EI 312BLUE is a rutile coated stainless steel electrode for joint welding of different steels and for coating applications on ferritic steels. The ferritic-austenitic Cr-Ni alloy weld metal contains about 50% delta-ferrite and is scale resistant up to +1100°C. Due to its high crack resistance, it is suitable for joint welding of low weldability steels and for buffer layer applications prior to hardfacing on crack sensitive steels. It is especially used in crack repair, buffer pass applications, repair of eaten or cracked threads and buffer layer applications of cutting blades on mold and tool steels. It is also suitable for welding galvanized steels. EI 312BLUE provides superior performance when joining different steels, welding tool steels, manganese steels and spring steels. It can be welded with both AC and DC current, has a fine metal drop transition and ensures good fusion with base metal surfaces. It is characterized by soft melting, good seam appearance and easy to clean slag.