DC Welding

I tried my first DC arc welding today, I was welding 1/8 steel at 150 amps with 6011. The arc seemed smoother and filled in better. I do not know how penetration was, but seemed OK. I was really trying to fill in some holes that AC just seemed to make bigger.

Please leave comments on AC/DC welding regarding what you think.

Try out some 6010 rods, you might like those better than the 6011's

On DC I would NEVER use a 6011 rod but then I never use 6011 for any thing. Me I would have used a 7018 rod and had a better stronger weld. As for penetration one should be able to look at the back side of what you weld and see exactly where the bead is on the front side due to what heating does and leaves you a sort of picture. As for AC or DC DC is the batter of the 2 types of weld for most any thing

I haven't used AC for years.. When stick welding DC is the only way

I really appreciate the comments, I did like the way that the DC welded, and wonder why I waited this long to try it.

BTW, I do not have any 6010, will have to get some.

Should I get some 7018 to try, or get better first?

There is no one size fits all rod. I keep both 6011 and 7018 handy. Root pass in rusty junk is best with 6011. Reaching deep down into a narrow space that is barely wider than the rod works best with 6011 because it builds up less slag. Galvanized pipe ( yes, I know) welds best with 6011. 7018 is stronger and is the better choice everywhere else. I'm talking about regular old farm welding.

It was always my understanding that 6011 was better suited or meant for AC. I find it particularly useful for inverted welding (using AC).

How many years have you been welding? 40 years ago, no one ever welded with 7018, every one welded with either 6013 or 6011. In my opinion either one work just fine for ordinary farm repair welding. You just have to know how to use either.

was just talking to neighbor about that, i've never used DC and he told me it's alright but mig went on smooth as butter.....

I also like dc, and my old buzz box stick welder, I could never get use to wire welder, my buddy just bought a snap-on wire feed with gas, cost $$$ but seems to work great, I can't remember the name on it, but it's a snap-on.
I also like 6011 rod.

don't use 6011 on a dc machine? I guess ive been doing things wrong for the last 35 years. I never would have guessed

6010 and 6011 are equivalent welding rod, 6010 is intended for DC and 6011 for AC. The 60 in each refers to 60,000 psi tensile strength for the weld metal.

7018 is low hydrogen rod, intended for welding high alloy steels while avoiding weld cracking due to dissolved hydrogen in the liquid weld metal. That hydrogen can collect and crack the weld upon cooling. Since some farm machinery can include high strength steel, the 7018 is a good rod and can be useful. 70 refers to 70,000 psi tensile strength of the weld metal.

7018 must be kept dry for it to provide low hydrogen properties. That means using fresh out of the sealed box, or keeping it in a temperature controlled rod heater. Old refrigerator with a light bulb inside is a poor alternative but better than no protective storage at all.

7018 not stored properly is as good as 6011 but without the low hydrogen properties. 7019 is not good for just any alloy.

The best rod for welding unknown high strength materials is a stainless steel rod, E309. E308 is a poor substitute but still good for lots of dissimilar metal welds. It is worth keeping a little E309 around for things like a high strength axle or forging repair on equipment less than 40 years old. Alloy steels are much stronger than plain steel but cost only a little more, so have been used by manufacturers for many years to save money. Repairs may be wise with a good welding rod.

Old spring steel can be easily welded with 6011 without failure so long as it is preheated to 400 degrees or so immediately prior to welding, and kept from cooling quickly after welding. I've done lots of successful Farmall drawbar repairs with 6011 this way.

(quoted from post at 18:15:23 01/10/16) was just talking to neighbor about that, i've never used DC and he told me it's alright but mig went on smooth as butter.....

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MIG is like squirting hot butter. But if the weld joint is not ground shiny bright before welding, you may get a very pretty weld with no penetration. First MIG we ever did was on new structural steel. Made some beautiful welds but most of the welds were only welded to the mill scale on one side or the other. Welds would fall off taking the mill scale with them. MIG on clean materials is great.

Well I started welding when I was 16 so been welding for over 40 years. Never have liked 6011 and never will but then I also did welding for a living and was taught by some that well lets just say it there weld went bad the ship might have sunk or the pipe line with oil might have made one heck of a spill

I did bridge welding in the 1980s and the big old gas powered welders all where DC. They just did such a smooth job running a weld. I use DC when ever I can, it just is a superior weld to me.

7018 can and will test your skill level since it tends to be harder to strick and carry an arc. I use it all the time on an AC machine but I buy 7018AC rod. But then again I have also been welding since I was 16 years old and taught by people like a retired oil pipe line wleder

Not sure what your saying.

The max amperage for that rod should be about 125 amps. A lot depends on the machine but I think you may be a little hot for 6011.To check penetration simply inspect the back side of your coupons.

Whoever did those welds didn't know what they were doing. I've been using mig professionally and for my
own use for 30 years. Nearly all of what you buy is mig welded from car bodies to farm machinery and
everything else. If the welders on that job couldn't do better than that they were incompetant.

Farmall drawbars are not spring steel.

If you have a good welding machine that is rated at around 70 OCV (Open Circuit Volts), you can use ordinary E7018 electrodes all day long (even on AC).
The E7018AC electrodes are more expensive, and are designed to work better on a machine with a low OCV.

If you buy a cheap machine, that is exactly what you get.
Check the tag on your welding machines to see what the Max OCV is.

In the attached photo, you may be able to read the OCV on the tag on my Miller DIALARC 250 AC/DC (70 or 71, depending if on AC or DC). This site may shrink the photo too much though.

I use a good old Lincoln buzz box welder and have had it for decades.

I do nothing to store my 7018 other then have them out in the shop. If you stick the rod first that heat them up and dries them out and then they work just fine.

(quoted from post at 18:23:09 01/10/16) I tried my first DC arc welding today, I was welding 1/8 steel at 150 amps with 6011. The arc seemed smoother and filled in better. I do not know how penetration was, but seemed OK. I was really trying to fill in some holes that AC just seemed to make bigger.

Please leave comments on AC/DC welding regarding what you think.

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6011 is a 'high-penetration, quick-freezing' AC rod that was originally designed for low-amperage AC welders, like the Lincoln 'tombstone, Miller 'Thunderbolt' and others. 150 amps on 1/8 6011 is WAY too much. For out of position (particularly up-hand), dirty material, maintenance and repair-type welding 6011 is hard to beat (especially when running AC). Keep on tryin', you'll get it (no substitute for OJT [on-job-training]).

The newer production 6011's seem to work pretty good. I still prefer 6010 when I can find it. 15 years ago the 6011 seemed kinda craggy on DC compared to the 6010. I bought 50lbs of 6011 last year and it's been great.

Are you using electrode positive or negative? I'm kinda surprised it didn't burn right through the 1/8" at 150 amps.

6013 works good for sheet metal and thin stuff when you want a lower penetration. Seems to work best electrode negative. Before I bought a mig welder I would use 6013 for welding oil pans and the like. I would just drag it along in a straight line and it would make perfect looking liquid tight welds.

I have the welder like JayinNY posted a picture of.