Quote:
Originally Posted by cart around
I have since inherited a Century 180 240V, and a Lincoln AC 225 that is as old as I am. I'm finding out that AC stick welders are not what they are cracked up to be, and are very particular on what rods they will run.
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It’s the rods that are picky, Not so much the machine.
I like using 6013 rods for a lot of things because they will run on AC and DC+/-.
They don’t weld nearly as nice as a 7018, but a 7018 prefers DCEP polarity. You can make it work on AC, but it may take some patience and practice, and the results will not be as good. 6013 on AC is more forgiving than 7018 on AC.
There is a 7018AC rod but it’s going to cost more, and will be more difficult to find at a regular hardware store. Any welding supply store will have almost any rod you want/need.
6010 and 6011 rods are high penetration rods and are great for thicker material or metal that is rusty to make an initial cleaning pass, but 6010 will NOT run on AC (a pro welder can probably make it work, but most people will not be able to do anything with it) and 6011 can be used on AC but it will be very temperamental. Both produce very high spatter (hence the deeper penetration), so neither are used as a filling rod.
Most Stick/Tig combo machines will run AC as well as DCEP/EN. IMO you are better off with a machine that is easy to switch polarity so you are not so limited on rod selection or on what you can do with the machine. Learning which electrodes work better for which task will make a Huge difference in your weld quality, and will give you much stronger and cleaner welds. Less burn-through, less undercut, and less chance of gorilla snot/ cold welds.