Tried welding with a $20 harbor freight rod just to see what would happen

Grabbed a pack of those cheap rods on a whim last Thursday and figured I'd run a few beads on some scrap. Thing popped and crackled like a firecracker the whole time, left a bead that looks like a bird did its business on the metal. Anyone else ever grab the bottom shelf stuff and instantly regret it?

2 comments

2 Comments

brooke_nguyen657h ago

Yeah, I ran through a whole pack of those blue box rods about two years ago. The flux coating is inconsistent, so you get that spatter and popping every time. I found they work okay if you crank the heat up maybe 15-20 amps over what the package says, but even then you're fighting a losing battle. For practice on thick steel where looks don't matter, they get the job done but I wouldn't trust them for anything structural.

paulperez4h ago

Whoa hold on, you might be confusing those with the red box ones. The blue box rods actually have a different flux formula that's supposed to run a little smoother on AC machines. I burned through a whole 10 pound box of those last summer and the coating seemed pretty even to me. But yeah, cranking the heat up a bit does help with arc starts if your machine can't push enough juice.