Stick welding
Common stick welding mistakes and how to fix them
Quick answer
The most common stick welding mistakes: arc too long; dragging too fast, leaving thin, weak, undercut beads; not chipping and brushing slag between multi-passes. Each traces to setup or technique basics — fix those first and the process behaves.
The usual suspects
- Arc too long — stick wants a rod-width gap or less
- Dragging too fast, leaving thin, weak, undercut beads
- Not chipping and brushing slag between multi-passes — slag inclusions
- Storing rods in a damp shed — flux picks up moisture and welds porous
Diagnose from the bead
Your weld bead is a data readout: undercut says too hot or too fast, humpy ropey beads say too slow or too cold, spatter says voltage mismatch or stick-out, porosity says shielding. Chisel, brush and read every practice bead before you blame the machine — 90% of 'machine problems' are settings problems.