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The rod for dirty, rusty and painted steel

Hobart H112216-R01, 6011, 1/16 in

A deep-penetrating 6011 in the smallest diameter on this shelf, stated for welding through light to medium dirt, rust and paint.

Hobart 6011 stick electrodes, 1/16 inch, in their one-pound pack

Hobart H112216-R01, 6011, 1/16 in

A deep-penetrating 6011 in the smallest diameter on this shelf, stated for welding through light to medium dirt, rust and paint.

Amazon reference
B004USV1RE
EAN
0715959286619
  • Stated for welding through light to medium dirt, rust and paint — the one job a clean-metal rod cannot do
  • Publishes a tensile strength: 60,000 PSI
  • A cellulosic coating gives a fierce, spattery arc — this is not a rod to learn on

Best for: Farm and repair work on steel that cannot be cleaned first

≈ $16
Check price on Amazon

Specifications

Amazon reference
B004USV1RE
EAN
0715959286619

Every rod on this shelf assumes clean metal except this one. A 6011 has a cellulosic coating that burns hard and digs, which is how it welds through light to medium rust, paint, mill scale and galvanizing — and Hobart states that use directly rather than leaving it to be inferred. On a gate hinge or a trailer frame that cannot be taken to a wire wheel, it is the only honest choice here.

The specification is modest and published: 60,000 PSI tensile strength, all positions, AC or DC electrode positive, carbon and galvanized steel, one pound of 1/16 in. That diameter is the smallest on this shelf and the most useful on a small inverter, because it lights and runs inside the current range such a machine can really hold.

What you accept with a 6011 is the arc. It spatters, it is loud, it leaves more to chip and grind than a rutile rod, and it punishes a long arc length. It is not the rod to learn on — the E6013 further down this shelf is, and this hub’s buying tip makes the same point about rutile being the forgiving choice. And as everywhere in this hub except one listing, no current range is published for the diameter in the box.

Availability

Read on the day this page was built: $16 at the American Amazon shop.

Read from Keepa on the day this page was last revised; stock and price both move without notice.

Prices quoted in this text were read on 2026-10-07. The live price is at the top of the page.

The questions welders ask

What is 6011 for, if 6013 is easier?

Dirt. A 6011 has a cellulosic coating that burns violently and digs deep, which blows through light rust, mill scale, paint and galvanizing to find clean metal underneath. A 6013 rutile rod on the same joint sits on top of the contamination and traps slag. The trade is an aggressive, spattery arc that is harder to control and leaves more cleaning up. For a farm repair on steel you cannot wire-brush, it is the right rod and the easy one is the wrong one.

Why is 1/16 in useful?

Because it strikes and runs at a current a small machine can actually deliver, and because it will not blow straight through thin section. On this shelf the other diameters are 3/32 and 5/32 in; 1/16 in is for sheet and for the low end of a 100-amp inverter’s range. What the listing does not give is the current window — the cheapest rods on this shelf publish 25 to 40 A for this diameter, which is the figure to start from.

More stick electrodes

  • Fifty-pound sealed steel can of HYW E7018 welding electrodes

    HYW Products E7018, 1/8 in, 50 lb can

    The only low-hydrogen rods in this hub, in the only packaging that keeps them that way — fifty pounds in a sealed steel can.

    Amazon reference
    B07KKY6QSJ
    EAN
    0692769195969
    • Cites the standard it is made to — AWS A5.1-04 — which no other rod in this hub does
    • Supplied in a sealed steel can, which is exactly what this shelf's buying tip says low-hydrogen rods need
    • The highest price in this hub by a wide margin, and a quantity most workshops will not use before the can is opened

    Best for: Structural work where the rod has to be low-hydrogen and dry, in a quantity that justifies a can

    ≈ $190
    Check price on Amazon
  • Hobart 6013 stick electrodes, 5/32 inch, in a five-pound pack

    Hobart 770472, 6013, 5/32 in, 5 lb

    A five-pound box of the forgiving rod in the largest diameter on this shelf, and the only listing here that offers all three polarity options.

    Amazon reference
    B001QFNGU4
    EAN
    0715959363822
    • Runs on AC, DC electrode positive or DC electrode negative — the only rod on this shelf with all three
    • Publishes a tensile strength, 60,000 PSI
    • The description gives the rod count as "Rods (qty): Varies"

    Best for: General fabrication in thicker section, on whatever polarity the machine offers

    ≈ $27
    Check price on Amazon
  • STARTECHWELD A-532 copper alloy electrode holder with an insulated handle

    STARTECHWELD A-532 electrode holder, 200 A

    The only electrode holder in this hub, and it publishes the three figures that decide whether it fits your machine, your cable and your rods.

    Amazon reference
    B09BHJGGW7
    EAN
    0818988015059
    • Publishes the current rating, 200 A, the maximum electrode diameter, 5/32 in, and the maximum cable size, 2/0
    • Copper alloy jaws rather than plated steel, which is what keeps the resistance and the heat down
    • Two hundred amps is the ceiling — a 250 A machine on 1/8 in rods at full output is outside it

    Best for: Replacing a holder that has gone soft, or fitting a heavier cable than the original

    ≈ $23
    Check price on Amazon

Elsewhere in the workroom

  • Alffun TIG torch kit with back caps, collet bodies and alumina cups

    Alffun 17-piece WP-17/18/26 kit

    The smallest and cheapest kit on this shelf, for the larger WP-17/18/26 torches — on a listing whose own itemization falls three short of its title.

    Amazon reference
    B07HV27VV3
    EAN
    0192543200211
    • Names the torch series precisely — WP-17, WP-18, WP-26, and the Lincoln PTA and Miller Diamondback equivalents
    • Covers the three parts that fail: back cap, collet body and ceramic cup
    • The title says 17 pieces; the contents bullet lists 3 back caps, 6 collet bodies and 5 cups, which is 14

    Best for: Topping up a WP-17, 18 or 26 torch with the three parts that actually break

    ≈ $22
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  • Alffun 68-piece TIG consumable kit with collets, bodies and ceramic cups

    Alffun 68-piece WP-17/18/26 kit

    Eight plus twenty plus twenty plus twenty, itemized by 10N part number and matching its own stated total — which on this shelf is not the norm.

    Amazon reference
    B07L8VDGFW
    EAN
    0632230689443
    • The contents add up: 8 back caps, 20 collets, 20 gas lens collet bodies and 20 alumina cups is 68
    • Itemizes every piece by 10N part number and by both metric and imperial size
    • Gas lens bodies only — no plain collet bodies, which use less argon on simple work

    Best for: A WP-17, 18 or 26 torch stocked in three tungsten sizes at once

    ≈ $33
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  • RIVERWELD 63-piece TIG gas lens kit laid out with its cups and collets

    RIVERWELD 63-piece WP-9/20/25 gas lens kit

    The most completely specified kit in this hub — five tungsten sizes, thirteen gas lenses and thirty-one cups, each identified by its original part number.

    Amazon reference
    B0158NWVGY
    EAN
    0738470709474
    • Covers five tungsten sizes — 0.020, 0.040, 1/16, 3/32 and 1/8 in — in collets and collet bodies both
    • Thirteen gas lenses by part number, including the 45V42 to 45V45 range and the 45V204S, 45V116S, 45V64S and 995795S
    • The highest price on this shelf, by a clear margin

    Best for: A WP-9, 20 or 25 torch that has to cover everything from 0.020 in tungsten upwards

    ≈ $55
    Check price on Amazon

All stick electrodes