I have zero experience with, and pretty much zero knowledge on, welders. This was in the garage when we purchased the place...the family had already got what they wanted, and anything that made it through the estate sale stayed. Is this any good? (obviously of it works, which I don't know right now) I know it's got some age on it, and isntThere are lots of welding sticks out there with it. Do they go "bad" over time?
Looks like you are missing a cable, you should have a power cable, ground cable & an electrode cable. If the flux is falling off the welding sticks it isn’t going to do a good job but if the flux is still good you maybe ok. You need to get the numbers off of the sticks to determine what applications they work best for.
Some of those older welder were very good and consistent units. Made when folks took pride in a quality product and made stuff to last. The amount of genuine copper used also made the good welders. The welding rod will collect moisture over time and that really affects their usefulness, they can be dried out in an oven, however. Sent from my SM-G930VL using Tapatalk
Looks like that cable for the stinger in the front plugs into either hole in the front for either high or low range. As far as the welding rod you could try but as Ronald mentioned above it does collect moisture and that's not a good thing. Grab some scrap steel and give it a try .
Thanks JimBear and Ronaldo. I will look and see if the other cable is out there. I really hadn't looked at the welder, just snapped pics today when I was out there so I could post and ask....been meaning to for a while but kept forgetting to get the pics. I studied the pics a bit while ago. The "dual range" and "variable amp selection"...are those things normal on this style welder? The "flux falling off the rods"...I assume this is obvious? Or is it discoloration? How do you know they've collected moisture and need to be dried out? Is drying them on the oven simple (temp and time?) and how do you know when they're "done"? I assume no ill efects or nastiness left in the oven? I need to do.some research on this welder. Other than looking up the specific make and model...what would I search? Is this just a "stick welder"? Or do I need to look up something different/more specific? Thanks for y'alls help.
Thanks buzz-saw, I do want to see if it works and give it a whirl once, I figure out how. The fil has done some welding, may get him over here to check it out.
It can be called a stick welder or arc welder. The flux will be flaking off the rods or cracked if they are bad or that’s the most obvious way to tell. Get yourself a helmet, adjustable auto shading is the best, anywhere from shade 5 - 15. A stand shade 10 flip helmet would likely be the least expensive.
I had the same box. It is an ac only welder. It welds pretty well for an ac welder. It wants 50 amps input @ 230 amps output (rarely ever need over 105 amps) 1/8" 6011 likes around 90. 1/8" 7018ac/6013 likes around 95 amps. 6011 can be too dry (quickly dip them in water) as they are a cellulose based rod. I forget the duty cycle but I would guess about 40% @ 120 amps. It was made by Century iirc. Manuals should be online somewhere. Look on the tag and post the first 3 numbers of the model # and I can check further.
Isn’t that 6011 for cast iron,seems like it was a 60** something. It’s been years since I learned that stuff & just started using our portable welder again.
I learned on this welder, doing farm repairs. For several years dad only had 6011, so the breadth of my experience was quite narrow, but it was a really good unit for what we needed.
When I read the thread title I immediately thought of an old Alaskan Pupeline welder I knew, back in the early 90’s.
I'm guessing the numbers such as "6011" are a designation for a size or type of welding rod? JimBear , there is a helmet out there with the welder. All this stuff has some age....do helmets, or more like the shading part, go bad?
Type...you can look up online what numbers are best for what. You don't have to dry the rods in the house either...some people make an oven out of an old fridge with a 100W light bulb in it. Sometimes those old rods look fine but then the flux just crumbles and falls off when you try to weld with it.
The numbers on a rod are a designator for tensile strength, position and flux content. Break down: 60= 60,000 lbs of tensile strength. 1= all postiton rod, can be used "any" position, 1= chemical make up of flux coating on rod.
Your maching Eckie is a strictly A/C- alternating current machine. For a general all around house/farm work, it's fine. You wouldn't want to build a ship with it, but trailer and stuff like that, it'll do what you need. The older AC machines "LOVE" the rod 6010. 6011 is also fine. They are general purpose rods, you can burn through paint, rust and all kinds of crud within reason and get a decent weld. My very first welder was an Airco AC welder, very similar to yours.
Also note. Rods that have been left out of the can and are moist, flux falling off, throw them away and always try to use fresh rod to weld with. some people would put them in their oven and dry them out, "Don't waist your time". Looking at the rods I see in the picture, throw them all away or make "S" hooks for bird houses or flower pots out of them.
6011 rod is designed for AC welders, pretty much, but will run fine on gas powered DC welders, also. And the old cracker box welder is probably still ok. We still have my Dad's old crackerbox and it still works, and it's probably almost 60 years old. I have been welding with it, myself for close to 50 years. 6011 is good general purpose rod for mild steel, which covers 90 percent of your needs on the farm. You can't weld cast iron with it, though. You need some nickle rod for that. If you buy some rod, I suggest you get some 6011, 3/32 dia, or 1/8" but 3/32 is more versatile in my opinion for general fix it welding purposes, because it's better for lighter metal, but I run both at times. IMHO, don't get 6010 for your cracker box, it's more of a DC rod. We ran a lot of 6010 in construction work, and putting the root in on pipe, but for farm and home, I definitely prefer 6011. Keep your welding rod in the house or somewhere warm, as it will draw more moisture stored in an unheated shed, etc. Some people keep an old refrigerator with a lightbulb in it, to keep the rod warm. We did that at work, but I don't mess with it, at home. Be careful of that old welding helmet. It may be fine, but check it for any cracks, etc., because a cracked helmet can let light from the welder in to your eyes and could cause you to get an eye burn. Welding flash can and will burn your eyes if you get enough of it, and it don't take that much. I have burnt my eyes several times over the many years I worked as a welder. I try to be pretty careful with that.
