AC vs DC stick welding

[farmboy weldor]

i(we) own an AC 225 lincoln buzz box and i have and use mainyl four types of rods, 6013 1/8in., 7018 1/8in., 6011 1/8in. and 5/32in. 6011. now my question is that in most welding books it says 7018 is smooth to run but when i run it is very rough and ,well not spattery but not very smooth, also i have used a lincoln ranger 250 dc stick with the same rods and its nice and smooth, is this just the difference in current or is it the brand of rods i run(7018 is hobart, 6013 and 6011 is lincoln) the lincoln rods tend to run smoother than the hobart rods... is this just operater error, i know arc length could be a factor but ive tried shorter and longer lengths but there is no change...


thanx for and comments and opinions

[Sberry]

Its the machine, most 7018 is a DC+ rod. They do make it special for AC, but most of it is for DC, thats the reason.

[farmboy weldor]

thanx sberry