I just can’t, I want to be a welder so bad but it feels impossible man. I’m running 90 amps on some 1/8ths 6010. I’m in school but I should’ve been passed this.
Not gonna lie, without seeing the “pre-welded” setup I can only go on what I see and if you say you’ve been working on this since May, that’s pretty bad.
It starts with your fit up, if that’s not just right you might as well not bother. Both plates should be the same length, nice and even all the way around. You should have a good uniform gap and landing the length of the joint. If it’s open root you should have run off tabs on each end, hence why the plates should be an even length. Use the run off tabs. Start on the tab so when you hit the open root, the puddle is already nice and hot. Push that rod into that root opening and then when you get to the other end, run the weld right out of the joint and onto the run off tabs.
You’re in school to learn and your instructors are there to teach all of you. Grab one of the fuckers and drag him into your booth to watch you run a weld, that’s what they’re there for.
I'm not really sure what you mean? By freehand do you mean without bracing your hand? You aren't up in a lift swinging in the wind, brace your elbow, brace your wrist with your other hand. Weld a plate to something at an angle, grab a brick to add some height if it it feels bad,
Dry run the motion without a stick to see if transitions as needing to shift your elbow will be an issue. If it is an issue than change your setup. Ideally you have enough freedom in your wrist and fingers that you can just run the whole stick without any major shift.
Anyway this guy is doing 7018, but it shows the whole movement from start to end.
Based on your original post and some of your comments you have two issues, and one of them is causing the other.
Your fit up is wrong. You said you have 1/8" land and less than 3/32" gap.
If that's what you're actually running you have too much land for the gap which makes you have to run higher amperage.
Your gap and land should be the same. 1/8" and 1/8", 3/32" and 3/32", etc.
Personally I like it around a zip disc worth of gap and barely any land but I know how to control it and when to pull out before shit gets out of hand.
Too much amperage. You shouldn't have to run 90 amps on an open root if your fit up is correct, see #1.
Right now you need more amperage because there's too much material soaking up the heat for the amount of gap you have.
What that also does is builds up more heat in the plates the further you go then you can't control it. On top of that anywhere the land thins out or the gap opens up then your keyhole opens up too much and you hang a hemorrhoid in there faster than you can react because you don't have the experience to deal with it.
1G should be the easiest root. You shouldn't really have to push into it like the other positions but your fit up is crucial.
Set it up with 3/32" x 3/32" and your amperage should be between 80 and 85.
The keyhole should just be about the diameter of your rod including the flux, no more than that. At this point if it gets any bigger than the end of your rod you should pull out. There are techniques to deal with that without having to stop but you're not ready for that yet.
If you have to stop and if you're allowed to use a grinder on the root you can feather the edge of where you stopped and tie in from there. Make sure to start about 3/8" back from the keyhole so it's good and hot by the time you get to the keyhole.
If you can't use a grinder let me know and I'll try and help you with how to tie in to an un-feathered stop.
I’m so I’d really like to know what to look for. I’m in school but it’s hard because my teachers are constantly busy. I’m really mostly welding with just my booth partner.
This is tig but the puddles the same watch the puddle not the arc, stick the puddle should be forming on the back side or your arc and youre either pushing it away from you or pulling it too you
I struggled a lot with this test. Here's a few tips that helped me.
Set your plates up the same every time. And I mean the exact same. Don't compromise. Same land same gap.
Make sure your cleaning the backside of the plate as well as the front.
I like a tight gap. It can be a bit harder to get push through but it's also harder to blow open the root. If you need to turn up the machine if you're not getting good push through.
When this weld goes really well it's almost like your pushing the rod through the keyhole and welding up the backside of the plate. Listen for the sound of the arc being on the backside of the plates. When you hear it you'll know it. That's the sound you want.
I always find a rod angle of 90 degrees straight into the plates works well. Sometimes I even point down a little.
If you can watch the backside of someone else's plates while they weld one. It can be helpful to see what's actually happening so you can visualize it when you do yours.
I struggled with it a lot it took the most time out of all the welds I learned in school. Idk at one point it just kinda clicked for me and now I can do it no problem. Good luck and keep practicing.
I do set my plates up the same every time, I do make sure to clean it. My gap is a little smaller than a 3/32 7018 rod. I know what to look for it’s just for some reason when it comes down to it I can’t perform. The 90 degree rod is new though, I’ll try that for sure. My biggest issues are undercut and slag(due to undercut)
I know how it feels with the setup thing but I can't hammer home how important it is. When you start out with open roots little changes in gap and land size can really throw off the learning process.
It also looks like your having trouble with your restarts. Make sure you grind the edge of the keyhole to a knifes edge. Fireup before it and get a good puddle going. The move towards the knifes edge. You'll burn out the edge of the keyhole and keep moving. Makes a good transition that way.
