Welding Tips and Tricks

Ok gang...Im seein light at the end of the tunnel...Started this am...Only had 2 5p++ & 2 red 6010's 1/8"...Left side was downhand right handed..(nice side) right side was uphand left handed(with the red rods..ugly side)..3/32 hot,fill & cap..Just kept weldin...It was smokin hot when I finished...Think thats why it undercut..Plus I wasnt holdin the toes long enuf..I'm just to shaky to free hand...I gota start takin the time to prop..Anyway..Im ok with it as little time I've been at this...I can't wait till I'm happy with it & my caps look like Dylans did..LOL..That was sweet....

Nicely done!

You'll see even better results when you can use a consistent batch of the same rod from start to finish.

Steve S

Thanks Steve...I know it needs tons of improvement ..But I'm learnin technique an all kinds a cool stuff..If I could just quit SHAKIN so much..I'm leanin towards free handin cuz I know thats the real world...I'm gona have to design some magnetic clamps with extensions on um....Thats my bag..TOOL makin...But..It is gettn way better from this( first attempt I posted)...I gotta learn to move faster & loosen up my DEATH grip in the stinger..Sometimes you get comfortable & it just flows....Now i just gota get to where its nota mater a life or death if they don't look perfect...Thats when it's gona come...I'm sure of it...With my short leads my machine burns HOT...That was at 70-80 amps..0 arc control...I never quenched so it was smokin hot as well...Just didn't wana stop...Does that put me in the obsessed lane???lol

Ahh, DGS... "Death-Grip Syndrome".

BIG problem for TIG. Common on stick.

Yeah, I can see effects from letting it all get too hot.

Patience, grasshopper... You're doing fine. You're rounding the learning curve.

Steve S

Yea..the tig starts out good..then ya start tensin up tryin to round the pipe..dippin ur tungsten..my griders about wore out..LOL..I will get this tho....I'm alternatin day to day..Tig,stick..It's comin..Jst not as fast as I want...I'm goin thru rods like theres no tomorrow...LOL..It's all part of "not settlin for second best" I guess.....The days not far off were its second nature..Cum oooon..That day. hahaha

Mike,
Pic 7, your root looks very good, except the tie in. A root is a hard one for a lot I weldors. As for the rest, you hit everything on the head, more practice and hold the sides. I actually was welding with my left hand yesterday 6G free hand just to get used to it. Won't post the pics though Actually didn't take any.
As always you are doing great!

thanks J....7 was cumn down the left side..Fumblin all over myself as usual..I cant W&P free hand..I KNOW THIS..an just keep doin it..Propin they look acceptable(to me) The INTERNAL reinforcement..Same thing..12 oclock..W&P...Then i thoughta bout a post of STEVES'...105-115 drag it down....When I sunk it & jst pulled.!!! I LIKE THAT...(thanks steve)Cumn off the tack was ugly..At least I see what happened now & can try somethinn diff..I gota look for the ID right side..The red rods ( & left handed burned diff)..Got some 5P's comin Mon & a LB of 1/16 309..I won't post the tig 1 3/8 SS pipe...yet....LOL..The little 12" SS rods..They ran nice around it though...Had it turned down to about 45-55 I think....Gota geta amp meter or some way of checkin line voltage..Numbers would be nice...AS ALWAYS..Thanks for the input guys..It's much appreciated

Nice welds mike. The final pass on a 6G you will almost always get undercut if you don't let it cool down a bit before you run it. That was one of my biggest problems for a long time. The undercut I was getting on my top pass was from not filling it up enough though. I took a friends advice and just started filling it all the way up before my cap and if I went over the bevel I'd just grind down to flush and make a line with a thin grinding disc so I can see where I'm supposed to weld through the smoke.
But yeah man you're making a ton of progress. I hate those red 6010s. They had us use them our first week or two in school. I stuck em like crazy, guess that's why it's called stick welding

Thanks Dylan....Im gettn comfortable for sure.....Atleast Im not in the dark anyore...im seein whats happenin with the welds...If they dont come out the way I want..I change it next time...Man...Howd you get those caps to look like they did....Those were SSSWEEEET.....I figure if I can get mine to look like that...I'll quit sweatin this....LOL...Yea those reds burn real eratic..some were hot..some cold..Some wouldn't even wana re-light...The 5p++ on the other hand were a dream..real consistant...Greenies need consistancy..To HELP figure things out...Post some more pics man....lol...

mike boyer wrote:Thanks Dylan....Im gettn comfortable for sure.....Atleast Im not in the dark anyore...im seein whats happenin with the welds...If they dont come out the way I want..I change it next time...Man...Howd you get those caps to look like they did....Those were SSSWEEEET.....I figure if I can get mine to look like that...I'll quit sweatin this....LOL...Yea those reds burn real eratic..some were hot..some cold..Some wouldn't even wana re-light...The 5p++ on the other hand were a dream..real consistant...Greenies need consistancy..To HELP figure things out...Post some more pics man....lol...

