A welding cable earns its keep in the worst conditions on any shop floor. It is dragged over steel, flexed thousands of times a shift and splashed with oil and slag, all while carrying a very high current. Choosing it on cross-section alone misses most of what matters.
Size on current and duty cycle
The conductor is picked for the welding current the set delivers and for its duty cycle, the fraction of each period the arc is actually drawing current. A high-current set on a heavy duty cycle needs a larger conductor than the peak current alone would suggest, because the cable spends more of its time hot. Long leads are upsized further, so that the voltage reaching the arc holds steady over the length of the run.
What the cable itself must survive
APAR welding cables use a finely stranded conductor for flexibility and a compound that is flame retardant, oil resistant and resistant to compression and cutting, so the lead survives rough handling. They are rated from -10°C to +90°C, offered from 25 to 300 sq mm, and built for supply where the voltage does not exceed 600 V. They are manufactured and tested to IS 9857 and BS 638 (Part 4), with test certificates available for project submittals.
See the full range of APAR welding cables for the current and length your set needs.