What Is Stick Welding? How SMAW Works

Stick welding is the common name for Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW). It uses a flux-coated consumable electrode, sometimes called a rod or stick, to lay down weld metal. When you strike an arc, the flux coating burns off and does two things: it creates a gas shield (mostly CO2, CO, and water vapor) that keeps air away from the molten puddle, and it forms a slag layer that protects the weld as it cools. No external shielding gas is needed. The process has been around since the early 1900s and is still the most widely used welding process in the world for field and maintenance work.

How Stick Welding Works

The arc melts both the electrode and the base metal at the same time. The flux coating decomposes in the heat of the arc, releasing shielding gases that form a protective envelope around the weld pool. This keeps nitrogen and oxygen in the atmosphere from contaminating the molten metal.

As the puddle solidifies, slag floats to the surface and hardens into a glass-like layer over the finished bead. This slag protects the cooling weld from oxidation. You must chip it off with a chipping hammer and wire brush before running the next pass or inspecting the weld.

The electrode is consumed as you weld. A 14-inch rod lasts a few minutes depending on amperage, and you throw away a 2-inch stub each time. Then you clamp a new rod in the stinger and restart.

Equipment You Need

A stick welding setup is the simplest in arc welding: a constant current power source (the stick welder), an electrode holder (stinger), a ground clamp, a welding helmet, gloves, and a box of electrodes. That is the entire list. No gas bottles, no wire feeders, no regulators, no spools.

AC machines are the cheapest option and work fine with AC-rated rods like E6011, E6013, and E7018AC. DC machines give better arc stability and control, and most professional welders prefer DC. Many modern inverter machines run both AC and DC.

Advantages of Stick Welding

Most portable process. A stick welder and a box of rods fit in the back of a truck. No gas to haul, no wire feeder to set up.

Works outdoors in wind. The flux provides its own shielding, so wind that would ruin a MIG weld has minimal effect on stick.

Tolerates dirty material. Stick welds through rust, mill scale, paint, and light contamination far better than MIG or TIG. Rods like E6010 and E6011 are specifically designed to burn through contamination.

Cheapest equipment. A basic stick welder costs less than any MIG or TIG setup.

All-position capable. Most stick rods work in flat, horizontal, vertical, and overhead positions.

Wide material range. With the right rod, you can weld mild steel, stainless steel, cast iron, hardfacing overlays, and dissimilar metals.

Limitations

Slower than MIG. Each rod only lasts a few minutes. Every rod change means stopping, chipping slag, loading a new electrode, and restarting the arc.

Slag removal. You must chip and brush between every pass. This adds significant time on multi-pass welds.

Higher skill requirement than MIG. You have to maintain arc length manually as the rod gets shorter, and technique varies significantly between rod types.

Not suitable for thin material. Anything under 1/8 inch is difficult to weld with stick without burning through. MIG and TIG are better choices for sheet metal.

More spatter than MIG or TIG, especially with cellulose rods like E6010.

Stub waste. About 10-15% of each rod is thrown away as a stub. On large jobs, this adds up in both material cost and time.

When to Use Stick Welding

Stick is the right process for field work, farm repair, structural steel, pipeline welding, and maintenance on dirty or rusty equipment. Any time you are welding outdoors where wind would blow away MIG shielding gas, stick is the answer. It dominates in construction, shipbuilding, and pipeline because the work happens outside in unpredictable conditions.

If you can only own one welding process and you do any amount of outdoor or field work, stick is the one to buy.

Common Stick Welding Electrodes

E6010 is a cellulose-coated rod that digs deep. It is the standard for pipe root passes and works best on DC+ polarity. Rough bead appearance but excellent penetration.

E6011 is the AC-compatible version of E6010. Same deep-digging characteristics but runs on AC or DC, making it the choice when your machine does not have DC output.

E6013 has a rutile coating that produces a smooth, easy-to-control arc. It is the most forgiving rod for beginners and works well on thin to medium steel in all positions.

E7018 is a low-hydrogen rod that produces the strongest welds of any common stick electrode. It is required for code-quality structural work and must be stored in a rod oven to prevent moisture absorption. See the full E7018 specifications for details.

E7014 is an iron-powder-coated rod designed for high deposition rates in flat and horizontal positions. It produces a smooth bead with heavy slag that peels off easily.

E7024 is a heavy iron powder rod for flat and horizontal only. It lays down metal fast and is used for production welding on plate and structural steel where you do not need all-position capability.

Classification system defined by AWS A5.1, general welding process knowledge.