New to welding building 25mm sq mild shelves in garage on sincro 200 gen dc help

[leadpig]

buy a decent inverter and decent rods, absolute game changer, ive been gas welding for 30+ years, messed about with older stick welders and hated them, bought a second hand rtech 130 using cheap rods and it was better, bought decent rods ie bohler and esab and it was night and day difference , also buy a decent true colour mask you will go from guessing to actually seeing what is happening when you weld and if you need glasses a cheater lense.
as said i am no mma welder, but decent equipment makes it far far nicer to do to the point im looking forwards to mma jobs instead of hating them

 

[Pete.]

I agree with buy an inverter if you can. I got a Jasic for a work project. Paid a bit more coz it needed to be 240/110v but by god is it ever nice to weld with. We were using it on all kinds of metal in horrid conditions ( bad weather, salt spray) and it just welded without complaint.

If your 6013's start welding then start sticking then I'd suspect something going on with the kit. Your leads should not be getting hot with 2.5mm rods go I'm guessing you got a a bad connection on one of your leads. Probably the crimp ring onto the earth clamp.

 

[Bravheart]

Hi @Face I've recently bought a s/h engine driven welder with the exact same SINCRO EW 200 DC welder as yours. Has a honda engine but doesn't appear to have a handle for setting the revs. It just starts and runs at a constant speed. If yours is dying back check you have the revs turned up.
Have you any pictures of your welds. You should be practicing on some scraps to get the feel of things first, then stick some pictures on here and someone might be able to point out any faults and help you rectify them.
DC welder earth - should be your starting point and as above decent quality 6013 rods don't over complicate things.

 

[Bravheart]

Bought mine untried at a retirement auction so got it home and fired it up to test straight away. There were a number of different types of rods with it so tried it with 6013's size 4.0, 3.2 and 2.6 at different heat settings. All are well within the capability of the welder.
The metal used slightly rusty x plough metal at around 1/4" thick and no prep work. As you can see 4mm rods at the 165 a setting will burn holes so there's plenty of juice with the welder.
I'm a complete amateur the proper welders on here will have something to say about forward speed rod angle etc. but no reason why you cant do similar with a little practice. I just use the welder for gate repairs etc. around the farm where there's no power on hand.
There's no doubt that a little Chinese toaster sized AC welder will be easier to use and produce a better bead but sounds like you are off grid so what you've got is perfectly good enough. Practice.

 

[Face]

Hi Braveheart. What do you mean by DC welder earth pls?
I will get some pics later this week.

 

[Bravheart]

Hi Braveheart. What do you mean by DC welder earth pls?
I will get some pics later this week.

What you have is a DC welder sincro make a similar 200a machine that's AC. DC was the standard for years and years till recently.
Negative earth (I used the - sign) which I think is what you are currently using is the best for starting.
Most stick welding for the last 50 years plus was DC Negative Earth. Stick with it.

 

[Bravheart]

BTW if you strike an ark then pull the rod away a bit so it's flaring up for a split second that will heat the metal and start your weld pool without having to preheat the parent metal.

 

[Face]

I have

BTW if you strike an ark then pull the rod away a bit so it's flaring up for a split second that will heat the metal and start your weld pool without having to preheat the parent metal.

I have discovered this is the knack tonight not sticking. I drag it and tap it a bit and it get momentum in the engine and welds great.
I have been welding with electrode negative and finding it pretty effective.
6013 and 7018. I'll give electrode positive a go too.

 

[Face]

The beauty of a welder generator is that I can run a chop saw off it and it's a portable work station. The main problem is the weight. Fumes and noise too but humping it in and out of a van is a bit bothersome. I've fashioned a ramp from scaffold board.

 

[chrismac]

I have

I have discovered this is the knack tonight not sticking. I drag it and tap it a bit and it get momentum in the engine and welds great.
I have been welding with electrode negative and finding it pretty effective.
6013 and 7018. I'll give electrode positive a go too.

Electrode negative is not so nice to weld with for general welding, Electrode positive should be your preferred option, this puts 2/3rd heat into the parent metal 1/3rd on the rod, reverse puts 2/3rd's heat in the rod and 1/3rd on the parent metal, this can be used on thinner stuff as it allows more control of the heat input.
Sounds like your getting up to speed with your machine, a few tweaks yet and you wont look back.