I know what you mean. I'm finding myself in a lot of very unorthodox positions welding at work and trying to figure out what works for me on those situations. For the welds I posted I had my settings on a lincoln invertec pro v 350 set on stick soft, arc control turned all the way down to -10 and my heat was at 88 amps. I've been just running two stringers instead of the one wide cap pass just to try different things. I think i like welding on crisp more than soft, but still trying to experiment with what works for me. I'm gonna stay after work tomorrow and do some 6g practicing and I'll post some pics from that ( if they turn out alright haha )

The latest report...Gona cap it tonight & tack another section to it....There's a tig & 6010 root shot in here...Everything needs work..But I'm happy with the day to day progress...The top 2" section I did in an hour am a half..Fit -up' 4 tacks.Grind tacks, 6010 root & hot pass,two 3/32 7018 fill passes...( and a quick shower..LOL)..How long do you get to finish this test ???...I read 3 hours...BTW.. BIG thanks to "MASTER PO" (lol) for the 6010 post...Today it went great except for blobbin to much on the tacks...I was blowin holes the first couple attempts...Johnathan got me thinkin bt the tie in on the root..( I figured out today I was runnin away from the puddle)..Slowed down and it went GREAT....I was BEAMIN...Man this is so cool..I'm lovin it...Big thanks to everyone who gave input...

Mike it looks to me like in some areas you need to push the rod in more when making your root pass.
I like 30-degree bevel. I use a 7/64 inch drill bit to set the gap. 0-land, at the most 1/16-inch land. I use 1/8-inch 5P-Plus, at 55-amps. Remember rod angle is a big help. If the gap closes up on you, point the rod in the direction of travel. This helps you cut in. If the gap gets too big, point the rod back on already deposited weld.
Remember to always weld the tightest gaps first, the gap will always close up on you as you make the root pass.

Shield Arc makes good points, but since this is great progress from where you were, and you're using a clearly different method, I'll say:

Looking good! The undercut seems to be gone from the top side, so the hot-pass has a real chance to burn out any bits of slag in the corners. The inside shot of the root, particularly the second pic, looks quite solid as well.

I think you've found a system that works for you and your welding style, and all you need is "hood time" to make it truly your own.

Steve S

It's been quite a few years since I've done 6-G 7018 cap. This is about as good as I can do.

Thanks again "Master PO"..LOL..Shield is right...When I saw the bead followin the rod & heard "THAT SOUND" for the first time, my brain went ape sh*%..LOL I lost focus..When I saw the arc comin back out, i stuck it back in..Good eye "CEP"...( you didn't think I missed that "figurin the pickin points a jelly donuts did ya???)..LMAO...It's all good bro..Your comment drove me to make dam sure I COULD do a 6G...LOL...Like I said..It's all good..ANYWHO..I'm 3/32 G&L..1/8 5P++..75 amps.( as close as I can figure with out a read out..(That 350 woulda been nice,but the 275 makes me stop an gauge the arc before I dive in on the pipe,Im sure that will come in handy on a strange machine)..The rod angle thing is a great point..RIGHT NOW..I'm playin by the rules I'll be tested with..Steve,Jonathon,Dylan,Arizona,Dave an all the others I can't remember everyone who gave input..Trust me..That stuff stuck..An I thinka bt it each time before I strick an arc....YOU GUYS have been my teachers..I did what MY brain said to do..( ya gota..to see if what ur thinkin is wrong..How can ya fix somethin if ya don't kno wats broke..right?) Then I'd try what I'd read..AN WWHHALA..I'm where I'm at now...Can't thank you guys enuf....Havin a hell of a time with undercut on the top bevel of my cap..I'm wantin um to look like Dylans...That BIG JUICY CATERPILLAR..lol..It's not heat,Cuz I waited till it was stone cold last nite to cap it..Only thing I can figure is arc length or rod angle...The bottom ties in beautiful..(gravitys workin for me).Maybe when I cross the "void" goin up to the top bevel arc length increases & it heats up..I'm holdin for crazy amounts a time to fill..(2-3-4 count,but it's still under cuttin)..I'll post some pics tonight..AS ALWAYS..Thanks guys

