Learned How To Weld Today

[crokett]

Made my version of the wolverine grinding jig out of 3.00 worth of tube steel, 2 old mower blades and a machine screw. Also had a great couple hours with my dad. The welds aren't pretty but I don't think they will break. I still need to do more shaping with my angle grinder. When I have everything set up, I will post a pic.

 

[Gotcha6]

Welding is an invaluable skill. Took me a year at Community College night classes to learn. You must be a fast learner. :gar-Bi
Like all skills, practice makes perfect. Don't worry about the looks first, just make it hold and then get the pretty part down. :icon_thum

 

[LeftyTom]

Welding is an invaluable skill. Don't worry about the looks first, just make it hold and then get the pretty part down. :icon_thum

This +100

 

[Gofor]

A great thing about taking a welding course is you get to play with big tools without buying them. Neighbor is in his third course (did basic, TIG and now is in MIG). Every class has had employers come to the instructor looking for employees. Even with the recession, good welders are still in demand.

Go

 

[junquecol]

A big PLUS 1 on going the community college route. You will use more consumables (gas, electrodes, steel plate, electricity) than the tuition is. Some may not know it, but seniors 65 and over can attend classes tuition free if space is available. Sometimes my welds could pass any inspection, and others look like I just got a great big bag of Bazooka Bubble Gum and used it as weld. Two things that helped me more than anything else were : a pair of reading glasses from Dollartree, and an auto darkening helmet.

 

[CrealBilly]

Welding is an invaluable skill. Took me a year at Community College night classes to learn. You must be a fast learner. :gar-Bi
Like all skills, practice makes perfect. Don't worry about the looks first, just make it hold and then get the pretty part down. :icon_thum

Big Plus on Community College Welding Classes :thumbs_up

 

[scsmith42]

David, congratulations on your first weld! As others have indicated, it is a great skillset to acquire, and can be extremely rewarding.

Ditto the comments on the community college courses; it's a great (and economical) way to learn and practice.

Don't overlook learning how to use oxy-acytelene torches to braze weld; it's "old school" but still invaluable when it comes to certain materials.

 

[JimD]

Years ago when I was in college all mechanical engineer students had to take a class where part of the study was welding. We had to do a little gas brazing and welding. We also used an arc welder to turn a 1/4 inch piece of plate into about a 3/4 inch thick plate. Boring but you had to lay down straight bead. The other part of the course was making a machine vise I still have. That was more fun. We sand cast the body and jaw out of aircraft aluminum and machined steel jaws with V-grooves and a threaded shaft. We also made a brass bushing for the female threads and shrank it while heating the vise body to get them to go together. I could still stick things together last time I tried with an arc welder but my welds aren't very pretty.

Jim

 

[crokett]

"I learned to weld" means I can take a wire feed welder and stick parts together so they don't come apart. :wsmile: The welds aren't pretty. I can lay down beads, but not bead. :gar-La;

 

[Glennbear]

Years ago when I was in college all mechanical engineer students had to take a class where part of the study was welding. We had to do a little gas brazing and welding. We also used an arc welder to turn a 1/4 inch piece of plate into about a 3/4 inch thick plate. Boring but you had to lay down straight bead. The other part of the course was making a machine vise I still have. That was more fun. We sand cast the body and jaw out of aircraft aluminum and machined steel jaws with V-grooves and a threaded shaft. We also made a brass bushing for the female threads and shrank it while heating the vise body to get them to go together. I could still stick things together last time I tried with an arc welder but my welds aren't very pretty.

Jim

That is really cool Jim, that kind of practical application while learning multiple skills is invaluable. :wsmile:

 

[Glennbear]

Made my version of the wolverine grinding jig out of 3.00 worth of tube steel, 2 old mower blades and a machine screw. Also had a great couple hours with my dad. The welds aren't pretty but I don't think they will break. I still need to do more shaping with my angle grinder. When I have everything set up, I will post a pic.

A great thing about taking a welding course is you get to play with big tools without buying them. Neighbor is in his third course (did basic, TIG and now is in MIG). Every class has had employers come to the instructor looking for employees. Even with the recession, good welders are still in demand.



Go

Over the past year I have read time and time again in publications from the AARP magazine to the US Dept. of Labor Job Outlook Report that there is and will continue to be a demand for welders. Dad has given you a very valuable skill that can be used beyond your own shop.

A big PLUS 1 on going the community college route. You will use more consumables (gas, electrodes, steel plate, electricity) than the tuition is. Some may not know it, but seniors 65 and over can attend classes tuition free if space is available. Sometimes my welds could pass any inspection, and others look like I just got a great big bag of Bazooka Bubble Gum and used it as weld. Two things that helped me more than anything else were : a pair of reading glasses from Dollartree, and an auto darkening helmet.

My local community college branch here in Southside VA has a welding program and the senior program starts at age 60. :eusa_danc I fully intend to take advantage of this opportunity since unlike so much else around here the school is only 12 miles away. :gar-Bi

David, congratulations on your first weld! As others have indicated, it is a great skillset to acquire, and can be extremely rewarding.

Ditto the comments on the community college courses; it's a great (and economical) way to learn and practice.

Don't overlook learning how to use oxy-acytelene torches to braze weld; it's "old school" but still invaluable when it comes to certain materials.

Years ago I was a foreman at an electronics manufacturer and one of the things we made were large transformer like devices which hung underneath subway cars. Part of the assembly process was brazing on 1/4" thick copper lugs for wire connections. I had a few employees with a welding background who had never mastered torch brazing and were caught short. It is indeed a very valuable skill.:wsmile:

 

[Rob]

I taught myself how to weld years ago, with help from a friend. He got me started and I figured out the rest as I went on. A very valuable skill that I still love to do. It takes practice, lots of practice. If I don't weld for a few months, you can tell by my first bead, but it doesn't take long to get back into the groove. I've never learned to TIG though, someday I will.