Thread: MMAW... What is it i'm supposed to be doing?

The way I use to teach persons that want to learn arc welding, is to strike the arc, then hold the rod at about 45 degrees in the direction of travel and vertical sideways, let the rod burn at its own pace with a tiny bit of down ward pressure. This is to get the speed right, too fast and you get bird sh.., too slow and you get holes, practice on 5-6mm thick steel. You may need to alter the settings to get a good result, work from directions on the packet, initially go to the higher side of middle of suggested amperage. This will vary from welder to welder, as will extension cords if used etc Once they were able to run the arc consistently, then I'd get them to hold the tip of the electrode (about the thickness of the wire part of the rod) away from the metal and see how they went. To start, set your arms against your side, with your hands holding the electrode holder to form a triangle, this will help to get a neat weld, otherwise you will form a wide bead from the shakes. If you can get the weld slag to peel off like a scorpions tail, pat yourself on the back, for you've done an excellent weld. Always remove the slag (welding slag that is) before trying to lay a bead next to it, may need a chipping hammer and wire brush.
You won't become a welder overnight, as it takes a lot of practice. After 40+ years of welding, if I don't pick up a welder for about 2 months my welds look like crap.
Hope this helps.
Kryn

In theory the object is to keep the burning rod at the optimum distance and keep a puddle of molten metal moving along the line of weld.

Think of the rod as a pipe that hoses hot metal and makes a puddle.

After the initial scratch to start the weld, the rod should not contact the metal job surface.

without the puddle there is no penetration and thus no weld strength.

cheers

Would there be a Forumite close that could slip around to SilhoetteV8 and give him some hands on advice?
From the Soundman and KBspensNmore hints one can practice but to have someone at hand to give a critique of a weld is priceless.
A mate showed me 40 odd years ago what to do and was very hard with his comments, but it made me (still today) examine each weld and then I would try harder to get a better weld.
Today I had to make 6 doovers using 10 mm rod. I made up a jig which simplified things a lot but it was still hard to get enough weld to fuse the parts together. It sure is easier to weld 6 mm plates together.
Its such a great skill to use because you can employ the welder to do all sorts of projects.
The main thing with welding???......practice practice practice and practice some more. (Just a note for the future......don't build that box trailer project for another year)

Originally Posted by slhouetteV8

For example when the base metal melts and the electrode sinks in. Should I be dipping the electrode into the weld pool or not? One way I've been doing it is dipping , pull back, then dipping again as the base metal melts. The other is to move slower so the base metal is always melting without the slight pause.

Technique: as Kryn said. I'd add that, being comfortable is important, bracing your arm so you're not shaking and starting with short runs initially helps. If you start to burn through because your puddle is getting out of hand, you can whip the rod forward slightly to take the heat out the puddle and then quickly back to the puddle (or the reverse). Not huge movements, subtle but responsive to what you're seeing. Keep a short arc, but don't have the electrode tip wading around in the molten slag. Keep a consistent, short arc length.
Settings: Since you're keeping a short arc, you'll find that you can actually run higher amps than if you had a long arc. This helps because it makes arc starting easier and virtually eliminates electrode 'sticking'. Experiment with amperage, you'll soon find a happy medium between cold (hard to start, sticking, no penetration, narrow bead) and too hot (out of control, melt throughs, huge molten puddle.).

Thanks Mick, it has been some time since trying to teach welding, quite a few tips that I'd forgotten.
Regards
Kryn