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Had to unlearn how I was welding pipe joints for the last decade
Honestly, I always swore by my 6010 root pass technique until a lead inspector at the Marathon refinery in Detroit pulled me aside. He showed me my penetration was all off because I was using too much amperage on 6 inch schedule 80. Took me two full days of redoing joints to get it right. How long did it take you to break a bad habit you picked up early?
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the_susan16d ago
You heard about my friend Tom? Took him three tries to unlearn his bad torch angle on 6G.
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bennett.mason16d ago
Three times on that bend test? Man, I would've thrown my hood across the shop after the second fail. My buddy Mike had a similar thing with a 6G certification for a pipeline job - he kept burning through his 6010 root on the bottom side because he was trying to run too hot. A 30-year vet named Frank just walked over, turned his machine down to 75 amps, and told him to "let the rod do the work." Mike still talks about that guy like he's a saint. Glad you got it sorted, even if it cost you some fingernails.
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Man I feel that one deep in my bones. I learned on 6010 too and thought I was hot stuff until I had to pass a bend test for a natural gas line and my root failed three times. Turned out I was dragging my arc way too slow and building up a fat sugar layer inside. Had a crusty old welder named Dave show me how to speed up and let the puddle actually wash in instead of just piling metal on top. Broke that habit in about a week but my fingernails were ragged from all the grinding I had to do on the rework. Worst part is I still catch myself slipping into the old rhythm when I get tired at the end of a long shift.
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