How to automate the welding process with a lying electrode

The practice of stick welding is one of the many methods of electric arc welding. In this case, the electrode is placed along the line of contact of the parts and then the electric arc is ignited, after which the process proceeds automatically.
With this welding method, reverse polarity is used - the plus must be on the electrode.

Will need

To weld with a lying electrode, we need to prepare the following materials, tools and equipment:

welding machine;
electrodes;
two equal angles;
wooden plank;
clamp pliers;
hammer.

The process of welding using the lying electrode method

First of all, we connect the mass and, for reliability, we grab it by welding, as well as equal angle angles, so that they do not diverge when igniting the electric arc and connecting. Also, to ensure the stability of the parts during the welding process, we clamp them to the base.

We place the electrode in the gap between the equal angles.

We place a wooden plank on top of it and press it against the parts to be joined with clamp pliers. You can simply press the board down with a brick.

These precautions are necessary to ensure that the electrode does not move from its place when the electric arc is ignited. We connect the welding electric holder to the lying electrode.

Then we ignite an electric arc using another electrode or a piece of wire, connecting the recumbent electrode to the parts being welded, that is, to ground. If ignition does not work the first time, then the attempt must be repeated.

After a stable electric arc has arisen, the welding process will proceed automatically and end when it reaches the opposite end of the parts being welded.

We remove the pliers-clamp, then the wooden plank and beat off the slag formed during the welding process along the entire length of the seam using a hammer or some suitable metal object.

We make sure that the welding seam is uniform and continuous along the entire length of the connection of equal-flange angles and does not require any additional corrections.