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PSA: Hit 500 hours of arc time and it made me rethink stick vs MIG
I just passed 500 hours of actual arc time last week on a big tank job in Baton Rouge. For a while I was all about MIG, thought stick was just for old heads who refuse to change. But hitting that number made me realize how much cleaner my stick welds are now compared to when I started. I used to leave slag traps all over the place, now I'm getting that nice ripple without even trying. On the other hand, MIG is way faster for production work and less cleanup. So which one do you think actually makes a better boilermaker in the long run? I'm leaning toward stick being better for heavy repair work down the line, but I want to hear what you guys think after putting in some real hours yourself.
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simoncarr21d ago
Man, that's a solid milestone right there. I hit around 600 hours on pipeline work a couple years back and it changed how I look at both processes too. For repair work especially, I found stick just gives me more control when things get rough like rust or tight spots where you can't get the MIG gun in. MIG is faster no doubt, but I swear stick makes you a better welder overall because you have to read the puddle more and adjust on the fly. Your mileage may vary, but in my experience the guys who can burn rod well end up fixing half the MIG welds on a shutdown. Keep pushing on that stick, it'll pay off when you least expect it.
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