that the middle and bottom will take care of themselves. While you're paused, you should be able to see the metal adequately fill the top. You're only allowed 1/32 of undercut on most weld tests, which is about as much as a fingernail.

I know you said that you had the root down, but understand that you're only allowed up to 1/8 extension and 1/16 recess. They are usually pretty strict and won't even allow you to continue the weld if the root is within parameters.

This is a 6G pipe I did recently. You can get it to cooperate if you get that dip and swivel down. Same thing applies if you stack beads as well. Just wanted to show you an example.

Good luck Gary.

Ryan_82 wrote:This is a 6G pipe I did recently. Good luck Gary.

Nice looking weld Gary.

Think the op was a stick weld. Isn't that last pic a tig? Nice cover though.

Poland308 wrote:Think the op was a stick weld. Isn't that last pic a tig? Nice cover though.

I couldn't really tell since it was cleaned with a wire wheel. I should have been able to, kind of tired. Same principles though. I'm trying to find a stick picture I've done but having trouble uploading it.

edit:

Here it is Gary. Make sure you carry your puddle 1/16 over the line keeping a very tight arc. If you long arc, the volts will increase trying to connect the circuit and dig out more metal than you're putting in. Also try to be about as cool as possible, the base metal and your amps. I did this cap at about 78 amps with the dig controls set very low. It's at 6G so it took me a long time to eliminate the undercut.

LtBadd wrote:

Ryan_82 wrote:This is a 6G pipe I did recently. Good luck Gary.

Nice looking weld Gary.

Is this a joke? It's one student trying to help another out. If only I had the capabilities of contributing as much as you to this thread.

Appreciate the help everyone! On a 2 inch 6g test do most do cover passes in quarters or do u guys do 1/2 the pipe? I'm welding it in quarters.

I do about halfway on my easy side and then try to go over 1/4 on my hard side. Leaving me room to reposition so I can finish up the side and just over the top. Try to offset your start/stop points from one stringer to the next.

LtBadd wrote:

Ryan_82 wrote:This is a 6G pipe I did recently. Good luck Gary.

Nice looking weld Gary.

Oops I meant Ryan,

I passed my pipe test! Thanks for the tips! Now to get hired somewhere.

Congratulations, Golfnut!

What part of the world are you looking for work in?

Steve S

Is the 6g test with 5/32 6010 root and 3/16 8010 fill and cap? All down hill? What is the best height to practice with? 4 or 5 foot off the ground or does it matter? I was going to get some 6 inch schedule 80 to practice. How much gap? How big a bevel? Sorry for all the basic questions, never been to welding school, but did a lot of single pass 1/8 7018 before. I did pretty good with vert up and overhead. Plan to take the 6g test soon. Lot of good info on this forum. Just getting started with it. Thanks in advanced for any advice from the pros.

ctmaybury wrote:Is the 6g test with 5/32 6010 root and 3/16 8010 fill and cap? All down hill? What is the best height to practice with? 4 or 5 foot off the ground or does it matter? I was going to get some 6 inch schedule 80 to practice. How much gap? How big a bevel? Sorry for all the basic questions, never been to welding school, but did a lot of single pass 1/8 7018 before. I did pretty good with vert up and overhead. Plan to take the 6g test soon. Lot of good info on this forum. Just getting started with it. Thanks in advanced for any advice from the pros.

The context tells me this was most likely 1/8" 6010 root, and 3/32" 7018 out. This is small-bore training & testing for pressure pipe, not pipeline stuff.

Steve S

Ryan_82 wrote:The only thing that immediately comes to mind is to get your heat down as much as possible to avoid that undercut. Pause where your puddle is about 1/16 over the top line, add a generous amount of filler, and swivel down quickly with the understanding that the middle and bottom will take care of themselves. While you're paused, you should be able to see the metal adequately fill the top. You're only allowed 1/32 of undercut on most weld tests, which is about as much as a fingernail.

I know you said that you had the root down, but understand that you're only allowed up to 1/8 extension and 1/16 recess. They are usually pretty strict and won't even allow you to continue the weld if the root is within parameters.

This is a 6G pipe I did recently. You can get it to cooperate if you get that dip and swivel down. Same thing applies if you stack beads as well. Just wanted to show you an example.

Good luck Gary.

Now, that's a nice cap. what diameter is the pipe?