Super Abrasive Welding

[KBar]

I bought some 5/32 super abrasive electrodes to add some hardener to one of our cast iron plow shoes to try it out before we do the whole fleet. These rods have roughly 1/4 inch of flux on them, I may be exaggerating a little but it is very thick. I never used these rods before and on the box it says to set the amps at 140 - 160 which sounds right. My question is, with that much flux, how can you tell how much of a bead you are laying or is best to run a practice bead ?

[shorerider16]

I would just run a short practice bead to get a feel for the rod and the setting, better than testing on a good workpiece. This is what I do whenever I use a new type or size of rod.

[robphillips]

hard surface rods run similar to 7018. Make sure you have a very clean surface to weld those high dollar rods to. I usually run a pass of 7018 before I start hardsurfacing. Seems to leave less pitting.

[KBar]

Thanks guys, I ran a practice bead today without preheating to give it a try. Ran a bead across a junk brake caliper at 170A so I think with a little preheating, it should be pretty simple.

[Jim-TX]

hard surface rods run similar to 7018. Make sure you have a very clean surface to weld those high dollar rods to. I usually run a pass of 7018 before I start hardsurfacing. Seems to leave less pitting.

Good tip! I've never done it, but I can see how it would not only lay a good clean base for the HS rod, you also build up a little thicker layer of new metal.