Old timer told me a 6010 rod can tell you if your machine is off before the meter does

I was chatting with a retired boilermaker at the supply house Tuesday morning while waiting for my order. He said he can tell if a welder's settings are wrong just by how the 6010 rod spits and digs in the first 3 inches of a root pass. That got me thinking about how I used to chase issues for an hour before checking my leads or ground clamp. Now I pay attention to that snap and sizzle sound right when I strike an arc. Has anyone else had an old hand teach you something simple like that that saved you a ton of time?

2 comments

2 Comments

julia2869d ago

Yeah, grandpa's arc whisperer was a real timesaver.

cole_bailey859d ago

I mean I gotta disagree with you there @julia286. An arc whisperer is just a fancy name for a stick welder with a really inconsistent arc. Ive used a few of those old machines and honestly they make more work than they save. You spend half your time fighting the arc instead of actually welding. Id rather have a modern inverter any day even if it cost a bit more. Maybe its just me but I dont see the appeal of fighting with equipment that should be making things easier.