Hi everyone,

I'm working on tacking a 1/8" bar to some small (1/2" o.d.) square tube (tee joint). Knowing how thin that stuff is, I bought a small piece that I cut up and I've been practicing on it.

Initially I started out with 3/32" 6013, running at about 70 amps and made a decent weld, but the second time I tried it I dug an enormous hole in the tube. I tried backing the heat down, but I can't keep the arc going much below 60, which is probably still too hot. I tried some 1/16" 6013, which seemed like a good plan around 40A. I've been pretty successful at not blowing a hole in the material this way, but after chipping off the slag I found the bead fused to the sq tube and the bar, but did not join them. I had to laugh, because the slag was the only thing holding the part in place . I noticed that Jody C said in one of his videos that lack of fusion is common with the 6013 ... I think it probably had more to do with the weldor .

Any tips here? I'm thinking about picking up some 1/16" 6011 to see if I can do a better job with it. Would rod angle help? I'm trying to point the rod down into the heavier bar stock to direct the heat there, between 60 and 70 degrees.

Thanks
Mike