Yes, the 40ft extension cord did take away your heat and the wind really messes the weld up. With the Lincoln 225 weldor use 7018 rod if you have some. Drying it in the oven would be great. Slip it in when you're wife is baking a pie. (Not) We live in Arizona so it gets baked quite often. I have a wire feed also and with 1/4 inch metal I will take my torch and heat up the metal then weld it. Get lot better penetration. Thanks for your reply and good luck. You can buy the hammered paint, really covers up imperfections and it's tough.
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