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Stick welding, also known as “Arc Welding” or SMAW, is very common among first time welders. Unlike MIG and TIG welding, no shielding gas is needed. This makes it relatively inexpensive to get into and makes it easy to weld in any environment. Whether you’re just learning how to stick weld or you’ve been welding for years, keep these five stick welding tips in mind next time you strike an arc.

Since MIG welding traditionally uses short circuit transfer for light and medium welding chores, 75/25 shielding gas is typically the most common you will find on the market. But there are other options out there for you Everlast Power i-MIG or PowerMTS welder. Most all Everlast Power i-MIG welders have an arc force adjustment. The arc force adjustment is similar to a slope adjustment in a transformer based MIG welder. This means that the welders can be “tuned” to meet certain desirable arc qualities with varying types of MIG shielding gas.

I often get calls wondering if our MIG welders will weld with flux core. While this to some people may seem a forgone conclusion, it is not. So, once and for all, let’s clearly state it here: All MIG welders can weld flux-core if they are equipped with the drive rolls that are designed to grip the flux core wire without crushing it. As far as the Everlast Power i-MIG and PowerMTS welders go, they all will weld flux core when equipped with the optional flux core drive rolls. But the deeper question that people have often is: Do I need a MIG or a Flux-core welder?

AC is not really a polarity. But it is rather a combination of DCEP and DCEN, which creates a regular sine wave, instead of the straight line of DC current. The combination of rapidly changing DCEP and DCEN offers excellent benefits in TIG welding.

DCEP, or Reverse Polarity is the standard polarity for MIG and for Stick welding.   In MIG, if it uses gas only, without a flux or metal core, it will require electrode positive. Dual shield and metal core can vary.

If you are using DCEN, make sure you are using the correct process that matches to the polarity.  As covered before in the previous blog, DCEN (Straight Polarity) is used for TIG and Plasma cutting.

If you are confused by welding terminology like “Reverse Polarity” and “Straight Polarity”, this blog  will be a basic primer to help you understand the basics of polarity and where and how to use them.  Every welding process has a preferred polarity.   This means that the lead or cable connected to the gun, torch or electrode holder is connected to the receptacle with the stated polarity.   Usually this will be stated as a + sign or a – sign.

Sometimes it will simply be stated as work and torch, with or without a polarity designation to reduce the chance of confusion.

As a part of any tech information that you will find on any welder, one of the most prominent technical specifications listed should be the declaration of duty cycle.  This is usually found on the front or rear of the welder.  Historically, duty cycle has been an indicator of the soundness of a machine for a particular work application.   The standard of 60% has long been considered to be a professional, industrial type of welder, whether it is MIG, TIG or Stick.

If you’ve always used a MIG welder, and never attempted to stick weld, it is likely something that is somewhat of a intimidating process.   It may even seem archaic and out of date.  But it is hardly the case.  As far as you skill teaching, even for MIG welding the stick process will always be a great tool to teach the basics of welding.   One of the best skills that stick welding teaches is probably the skill of patience.