What is your preference? I find that I can get a little bit flatter bead profile while pulling and that I can see the puddle little bit better while pulling. Just to clarify, when I say pulling, I mean traveling from left to right while holding the torch with the right hand. When pushing, it's a struggle to get the bead flat on the first inch of the weld. I usually spend too much time or not enough time on the starts. And sometimes I'm so worried about keeping such a short stick-out that I block my view of the weld puddle.