welding class

[Nullifier]

So I decided to sign up for a basic welding course at my local tec school. Since I now have a mig I thought it a good idea to learn a few fundamentals. The program covers stick and mig basics that I signed up for. Having never done any stick before I wasn't sure what to expect but after the first night of welding I feel pretty good about it. we were just doing some basic beads on flat plate to start, but I think I did ok. Thursday we will be running horizontal welds on a vertical plane.

Any feedback for me so far. Instructor is a decent guy but not to much on feedback other then "looks good".

 

[Blain]

Not too shabby. Take that to a wire wheel and put a nice shine on it! You'll really be able to see the dimes!

Finished welding school back in May, really enjoyed it. Your beads will start to get more "sexy" looking as you go on with it. Try holding the stinger at different angles, shorten the rods, find out what works for ya, and lean on something. You don't want to be standing trying to stay still while welding, way too hard.

My 5 week test. Went from never touching a welder to laying this down. Almost a perfect plate.
http://www.thenewx.org/forum/showthread.php?t=25236&highlight=weld+test

 

[Nullifier]

Not too shabby. Take that to a wire wheel and put a nice shine on it! You'll really be able to see the dimes!

Finished welding school back in May, really enjoyed it. Your beads will start to get more "sexy" looking as you go on with it. Try holding the stinger at different angles, shorten the rods, find out what works for ya, and lean on something. You don't want to be standing trying to stay still while welding, way too hard.

My 5 week test. Went from never touching a welder to laying this down. Almost a perfect plate.
http://www.thenewx.org/forum/showthread.php?t=25236&highlight=weld+test

Thanks for the inspiration. How long was the class you took. Min is just an 8 week intro.

 

[Blain]

Anytime! My class was 13 weeks long, covered stick in all positions, pipe (that stuff is tough!) MIG, TIG, Flux-Core, Carbon arc gouging, brazing, torches/cutting/plasma cutters, and alloys.

I rock with stick, pretty good with MIG but everything else needs work. Gouging is very, very cool! Basically just blasts away any weld. Took my course through Lincoln Electric.

 

[soonenough]

Anytime! My class was 13 weeks long, covered stick in all positions, pipe (that stuff is tough!) MIG, TIG, Flux-Core, Carbon arc gouging, brazing, torches/cutting/plasma cutters, and alloys.

I rock with stick, pretty good with MIG but everything else needs work. Gouging is very, very cool! Basically just blasts away any weld. Took my course through Lincoln Electric.

I'm the exact opposite. I took 3 semesters of welding classes at a Junior college and by the end of it I was pretty good with MIG and TIG, but I'm HORRIBLE at stick. For some reason that one never clicked with me.

IMO, MIG (and TIG, although it's expensive to TIG) is a more useful form of welding in the automotive domain than stick. Maybe it's just my lack of experience, but I don't know of any way to stick weld thin metal. If I could only have access to one or the other (keeping in mind that most of us will be more likely to use it for automotive uses rather than pipe welding), I'd choose MIG undoubtedly. It's nice to know how to do all of them, but if you get some 'free time' to practice whatever you want in your class (as we did in my class), I'd concentrate on practicing MIG.

 

[Blain]

I'm definitely a fan of MIG! I just have to get better, and it does seem to be one of the more popular methods of welding. Especially in fabrication (and TIG), which is what I really want to get into. Going to be getting a little MIG welder for home to practice on stuff. Eventually want to start making things for my vehicle, and possibly others.

Always good to know a little about everything.

 

[bill harr]

Welding tips and tricks .com

Lots of good information on welding here

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/index.html

 

[o0synge0o]

Very inspiring! I have a little Lincoln Mig rig, that I need to get practicing with. I've had it for over a year now and did a little welding with a friend to understand how everything worked and the basics, but never seem to have the time to get everything set up at the new house to practice.

 

[Nullifier]

THanks for the continued feedback guys. My plan for the class is to go ahead and keep working on the stick. I am looking for a good used stick welder to place at the office for repairing and modifying my canoe trailers. I do not want to have to mess with tanks and stuff here at the shop since space and time is limited. Then after the I complete this class sign back up and just work on mig. I learned last night there are a few guys there that are doing that instead of taking the entire 1.5 year day class.

Ok so last night I was running horizontal beads on a vertical plane. Nothing spectacular yet but I think it is still looking ok for a newb. Tuesday is my next class and he is starting me on doing T welds so I will finally get to put some metal together. Looking forward to that for sure.

It's interesting how many more things there are to think about when going to a vertical plane. Angles change, gravity, heat working up your piece into your next weld line etc.

 

[Blain]

Definitely on the right track. You using 6010?

I'm a HUGE fan of 7018! The beads I can lay with that rod will make a baby smile. :wings:

 

[soonenough]

THanks for the continued feedback guys. My plan for the class is to go ahead and keep working on the stick. I am looking for a good used stick welder to place at the office for repairing and modifying my canoe trailers. I do not want to have to mess with tanks and stuff here at the shop since space and time is limited. Then after the I complete this class sign back up and just work on mig.

