i recently purchased a light duty 1 phase 30-90amp clark stick welder
i have gone threw the basics of mig welding at my school and i have tought myself gas welding
i purchased the stick welder because of the versitility and small size and lack of funds being that the gas welder is not good for light duty work.
i was just wondering if any one here would happen to be able to tell me how to start an ark at lower amperage.
thankyou, Bryan
If this is the kind of welder I believe it is, starting an arc will take some skill to master. I have one that plugs into 110 volts that has such low open circuit voltage there is not enough "ooomph" to get the arc going easily. I usually lay the rod on the far edge of the plate so the tip is hanging off, then drag it up to the edge until it strikes as it pops over onto the surface. Scratch starting is tough with these welders.
yes thankyou i went out and found that it starts much esier for the 1/16 sticks but the y are still hard to start at 40 amps they start easily at about 60 amps but i do not know if it it will yield a strong weld being that the sticks are rated for 25-40 amps
Plugging the unit into a 20 amp breaker, with little to no 110v extension cord may help also.
i have it pluged into a diret outlet with no extension cord close to the circet box
One thing that will help is that while you are getting used to arc welding, use 60 series rods (like ER6010) instead of 70 series (like ER7018) because the 60's will start a lot easier.
Other than that, it's just practice.
Good Luck,
Tim
Some rods bill themselves as easy to start mostly 60 series as Tim says. Ask the counterman at your friendly local welding supply. They get feedback from their customers and will be able to recommend something from among what they sell (one hopes). 6013 is often recommended since you can weld with it in contact with the work (just touch and drag it along).
Bill
E7024 will run all by itself...it is a drag rod and needs not be kept in an oven....just drag it along the joint at a rate that produces the size bead you need.(flat/horiz postion only) Many of our new welders to be start out on one of these to get used to burning rods and then move on later to harder starting rods like the E7018 (magnet in the tip rod).
John Wright
Some of the folks suggested to you to use 60 series electrodes with your machine. Good choice, one small suggestion though, this welder no doubt has an AC output for welding current, if you try to use E6010 or E7018 electrodes you will run into trouble because these electrodes are designed to be used with DC current. Using E6011, E6013, or the special E7018 AC electrodes would be a more correct choice. As another individual pointed out the low open circuit voltage of these smaller welders makes rod starting a particular challenge even for seasoned welders. One other small footnote: before welding begins with an arc welder the machine has a higher welding voltage to help initiate the arc, when the arc is struck this voltage drops to a much lower voltage during the welding cycle. Arc welders are also referred to as constant amperage, variable voltage machines, the idea being that they maintain a constant current setting, or amperage and the voltage varies with the change in arc length. To some degree this characteristic allows the welder to increase heat and penetration by long arcing slightly or to decrease heat and penetration by running a shorter arc. Hope this helps your understanding somewhat. Regards, Allan
By Eddie
Date 03-29-2006 21:48
Seems like everyone forgot to let the fella know, make sure the flux is off the end of the rod before you try to strike. That will help as much as anything. Each time you try to re-strike take a second to take the flux off the rod, make sure not to get up on the rod, just the end of the tip, use a rasp untill you get the hang of it.
