Frunze E7018, 5/32", Welding Rods! Any position welding AC or DC Welding Electrodes! (10 pounds)

Great rod for the price. Won't replace my Excalibur but for barely over a buck a pound, hard to go wrong. Based on other budget rods I'd tried, I really wasn't expecting much out of these and was pleasantly surprised.Strikes easily(If you're having issues, check your grounds, and weld on bright shiny metal. XX18 rods are like MIG in stick form, metal must be CLEAN........), runs smoothly, no extra spatter than usual. Restarts are a pain due to flux blocking the tip of the electrode, in common with all other 7018 rods. Slag chips off easily, although I didn't get it to curl off in one piece like I can with Excalibur. Prefers a 90 deg straight on rod-angle or a very slight drag, and seems to prefer running on the slightly cooler side of the amperage range, 150-155 amps for me. Obviously everyone's machine and preferred operating characteristics will vary, so that's not gospel. None of the popping, spitting, going out, and preferring sharp drag rod angles that I've encountered with other budget 7018 rods.Came in a sealed plastic bag, which won't meet code for low humidity(plastic passes a surprising amount of water, on that level), but anyone doing coded work isn't buying rods on Amazon anyway.Doing some more research, Frunze is a world-class welding rod manufacturer from the Ukraine. That in mind, it's no surprise these ran well, no matter the price. While I hope more of these become available, I just don't see how the super low price is sustainable. If they are, I would switch to these rods full time. Fingers crossed!

Work real well. Will order again as needed.