Wasted $350 on cheap flux core wire for a big boiler job in Houston

I figured I'd save a few bucks and bought a 10-pound spool of no-name flux core wire online. Got halfway through welding a seam on a 4-inch tube sheet and the wire started birdnesting inside the gun. Spent 2 hours fighting with it before I chucked the whole spool in the trash. That cheap stuff also left slag so thick I had to chip for what felt like forever. Ended up driving to the supply house for Lincoln wire and finished the job in half the time. Anyone else get burned by bargain wire that cost you more in the end?

3 comments

3 Comments

nancy_king298d ago

Man that slag must have been brutal. I once bought cheap wire that smoked like a tire fire.

gracethomas8d ago

Cheap wire smoking just means you got your money's worth on heat.

lee6896d ago

Did your buddy ever figure out what brand that wire was? My neighbor had a similar thing happen with some spool he picked up at a flea market. Turned out the insulator was just cheap plastic that melted before the solder even got hot. He spent the whole afternoon chasing cold joints and cursing under his breath. Stuff like that makes you appreciate even the mid-tier brands.