flux-cored wire cheap

[jbhuey]

Hey fellow welders, I've a realy good deal on .035 (10lb) rolls flux core.harbor freight tools item #44876-0CNA for 29.99 a roll. This is the best price I've been able to find on the wire.

[Ed Heimbach]

How well does this wire run for you?

[Mark Whiddon]

The harbor freight wire is a bit on the rough side. I bought it and have had trouble with it. I finally figured out most of the problems, but took me about 6 pounds to do it. First and foremost you cannot do vertical down welding with it. At least not with any regularity. You also need to run a bit more stickout than you might think. I get decent results with about 1/2" to 5/8" any less and you will get porosity. You will probably be able to make it work but you will need to tweek it and fine tune your welder. I bought two rolls of the 10lb spool, with any luck the next one will not give me as many problems.
Mark

[Ed Heimbach]

Just as I suspected, good stuff isn't cheap, and most cheap stuff isn't good. I use products from Esab, Hobart, and Lincoln for the most part, I find that it pays to purchase name brand supplies.