Welding Rod Question

A friend gave Me 50lb unopened can of welding rods he fished out of a dumpster.1/8 7018-A1H4R. I know what 7018 means but what does A1H4R designate?
Ron

Check out the two links below. The first is one I found where the differences in a standard rod and the A1H4R are detailed, and the second is a page off of ESAB's site where it's mentioned as one classification of a certain rod they produce.

That said it appears that the basic difference, simplified, is the quality control used in making the rods as it pertains to the percentages of certain alloys used.
Link one

Link two

I dont know the meaning of the number , but have to ask ,what idiot would throw away an unopened box of welding rod with today's economic situation ,might not get his money back out of it but get something. Maybe the guy had more money than brains !!!!

I agree,,, prolly a state worker.

I used to do work for a major constrution firm that brought CONEX containers back from completed jobs and emptied them into the dumpster and/or scrap bin before loading them back up with brand new tools to send out on the next job. The reasoning was that everything in the box was already paid for by job one and therefore couldn't be used on job two because all of the supplies for job two had been figured in with the quote given to that customer. As a result everything left over from job one was considered disposible, and since they had money figured in to buy new stuff for job two, the 'used' stuff couldn't be used for job two...So, since everything from job one was thrown away, it then had to be replaced using funds from job two...... Stupid corprate thinking like that, that worked out to nothing but pure wasting of tools and materials for no really good reason, is one of the very reasons this country is in the shape it is now..........

I've seen tandem axel loads of brand new bearings brought into a scrap yard where the yard's owner had to sign an 'intent to destroy' form. I've heard tell of a locak yard having trucks from a well known company driven in and an individual from said company watching as the scrapper crushed the cab and engine block to insure the vehicle was destroyed. Same yard gets tools brought in from another major mfg. Again an intent to destry is required and anyone caught with one of the tools from the batch isimmediately fired.

In other words if you think someone throwing out an unopened box of welding rods is a big deal, you ain't seen nothing yet.

Isnt "state worker" a contradiction? Should be "state empoyee", work has nothing to do with it.

the other day a friend of mine wastelling me about this guy got a hold of 2 well used and abused Cat D-9's for the cost of transporting them off the job site . They were supposedly
1990's .the guy didnt try selling or parting out ,just sent them to scrap yard.Just went for the quick buck

(quoted from post at 00:36:29 02/11/12) A friend gave Me 50lb unopened can of welding rods he fished out of a dumpster.1/8 7018-A1H4R. I know what 7018 means but what does A1H4R designate?
Ron

Click to expand...

Is there a possibility that the seal is broken on the can which would lead to moisture contamination of the rod?
Low hydrogen rod can be touchy in that regard and may not be good enough to meet some specification for the job it was intended for.

For general purpose use, I would bake them in an oven at high temperature for a while, then happy welding!

Myron

I wish I could be that lucky.

even if you do get moisture in them, heat them to 275-300F for 4 hours and they are good as new.

hmmm, where was this dumpster? Maybe I should go for a drive.

That indicates the AWS standard it conforms to - AC or DC with positive electrode.

There is also a version of 7018 made for AC welders which probably has a different spec number.

Thanks Guys. I burned up a bunch of them this week repairing a bulldozer blade and an excavator bucket. I was curious, they did not act any different than any other 7018.
Wayne the Bucket on that FE20LC was thin We spent two days repairing it and still need to fix crack in dipper stick.

Ron

A1 is an alloy designator and equals .5% Mo
H4 is the maximum amount of hydrogen released by the process
and R is moisture resistant

The rods are for structural steel construction

Some manufacturers are putting more info on the packages now. All 7018 have an H rating, most are H4. The -1 basically means they have a little more strength/toughness than basic 7018 and the -A1 means it's done by adding .5% molybdenum. Some 7018 will say MR or LMP on the package. This stands for moisture resistant and low moisture pick up. Still a good idea to warm them in oven if they've been opened or could have been in a humid environment. What brand are they? They can pretty much be used anywhere you'd use 7018 or want something with the most strength.