Insulated clamp at the end of the welding lead that holds the SMAW electrode. Welders choose stingers by amperage rating, weight and jaw style, and replace them when the insulation cracks or the jaws stop gripping. With the machine on, a stinger is live, so it is hung on an insulated hook or with the rod removed, never laid on the work.
Hang the stinger on the hook, not on the beam, the machine's still running.
Pull the rod stub out before you set a stinger down; a live stub touching steel will arc and can shock the next person who grabs it.
Also heard as
- electrode holder
- rod holder
Related terms
Rod
Shop word for a stick welding electrode, as in burning rod or a box of 7018 rod.
Whip
The short, flexible lead between the main welding cable and the stinger, or a whipping rod motion.
SMAW
Shielded metal arc welding: arc welding with a flux-coated consumable electrode, known in the shop as stick.
Ground
Shop word for the work lead and its clamp, which completes the welding circuit through the part.
Same word, different worlds
Shop name for the immersion vibrator head pushed into fresh castable to consolidate it.
Electricians' SlangLead that drops from a pole-top fuse cutout to a transformer's primary bushing, in lineman and service talk.
Concrete & CementAn internal concrete vibrator, or specifically the vibrating head on the end of its flexible shaft.