Ok, after reading the nice posts by you guys, I measured the OC voltage on the
high setting on my
Century 230 AC welder and found it to be only 40V. I then switched the positive
lead to the low
setting and found an OC voltage of 70V.

This made a BIG difference in being able to strike and hold an arc (still not an
easy thing to do for me)

I then heated some 7018 AC 1/8" rods in the oven at 300 degrees for about 30 min
and set the
amperage at 110 amps.

I got this weld:

http://www.skyko.com/halloween/weld.jpg

Not really pretty, but i think it has penetrated both pieces. Actually, it has
melted a bit too much into
the vertical piece...was that because of too much current? too large a diameter
rod? holding the rod not
at 45 degrees?

Thanks for any more tips,

Rick