general purpose welding rod???

Anonymous-0 · Jul 31, 2012

bought 50 welding rods about 10 years ago. Same time, I picked up a can of heavy rods thru the military system. My little welder is 230 volt and 70-145 amp. Nothing fancy, but gets me thru my little fixes and modifications that I need to do. Anyway, had to weld some today and used the last rod (of the 50). The big rods I got in the army can won't strike/keep a bead (too thick or too old???). Package the others came in was too worn and faded to read what they were and since I burned the last rod, I have nothing to compare.

So... the???

What should I look for in a good GP rod that will work in this range for me? No fancy welding...

Thanks, Dave

Geo-TH,In · Jul 31, 2012

If you weld rusty metal, like I do, try the 6011 or 7011. The 6011 seems to be easier to use.
George

MSS3020 · Jul 31, 2012

Dave, I have alot of diff. numbered rod but I usually reach for the 7018 and or 6013..

jon f mn · Jul 31, 2012

6013 is a good all around rod that is easy to use. It is good for light rust or thin paint. If you do just a bit of cleanup it will work good and is a bit easier to use. 6011 is a bit better if your metal is dirtier, but is harder to use than 6013. You can use 7018ac rod, but not regular 7018 because that has to use dc. 7018ac is also harder to use than 6013 but can be used when a low hydrogen rod is required like for cutting edges and such. Remember that most steel in farm machinery is only 43,000 lb strenght so for most things 70 series rods are unnecessary. Your old millitary rods may just be wet, put them in the oven on warm for an hour or so and try them then, they may work.

Ron in NS · Jul 31, 2012

Does this help?

Russ from MN · Jul 31, 2012

Lots of good advice here! We used to joke about
6011,called it a farmer rod, you could weld right
through cow $hit and it would hold!

wisbaker · Jul 31, 2012

I prefer 6013 and 6011, 6011 is a little harder to run but it "bites" deeper, this
is 2 of the rods they told us to keep in our "farmer's pack" for general ag use
when I took a welding class in college . The 7018 is nice but I know my
fabricators and millwrights only used it when they had clean or new metal, it
wasn't discussed in welding class, I only had luck with it running it over a 6011
root pass while welding pipe. The welding class told us 7024 was the third rod we
should keep in our pack, haven't used much and never saw any of it in industry. I
would speculate the 7024 I bought at the golf course 30 years ago is probably
still on the shelf.

Dave_Id · Jul 31, 2012

6013 was my favorite, but on my AC machine, I also, (if I remember right) used 7014. Layed down smooth, and stronger weld than the 6013. With my AC DC machine, I liked the 7018.

Geo-TH,In · Jul 31, 2012

Smelled good too

bison · Jul 31, 2012

7018 is an all purpose rod ,it'll eat trough rust and paint,makes strong welds but is a little finnicky starting..need experience and a DC welder.
7014 is an easy starting rod you can't go wrong with,tensile strenght is similar to 7018.
All i ever use is the above two.
I got no use for either 6011 or 6013 cause i only use DC

Janicholson · Jul 31, 2012

E-7014 Is a Iron Powder rod that lights like a sparkler, and stays lit even if touching the work (a preferred place as it sets a nice tidy arc length. If you twisted the stinger lead, and put a 7014 rod in contact with a plate of steel, then turned on the current, it would weld by itself till it ran out of rod, making a good bead. Do it. Jim

VADAVE · Jul 31, 2012

What's the military rod?
Welding rod will pick up moisture with time then just cook a little in the oven to dry em.

Anonymous-0 · Jul 31, 2012

Thanks folks!! Just ordered some thru amazon at half the price as they are here. Should have them next week.

jon f mn · Jul 31, 2012

Please let me know how that rod works out and where it's made if it says. I've heard that there is some cheap china rod out there that is poor quality and sometimes is not even labled right, meaning it may be marked 7018 and it's really 6011 or something. Not saying that's what you are getting, just curious. If it's good I may try it too.

chevytaHOE5674 · Jul 31, 2012

(quoted from post at 13:18:13 07/31/12)I got no use for either 6011 or 6013 cause i only use DC

I run tons and tons of 6011 on DC both straight and reverse polarity.....

Anonymous-0 · Jul 31, 2012

Have never seen 6010 listed as being a high
hydrogen weld content rod before. That doesn't
make sense as it used for X-Ray quality welds on
critical applications like pipelines and pressure
piping. General purpose rod is kind of a pointless
term. No one rod can is best for all applications.
It's best to have a few different rods for
different applications. For the strongest weld,
7018 is the rod of choice but if there's rust or
paint, a 6010/6011 is best. 7024 is just a 7014
with more iron powder for faster deposition rates
but is designed for flat and horizontal welding
only. It is a stronger rod than 6013. 6013 is
least preferred rod of experienced welders because
it produces the weakest weld.

Walt Davies · Jul 31, 2012

Dave I would upgrade to a180 or 250 amp welder yours is
good for very thin metal but if you get into anything 1/4 or
better you won't have enough heat.
Walt

GaryinKs · Jul 31, 2012

The best rod I have ever used is from Lagrange Supply, it is more expensive but well worth it.

Anonymous-0 · Jul 31, 2012

(quoted from post at 19:31:36 07/31/12) Dave I would upgrade to a180 or 250 amp welder yours is
good for very thin metal but if you get into anything 1/4 or
better you won't have enough heat.
Walt

I'll keep an eye out on ebay and around in case someone wants to throw one at me.... Don't use one enough to justify a new one......

general purpose welding rod???

Anonymous-0

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Geo-TH,In

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MSS3020

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Ron in NS

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