Not trying to tell you what to do or anything, but I thought I'd point out that you can MIG weld without using any shielding gas; you have to use a different type of wire called Flux Core wire, which basically has the shielding gases built into the wire itself. Despite the sometimes negative reputation it has, FC can produce nice welds, it's just not quite as dummyproof as standard MIG welding. But with enough practice you can get good at it.

But I'd definitely agree with getting good at stick welding if you can, because it's probably the most commonly available type of welder, and it's also one of the most versatile welding processes. Another added benefit is that it's probably one of the most weather-proof, which is important for field repairs, since there's no shielding gas to be blown away by the wind.

One last thing that I thought I'd point out - I'm not sure what brand of welders they're using at your school (Miller, Lincoln, Hobart, etc), but my guess is that it's probably quality welding equipment. When the class is over, you're probably going to want a welder for your garage. I'd recommend not buying a crappy one (i.e. Harbor Freight) just because it's cheap. I've used HF MIG welders and plasma cutters, and after getting used to using high-end equipment, it can be very frustrating using cheap equipment. At the very least, I'd recommend trying a HF product before buying one, as you wouldn't to buy one blind, and get it home only to be disappointed. Again, that's just my opinion, YMMV.

 

[AYIAPhoto]

Definitely on the right track. You using 6010?
I'm a HUGE fan of 7018! The beads I can lay with that rod will make a baby smile.

6010/6011 is a great all around rod, plus it isn't picky about the cleanliness of the material(need to weld something fast with minimal prep-6010). As far as the 7018 goes, it is one of the easiest to lay good looking beads with. It is however much more demanding in the material prep department.

I am looking for a good used stick welder to place at the office for repairing and modifying my canoe trailers. I do not want to have to mess with tanks and stuff here at the shop since space and time is limited.

I'd definitely agree with getting good at stick welding if you can, because it's probably the most commonly available type of welder, and it's also one of the most versatile welding processes. Another added benefit is that it's probably one of the most weather-proof, which is important for field repairs, since there's no shielding gas to be blown away by the wind.
One last thing that I thought I'd point out - I'm not sure what brand of welders they're using at your school (Miller, Lincoln, Hobart, etc), but my guess is that it's probably quality welding equipment. When the class is over, you're probably going to want a welder for your garage. I'd recommend not buying a crappy one (i.e. Harbor Freight) just because it's cheap. I've used HF MIG welders and plasma cutters, and after getting used to using high-end equipment, it can be very frustrating using cheap equipment.

As noted you can use a mig or dedicated wire feed with flux core wire, however the price of a stick unit will be less. Between standard, stainless and aluminum rods you can pretty much weld anything. I'd pick up a used(or even new as they aren't expensive) Lincoln "tombstone" 220v welder. The only down side is the non removable cables, but you can just clip them and add disconnects from any welding supplier. I've welded 1/2" with mine(multiple passes and letting the machine rest between beads as it doesn't have the duty cycle of a 3 phase welder) and 1/4" welds like butter.
If you would like to Mig or Tig later there are attachments you can use after installing disconnects. With a spool gun and tank you can Mig very quickly and a Tig torch can be used for everything but aluminum without a high frequency box.

 

[Nullifier]

Well i already own a millermatic 185 with tank at my house so i am good a mig outfit. My class is a miller 304 machine and i am but.img 6010 rod to start i will using 70 series by end of class. I am not sure what arc welded i will get but will be atlsast an a/c d/c unit even if a small tombstone.

 

[ntsqd]

Just a little clarification, GTAW (TIG) uses (I *think*) a variable current power supply while GMAW (MIG) uses a variable voltage power supply. I could have that backwards, but my point is that it is rare for a power supply to be capable of both.

My standard, patented, and trademarked suggestion to anyone wanting to learn to GTAW is to first get good at oxy-fuel welding. Once you have that pretty much down moving to GTAW is relatively easy. And it puts another skill in your toolbox!

 

[AYIAPhoto]

My standard, patented, and trademarked suggestion to anyone wanting to learn to GTAW is to first get good at oxy-fuel welding. Once you have that pretty much down moving to GTAW is relatively easy. And it puts another skill in your toolbox!

Yeah, Tig is much like torch welding with the only difference being controlling heat with a foot pedal instead of distance. It's great for things like bike frames, fuel tanks(both cycle and auto) and detail work. For motor mounts, bumpers and frame work you really can't beat the versatility of a stick or the speed of Mig.
Really all of this is pushing me to go back to my old high school for a night course and brush up on my skills. Lately I've just been relying on a little snap-on 120v Mig. I'm "holding on to it" for a friend who used it for body work. For little projects it's great, but I miss not having 220 for my Lincoln. Not having ARCed anything lately, I find myself having trouble on the rare occasions I have to at work.