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Last month I swore off flux-core wire, then a foreman changed my mind on a 60-foot tank job
I had been running dual-shield on outdoor work for years and thought flux-core was just for amateurs or dirty steel. We were welding up a storage tank at a chemical facility near Baton Rouge, and my gas bottle ran out on a Friday afternoon. The foreman told me to grab the Innershield from the truck and just go. I argued with him for five minutes before he said "you'll be surprised what a little slag can do when the wind is blowing 20 mph." I ran three passes with that wire and the welds looked cleaner than my dual-shield had all week. Now I keep a roll of it in my box for windy days on big jobs. Has anyone else had a similar experience with a filler metal they used to hate?
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stellabennett1mo ago
Yeah I had pretty much the same thing happen but with 7018. Used to swear by 6010 for everything because that's what I learned on and thought 7018 was too fussy with the storage and all that. Then we were doing some structural stuff on a bridge repair in the winter and the inspector flat out told me I had to switch to 7018 or he'd fail my welds. I was pissed at first but after a couple runs I realized how much smoother it laid in and how much less cleanup I had to do. That controlled hydrogen stuff really is worth it on thicker material especially when you're dealing with cold weather and the chance of cracking. Now I'll grab 7018 before anything else if the joint is clean and prepped right. Funny how we get stuck on one thing and refuse to budge until we've got no choice lol.
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