New from ESAB, OK Tubrod 14.11 is a 1.2mm diameter metal-cored wire for non- and low-alloyed steel which has been specially developed for the high speed welding of thin plates (1-4mm).  Treated with ESAB’s revolutionary cored wire surface technology, it sets new standards for reducing welding costs, especially in mechanised and robotic stations.

The difference in welding performance in the thin-plate area, compared to solid wire, is striking.  In many applications, travel speeds between 150 and 250cm/min can be achieved, regardless of whether it is thin fillet welds (a=2-2.5mm) or overlap joints.  OK Tubrod 14.11 tends to produce welds without undercut and with nice wash to the plate edges.

The application of OK Tubrod 14.11 brings potential cost savings to any application involving mechanised or robotic welding of sheet metal up to 4mm thickness where the welding station forms a bottleneck in production.  Station cycle times can be substantially reduced, due to the significantly higher welding speed.  This results in a 20-40% increase in productivity and a corresponding decrease in welding cost.  Applications can be found, generally, in the fabrication of thin-walled components for the automotive and transport industries, and in the furniture industry.

OK Tubrod 14.11 Ø1.2mm operates in the spray arc mode at currents as low as 160A, providing the widest possible envelope for low –spatter welding with a fine droplet transfer.  This is a major advantage compared to 1.0mm and 1.2mm solid wires, which can only be used in the short arc or globular arc mode when welding thin plate.

With high welding speed and an extraordinarily low arc voltage, heat input into the welded part is very low, making it a viable alternative to so called ‘cold-arc’ welding processes in welding non- and low-alloyed steel.  These advantages also provide benefits in welding zinc-coated plate, where OK Tubrod 14.11 Ø1.2mm has very low porosity and spatter.