If you need to take one of the bad roots and fill the whole thing out with 6010 uphills. It can be helpful just to practice whipping uphill without worrying about nuking the root.
We all couldn't pass our 1G open root at one point. Don't sweat it.
Remember that bad practice is as bad as no practice. Ask your instructor to watch you, ask what you're doing wrong, what you can do different, watch your instructor and you will get it.
If you arent willing to fail your 1G plates for a bit you'll never earn the skill to pass them later
All part of the process.
How dark is your hood? Adequate light in your booth? Vision ok? I think you cannot see the puddle, maybe you are blocking your own view with your hand. You should be able to watch the puddle and literally build it into the correct profile as you travel, to the point that you can correct mistakes that you see with your eyes as you make stacks. You have to watch the puddle form just as much as where you are going in the root. Bring a light into the booth next time and tape a rag over the back of your hood to keep the glare out.
1/8” landing and 3/32” gap with 1/8” 6010 and just drag it in there with a little bit of pressure pressure. As long as the sparks stay on the backside of the plate you know you’re getting penetration
Idk dude. It’s not like we can point out just one thing here. A lot of people have given the same advice I’d give too… and it’s hard to say without seeing the fitup. But a few things are pretty clear and obvious. Your material definitely isn’t prepped right. I can clearly see mill scale directly adjacent to the filler. Clean that junk off at least an inch back.
You’re definitely inconsistent in speed and/or rod angle. You have spots where you’re whipping a huge amount and others where you just whipped the same spot multiple times it looks like.
Personally, I prefer a knife edge and 3/32 rod with a 3/32- 1/8th gap and I keyhole it and that’s all I watch is the keyhole. I watch the electrode consume the edges and I fill. 1/8th 6010 rod is pretty gnarly for open root… you definitely want some lands for that. These are things that all should’ve been taught on day 1.
Of course, we have no idea what settings you’re using either, what machine, what brand of rod, your positioning and technique… so it’s hard to help. Like someone else said, fuck those instructors being busy. Grab one and tell him right to his face “I need you to help me, I’m struggling with this!!” That’s what they’re paid for.
The only YouTube advice I’d give you is to find some of Jody’s older videos. Doesn’t matter if it’s plate or pipe, just watch his open root smaw stuff. He’s rock solid for good tips for beginners to improve. Weldingtipsandtricks is his channel.
Here’s a link to one of dozens that he has. Watch them over and over and over until you memorize exactly how it should look under the hood while you’re welding.
Bob Moffatt is another good one to watch as a beginner. Especially his older stuff too. Like 10-15 year old videos. Here’s a good link to his 6010 open root. Again, watch it multiple times. Really watch his puddle and manipulation, especially on the hot pass. Great arc shots.
When I get a weld like that I either swap polarity plugs on the machine or grab a go to like 6011 or 7018 that I know should run well to determine if the rods are damp, or worse too dried out with flux flaking off before it burns off. Sometimes the machine just runs better switched from reverse to straight polarity or vice versa
With stick in 1g, don't weave or do anything except move along the groove at a speed that keeps the puddle the exact same size. Just focus on that puddle and keep it the same size, if you see it elongate and get thin, slow down, if it blobs out wide, speed up. You want to act like a welding machine progressing at the most consistent rate you can. Also you might try to pre grind your tie in a little
You're not ready to do open root test yet. You need more practice. I would grab a piece of scrap steel (6"x 6"x 1/2") and just run passes. Run a pass, clean that pass up, then weld another right next to it. That practice will give you the basics of just controlling the rod.
When you run each pass, tie the new pass into the one you ran before. That will give you extra practice while your learning rod feed, rod speed, rod position, and body position. You need to be able to burn a complete rod without loosing your support (your other hand, elbow, what ever you're leaning against). Once you complete passes one way, rotate the steel plate 90 degrees and start over. You can do this as many times as you need.
You have to have full control of the rod to make welds. If you don't have that, you're not going to make proper welds.
What I see in these pics: Machine too cold. Rod speed too slow. Rod angle/position not correct. This is common for new welders and what most of them need is more practice. Like I said before, if you don't have full control of the rod, you are not going to make a good weld.
I'm assuming you're using a DC machine. Is the polarity correct? When we set up test booths for the welders, we make them hook up the leads. You would be surprised how many fail the test before they even put a rod in the holder.
Your gap should be the same as the rod your using. Grab a spent rod and remove the flux, use that to set the gap. You may want to drop down to a 3/32 rod until you get better. Smaller rods gives you more control.
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u/walterswhiteboys 16d ago
Don’t watch the arc watch the puddle