Thread: Need to settle on welding rods.......

I've got some Gemini 6013's and they run real nice but no good for vertical - like trying to weld with honey. Never used 7018's (too humid and too infrequent use, no oven). I also have some 6012's which I gather aren't too popular, but I'm not sure why because I've actually found them to be really good at just about everything including the occassional overhead. If I was to have just one pack lying around (for hobby use) I reckon it would be those. Cheers - Mick

hi,
Since its a long winded question, here's a long winded answer.

Its all about " fitness for purpose".

What do you do most of?

6010
These are a deeply penetrating electrode.From what I can glean from their boards the Americans ,I gather, use 6010 to burn through all sorts of crap they can,t be bothered cleaning off, ie rust ,dirt paint. Not best practice , but often used by the 'git er done' types.

6013 are an electrode for basic mild steel flat and HV use. They are not really best suited for vertical up as the flux (in liquid state is too runny to support the forming out of position weld.)

6012 are a far better choice to have on hand as a general purpose electrode meaning they can be used for Flat.HV fillet and vertical up and other positional.In other words they cover all bases in mild steel.

The Kobe Lb 52U's are a very specialised electrode for doing spot on root runs in higher tensile grade pipework.
You will not be happy going back from Kobe's to Ferrocraft 61's.

61LT's are a bit better to use with iron powder content, but still not as good as the Kobe's.

16TC,s are a good fill and cap rod again for LH , ie higher tensile work.There is nothing to say you can't use them for mild steel work,but it is overkill.

If you do mild steel work the majority of the time and still want the great finish like Satincraft give you ,try some Kobe RB26's you won't go back.

I have forgotten if you have an inverter welder or not .If you have stick with the cheaper 6012's and will get the satincraft type finish. If you want a show me ,sing out and I'll take some snaps.

cheers
Grahame

Thanks for the long winded answer
Some good tips there. I do weld mostly mild but the occacsion has arisen when
I need a LH rod. You may not remember but you are the one who helped me with rb-26 V up a short while back. I also appreciate the comment about the LB52-U rods but I was asking about the LB52-18 rods and how they compare to the Ferrocraft 61's but while we are on that subject, would you recommend 52-U rods over 16TC's?. I have a fair idea but wanted something concrete. And yes, I do have an Inverter welder.

Regarding the 6012 rods, any specific brands to try out other than Gemini?
I tried a box of Gemini 12 rods and gave them away. Just something I didn't like about them.

Originally Posted by Grahame Collins

The Kobe Lb 52U's are a very specialised electrode for doing spot on root runs in higher tensile grade pipework.
You will not be happy going back from Kobe's to Ferrocraft 61's.

If you do mild steel work the majority of the time and still want the great finish like Satincraft give you ,try some Kobe RB26's you won't go back.

I have forgotten if you have an inverter welder or not .If you have stick with the cheaper 6012's and will get the satincraft type finish. If you want a show me ,sing out and I'll take some snaps.

Originally Posted by distractor

would you recommend 52-U rods over 16TC's?
Not unless you wish to do root runs on tensile pipe. Tc's handle all position but not too flash on root runs

I have a fair idea but wanted something concrete. And yes, I do have an Inverter welder.

Regarding the 6012 rods, any specific brands to try out other than Gemini? No the cheapies I have are no name and run fine on the Fronios

Grahame

Originally Posted by distractor

Regarding the 6012 rods, any specific brands to try out other than Gemini? I tried a box of Gemini 12 rods and gave them away. Just something I didn't like about them.

You didn't like the result? or the way they handled?

Thanks Grahame.
Mick - I didn't like the way they handled.
So is the consensus 6012 for GP work and 7016 for special stuff or would 7018 be better suited?

Originally Posted by distractor

7016 for special stuff or would 7018 be better suited?

Better suited to what ?.Again you need to define the result you wish to achieve in selecting the electrode.

7016 & 7018 have exactly the same tensile strength (70 Mpa) but differ only in the flux make up.

Without having to look it up I seem to remember that 18's have a higher % of iron powder in the flux. That would would limit stuff like positional welding.

If you don't do a reasonable amount of Ht work its not really worth the cost and effort if you are fair dinkum as you need to re-dry them to remove moisture and keep them in a oven-little point if your not commercial.

There's is little point in using LH rods for strength application in mild steel as the tensile of the mild steel is your limit factor. The 70,000 Mpa bead will tear out of the 60,000Mpa parent mild steel.

If you are commercial you should have a good idea of what electrodes suit what application as law suits do tend to get expensive.
You need to jump on Google and call up the electrode brand pages and read through the descriptions. Print the ones you may use.

If home diy I would happily go with 6012 as they will satisfy all of your m steel needs.

The only application outside of industry I can think of for LH is for farmers weld on tractor draw bar and tillage equipment.The loads get quite high and higher strength steels are the norm hence LH rods.

Grahame

I find that 13's are good for a general purpose vertical up, alot better than 12's which are heaps better for vertical downs. But 16's are the best type of rod for out of position work unless u are wanting to go vertical down

Every rod will have an appeal to different people and obviously to the intended job. Preparation and application will always the dictate the final outcome of the weld and operator use. Ferrocraft 21 are a great all round rod for mild to medium strength steel WIA 16TC are also a great LH rod Every quality brand rod will have it's pros and cons and by that I mean you and I will have a different opinion on the same rod. If you become too picky you will never be happy with what ever rod you use.

Thanks for all the advice everyone.
I'm really not trying to be picky and I realsie every rod suits a certain job.
The 6012's i've used haven't been very good so that why I choose not to use them.
I just want to find 2 rod types that I can use in my regular welding routine. I may have to just stick
with Kobe RB-26 rods for GP work because they ARE great rods but I like using LH types as much
as possible because they just feel better to use and the puddle is usually easier to see. I know they are overkill but atleast I don't have to question my own weld quality because there may be slag inclusions from using the 6013's.
I think I might just try some Kobe LB52-18 7018 rods and see how they go.
If they go ok I will settle on RB26 and LB52-18's
I store my LH rods in 90mm PVC tubes with rubber sealed end caps conatining little bags of
MgSO4 crystals so they should stay pretty dry. Obviosuly not for code work though......