1968 Dart 2dr post RESTO (father/son)
We all want our welds to be pretty. Good welds by an experienced welder are pretty. But the focus should really be on good penetration. When its good, there's some melting evident on the back side. I try to weld near the upper limit. When penetration is good, the weld tends to lay flat. If its mounding up, increase current. Then up the wire speed if it needs it. One way to judge when you need higher wire speed is you will notice the wire burning too close to the tip, sometimes sticking to the tip when you stop. There's also more sputtering as the wire melts away right at the tip. Higher wire speed is needed when filling gaps as you can see in my pics. When welding on the edges of course the heat has nowhere to go so it builds fast. You have to turn it down.
How you move the tip is personal preference, and varies with the situation. Often I find doing a tig weld pattern gives great penetration. Make a hot molten puddle, brief stop and make an overlapping puddle. Seeing the puddle well is critical. Find a position that gets the tip out of the way.
Those are some of the things that have helped me.
There's lots of good youtube vids. Practise is the big thing. Welding up a K member is a great way to learn. Its thick enough to be easy. Lots of variation in technique needed. Nothing bad will happen if the welds are not super strong. Its not where you'll see it a lot later :)
You're welcome.
