How to arc weld mild steel with an arc welder.

For you to learn how to arc weld mild steel you will need to make sure that you have prepared the metal to be welded. See the arc welding preparation page for more information.

Obviously if you are going to arc weld mild steel, you are going to need to use some kind of mild steel arc welding electrode. Probably the easiest welding eectrode for the beginner to use would have to be the E6013 rod.

The 6013 welding electrode is a very commonly used rod for general welding and fabrication works. This is a good rod for welding such items as pipes, trailers, farm machinery and any sheet metal.
You can also use a variety of other classes of welding rods as well.

For example there are a whole stack of mild steel welding electrodes available that you can use. Below is a small list of rods that can be used for mild steel arc welding.

Once you have decided on which welding electrode you are going to use, you will need to know how to strike an arc. Striking the arc can be the hardest part for many people learning how to arc weld.
Once you are able to get the arc going and keep it established you will then have to slowly move the electrode backwards. By this I mean the top of the welding rod should be leaning towards the way of travel.

The height from the base metal being arc welded to the very tip of the end of the welding electrode, should be about the height of the diameter of the welding rod that you are using. So if you are using 2.6mm diameter rod try and keep the arc gap at about 2.6mm. Over time you will know if the arc gap is too low or too high.

After you have finished making a weld bead, you will have to chip away the slag from the top of the weld. To do this you use a special welding chipping hammer. Whack the weld until all the slag falls off. Then brush it with a wire welding brush.

Step 6. How to lay a weld bead.