Product Manual

Page 22 of 29
running downward while still allowing slow enough travel speed to achieve good penetration.
A good starting point for your electrode angle is about 30 degrees DOWN from being
perpendicular to the work piece.
6.5 Judge the good weld bead:
When the trick of establishing and holding an arc has been learned, the next step is learning
how to run a good bead. The first attempts in practice will probably fall short of acceptable weld
beads. Too long of an arc will be held or the travel speed will vary from slow to fast (see
following).
A. Weld speed is too fast
B. Weld speed is too slow
C. Arc is too long
D. Ideal weld
A solid weld bead requires that the electrode be moved slowly and steadily along the weld seam.
Moving the electrode rapidly or erratically will prevent proper fusion or create a lumpy, uneven
bead.
ELECTRIC SHOCK CAN CAUSE INJURY OR DEATH! To prevent ELECTRIC SHOCK, do not
perform any welding while standing, kneeling, or lying directly on the grounded work piece.
6.6 Finish the bead
As the coating on the outside of the electrode burns off, it forms an envelope of protective
gases around the weld. This prevents air from reaching the molten metal and creating an
undesirable chemical reaction. The burning coating, however, forms slag. The slag
formation appears as an accumulation of dirty metal scale on the finished weld. Slag
should be removed by using a chipping hammer.
PEENING THE SLAG FROM A WELD JOINT CAUSES SMALL CHIPS OF METAL TO FLY
THROUGH THE AIR! Metallic chips flying through the air can cause eye injury or injury to other
parts of the head, hands, or exposed portions of the body. Wear goggles or safety glasses with
side shields and protect the hands and other exposed parts of the body with protective garments,
or if possible, work with a shield between the body and the work piece.
The intense heat produced at the arc sets up strains in the metal joined by welding. Peening the weld
not only removes the scale left behind in the welding but relieves the internal strains developed by the
heating and cooling process.