Welding a Ford axle

[Willowbilly3]

Rough rule of thumb: start with 1 amp for every .001" rod dia.
Measure the small end of the rod.

3/32" .... 94 amps
1/8" .... 125 amps
5/32" .... 155 amps

From there,adjust up or down,to suit the job.
The beads should wash in on both sides,no under cutting.

RESEARCH what rod is appropriate for the job you are doing.
Do you need 6011,7014,7018,7024,etc ?? ?

BUY NEW RODS.
Don't try and save $5 using some crap
that has been sitting around for 20 years.

Practice on something that is not critical.
Then practice some more.

To this great advice I will fine tune a little. If you use 6011 (dirt farmer rod) those heat settings will be way too hot. I don't use that stuff much at all, 7014 is my all around favorite bit 7018 has it's place as a general purpose rod and is great for multiple passes too. You can go 8018, 9018, 10018 ect and that is just higher tensile strength.
I would also reccomend doing all the welds flat, don't try to do them horizontal or vertical. Make sure you have good penetration on practice metal BEFORE you start and make real sure your interpass temps are kept low, in other words don't huirry. Also watch for undercut, this is a killer fracture point.
Now, if you completely understood all of that then proceed. If you didn't then get a professional shop to do it.

 

[Unkl Ian]

I never had much luck with 7014.
Tried it several times.It was ok,but I preferred 7018.
Everything we did at school was 7018.
I was going for my TIG Pipe ticket,
so the plates were a TIG root,with a 7018 cap.
Spent more time doing Arc than TIG.

7024 is real NICE for doing flat welds.

One thing to watch on 7018,it is a low hydrogen rod
and should be stored in a DRY environment.

The amperage setting will also vary according to the machine type:
AC,DC Straight Polarity,DC Reverse Polarity.

 

[Willowbilly3]

Yeah, moisture seems to invade the lo-hi rod worse. I guess I use the small 7014 on light stuff and the 7018 on the heavier stuff. 7018 is hard nosed and not really made to stop and restart but you can if you get into the habit of breaking off the protruding flux before a restart.