Mike,
Sorry for the delay. I see great improvement from your first pics to now. I really like your fill passes. You are correct, rod angle and long arcing have a great effect on your undercut. While there are several way to do a cover pass think about a 3G plate test. When going up on the cover, I (you) would keep the rod perpendicular to the plate with a slight lead and hold the sides for that count of 3-4. If one were to hold one side straight on and the other at a angle and/or long arc that side, one would get undercut on that side. This principle and thought applies to your pipe. Of course gravity defies you in the top of the weld and you have to compensate.
Your root is looking better. Once you figure out the "groove" for a root it will look even better.
I will try to run some 6" sch 80 tomorrow and post the pics, good or bad. You are doing great!
-Jonathan

Thanks J...means a lot comin from you...I did some tig today..A root & hot pass...it need improvement for sure bt im getn there day by day...Bn online lookin at pipe fittin courses...I think the welder/fitter (combo tig & stick guys) guys are high demand...I ran some SS pipe while I was at roxul..The math comes easy...Toolmaker/machinist ya gota be able to do the trig or ur lost.....I come out of the injector ran overhead an had to torch out thru 3 floors to get to the burner..plus I fabed up all the supports/hangers on the ceiling..and did the floor bracing supports on all three floors..Pics are on my phone..But my lame ass cant figure out how to get um from here to the forum....(gettn old & senile I guess)..lol

Mike,
Ok, not to proud if this but it is what it is. This shows that everyone has a off day. Or this is the best I can do I rushed to much setting it up an burned it straight out with absolutely no cool down time. I used the DC600 and have no idea what amperage anything was at. I think the root was 70-80 amps and the cover 80-95ish. The cover needed to be hotter but oh well. So, trying to simulate your stringers and I also tried to work on freehand, this is what I came up with. I normally do a weave cover as well. You will be able to point out my weld flaws this time . I also just go a 50lb box of 1/8" Lincoln LH 78 to try. I have found that I does great on very up but is a little rough on this 6G. I can tell a difference in it when it is out of the oven for a while. Prefer Excalibur I think.
-Jonathan

Covers,
-Jonathan

Jonathan,

You can call it an "off day", but I bet that weld still gets bought.

"Paid" is always a good day.

Steve S

Otto Nobedder wrote:Jonathan,

You can call it an "off day", but I bet that weld still gets bought.

"Paid" is always a good day.

Steve S

"Like"
-Jonathan

Maybe we should have a discussion about "bought"?

Many hands coming up will have no idea what this means.

Steve S

I like it Jonathan...And im certainly in no position to pick anything apart.....I'd love to have the luxury of 4-8" long coupons...Had to cut mine at 2" to get the most bevel out of the pipe.....I've got 75% of it welded back together...All my playins done.....The next group of picks are gna have to be the real deal.....Steve...On the subject of gettin "bought" I'm gona have to tell a story bout my uncle & a few others I'd worked for in Detroit...We were building Tooling,Jigs & Fixtures for the big 3..."Sometimes" the tolerances just weren't there...Inspectors would come to sign off on the stuff....It often happened on a friday for some strange reason..lol....Come monday..There were usually trucks & forklifts loadin stuff up...without ANY rework......The STORIES...followed by "PICTURES of the Bars,Booze & Ladys(to use the term generously) was a sure indication..No rework necessary...LOL....They BOUGHT um lock stock & barrel....LMAO....Oh the good ol days when this country & Detroit in particular was a manufacturing MECA...That looks like a huge facility Jonathan....Are you guys tooled up well???

Steve,
I think that is a good idea!

Mike,
Since we are a R&D facility we don't have a ton of equipment. Besides the normal things needed for welding and fabrication there is not much else there. We do have many things that average fab shops don't. Currently our facility is 60'x300' on 30 acres. The idea is to double the building in the next few years and our construction branch will have their buildings in the back. One thing that is nice is we are not afraid to spend money, if we need something we usually buy it. We have considered some CNC machines but for what we do it is more efficient to contract it all out. We do have a bandsaw and iron worker on the list but have not moved forward yet.
Our next project will be something to drool over. I won't be able to post much pics of it until it is out in the public but I have already mentioned what's in it before. We are working on a welding cell that will house two orbital mig welders along with a lot of other equipment. To date we expect to spend $1.2 million on one cell. What's really cool is we are looking into orbital laser welding for pipelines. I can't wait to get started. I have already started to order some on the smaller pieces.
Keep us posted on your welds, I get excited when I see you have posted.
-Jonathan

Sounds like you need to bring my old ass up there...I could use an OBI-WAN about now..I'm polishin my light saber daily.....LOL...I'd load up my 3 Kennedys..My mechanic tools..My welders..And my tooling ability...I know it wouldn't pay like the road dog gig(which I LOVE)..But learning is paramount right now...I think for the 3 weeks I've been doin this..I've come light years from where i was..But even further from where I'm wantin to go....Yea..Call me greedy..But i'm a tech sponge..I can't ever learn enuf...J ..Have you seen my tig post yet ????