Learning to weld

dalek

dalek

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One of the things I would like to learn is how to weld, at least arc and tig. How should I go about it? Self teaching? Find someone who knows and mooch some of the knowledge? Classes? If the latter, where in the triangle can I take them?
 
dalek;n89269 said:
One of the things I would like to learn is how to weld, at least arc and tig. How should I go about it? Self teaching? Find someone who knows and mooch some of the knowledge? Classes? If the latter, where in the triangle can I take them?
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Wake Tech has a program that can be taken at night. It's two semesters.
 
Lucky13bullets;n89334 said:
I found that tig was the easiest for me. Next was oxy acetaline. I never got the hang of stick welding and don't even think about letting me weld aluminum
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I learned to TIG on aluminum. Easiest by far for me is a wirefed MIG. You can weld up the crack of dawn with that little box.
 
Lucky13bullets;89334 said:
I found that tig was the easiest for me. Next was oxy acetaline. I never got the hang of stick welding and don't even think about letting me weld aluminum
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I actually find aluminum mig welding easier than steel. I kick myself for not taking advantage of access to several tig machines and friends that could use them well to learn.

One of my employees took classes through Goodwill a couple years back. Pretty reasonable, taught by the local community college.
 
Lucky13bullets;89360 said:
I find that with aluminum I cant see the puddle when it is just right and I end up blowing through
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I like it because the puddle seems so much more evident, and it feels like I have all the time in the world to manipulate it.

I am clearly the odd one out though, no one I know agrees.
 
I learned oxyacetylene from my Grandpa way back and then a little stick. Oxyacetylene ain't as pretty as TIG or MIG but they do a fair amount of general stuff. For finished stuff I really like TIG and it is easier for me. Welding is kinda like reloading to me ... the setup and prep are required to get the best results and cheat sheets rule unless you weld all the time.
 
Beef15;n89383 said:
I like it because the puddle seems so much more evident, and it feels like I have all the time in the world to manipulate it.

I am clearly the odd one out though, no one I know agrees.
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We've never met FTF...but I agree with you.
 
htperry;n89396 said:
By learning to weld, I become an expert with a grinder.

I can now stick, MIG, TIG and Oxy ..... an expertly grind it all pretty.
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Dont forget to throw some paint on it

dalek I think you should have someone teach you the basics. There's alot to be learned on how to blaze metal properly. Im assuming your just wanting to mess around for fun, which is what I do.
 
Paint is a must if you don't want rust. Setting up your equipment properly is just as improtant as the weld. There is much more to it that melting metal and making bright light. I would recommend a class if you can't find a reputable welder to learn from.
 
Depending on your location, Randolph Community College has a couple of non credit, continuing education classes in welding taught on a Saturday mornings, I almost signed both myself and the wife up, but never got around to it.
 
Mid level welders laugh about grinding, but professional welders know that grinding the right way makes the joint stronger because it reduces stress risers.
 
Used to watch my grampa weld with a pair of tanks & a coat hanger. Cheapest SOB I've ever met, but damned if he ain't one crafty old bastard.
 
IMO learning to weld with a stick welder will make you a better welder. I'm no professional nor have I went to school for it. Having said that, learning arc control with a stick welder will teach you loads. I learned on a stick welder and then went on to mig. I've never ran a tig welder but you can weld aluminum with a stick welder as well as a mig. The key to welding aluminum is having it clean to start with and hot. The reason TIG works so well is because you are actually preheating the material beforehand. Find you a used welder or someone that has one they will let you use and buy the consumables(rods,wire, etc) and learn to run a good bead. Once you get that downpat try sticking two pieces together and then try to break that in a vise. If you break it you'll be able to tell a lot by the weld job,( depth, quality) and it will help you learn
 
Crazy Carl;n89985 said:
Used to watch my grampa weld with a pair of tanks & a coat hanger. Cheapest SOB I've ever met, but damned if he ain't one crafty old bastard.
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Sounds like brazing. Back when they made good coat hangers you could do that.
 
Burt Gummer;n90224 said:
IMO learning to weld with a stick welder will make you a better welder. I'm no professional nor have I went to school for it. Having said that, learning arc control with a stick welder will teach you loads. I learned on a stick welder and then went on to mig. I've never ran a tig welder but you can weld aluminum with a stick welder as well as a mig. The key to welding aluminum is having it clean to start with and hot. The reason TIG works so well is because you are actually preheating the material beforehand. Find you a used welder or someone that has one they will let you use and buy the consumables(rods,wire, etc) and learn to run a good bead. Once you get that downpat try sticking two pieces together and then try to break that in a vise. If you break it you'll be able to tell a lot by the weld job,( depth, quality) and it will help you learn
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Thats pretty good advise. I learnt to weld in the FFA. Its easy peasy. Stick welding with a cheap welder sucks. If you can stick weld youll pick up mig real fast.
 
Here are two links on YouTube,. Check them out before you take a class, I'm a hobby welder.

MIG using flux core is easy, good for outdoors.
I learned with stick and oxyacetylene in shop, circa 1975.

Remember gloves and long sleeves along with eye protection.
The guys on TV don't do that and that is a safety issue.

The third link shows many projects from a pro welder.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...sAlqWq2q9_6AVg

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...J4vA7j0dD8trVw

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...xU5PoGm1w3sqwg
 
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