stick welding .... getting weak welds?

[bal]

ive recently been teaching myself how to stick weld.
but my welds keep coming out weak.
do you have to prepare your surfaces with something first?
i obviously remove rust with wire wool/wire brush.

any tips on stick welding?
getting unbreakable welds?

any help is very much appreciated

 

[Ed]

I presume you mean ARC welding. IF the welds are weak you probably dont have the current up high enough.

 

[59 bhp is more than enough]

yeah if you have the curent set up etc then just make sure you have a fairly big weld pool and take it much slower than you would with mig, on average the weld bead should end up with a small mound of about 5mm tall and about 7 - 8 mm wide. then obviously you need to knock the salg off at the end and give it a good clean with a wire brush.

 

[bal]

thanks for the advice

then obviously you need to knock the salg off at the end and give it a good clean with a wire brush.

sorry dude only recently started welding and im sort of self taught

whats the slag on the end?
why knock it off?
is this purely to make it look good?

 

[Ed]

The rods have an antioxidising flux around them. This builds up ontop of the weld and should be broken off after.

 

[59 bhp is more than enough]

yeah dont worry bout it man lol

yeah as ed says a crust forms on top of ya weld. next time you weld jsut give the top of it a knock with a hammer and some should fall off. yeah you need to knock it off as it contains an acid type chemical that over time makes your weld weak. after you knock it off and wire brush it should all be shiny