Arc welding issue

[mr ilia]

I recently acquired beginners arc welding machine.
It is 110v and rated 20% @ 50amps and 10% @ 70 amps duty cycle. recommended rod size is 1.6mm - 2.0mm.
I got general purpose rods made my Lincoln sized 1.6mm.

Here is the issue. The completed weld (bead) will break, two connected parts will not hold together and will break apart.

What am I doing wrong? :???:

[mrsleeve]

Not enough heat. your getting NO penetration into the parent metal. or your rods are not comparable with your parent materiel

[Zreberlcoe]

Arc welding? Is this really used anymore I did it in Metals class and I thought everyone mig tig or whatever else.

[AndrewBird]

Arc welding is generally reserved for thicker metal. MIG and TIG and limited when it comes to welding heavy stuff.

Got any pictures of your welds?

[mrsleeve]

Arc welding? Is this really used anymore I did it in Metals class and I thought everyone mig tig or whatever else.

Ummmmmm yeah, SMAW is still a main stay in construction and one site field welding. you cant GMAW or Heliarc in the field very well at all.

[mr ilia]

This is the one i bought.
Other than a safery gear, do I need any other accessories to start welding?



Link to the product http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

[325ix]

Ummmmmm yeah, SMAW is still a main stay in construction and one site field welding. you cant GMAW or Heliarc in the field very well at all.

I was gonna say, I just saw some guys doing it the other day at my school when building a large frame out of what looked to be 4x4 posts.

[$hane]

The problem with MIG and TIG in the field is the wind blows your shielding gas away. To the OP it sounds like your not getting any penetration. Feed a little faster and crank that sucker.

[mr ilia]

Here are the examples of my welds.
I was trying to join 2 pieces of metal (mild steel?), once beed is run, both would seem to hold on, but if you force them apart, they would break up easy.
Most of the weld would remain, but the weak link is the actual weld that will crack and separate.

The pictures show the effect after the break, I did brush off some black residue...

I'm not sure why it is not holding up.

[Varinn]

What exactly are you trying to weld there

[AndrewBird]

Your technique is horrible. I'm guessing you just dragged the rod along slowly? You need to move in a zig zag motion and move much slower. All you are basically doing right now is melting globs of metal onto what you are welding rather then melting the two pieces together. Check for videos on YouTube. That should get you in the right direction.

[mrsleeve]

Looks like you not letting a puddle build up and flow, and are getting a SHIT PILE of slag and gas trapped in there. You trying to goober it in there too fast, and not filling the void with filler metal. Your not using a proper motion and actually welding, all your doing is making a mess. Looks like piss poor surface prep to go with it.

You want to get a puddle of weld metal to form and and then start moving and the molten metal will follow the rod, and the flux will melt away and rise to the top. If your going too fast or not hot enough, you will trap lots of slag, (flux) and gas in the weld because it wont have time to rise to the top before the metal cools. this is why you have no strength in the weld.

[mr ilia]

Thanks guys, I will try again on the weekend and will post the results.

Yes, I'm horrible now, but only practiced welding several times in my life.