Welding, How did you learn? Options

[seanery]

I learned to weld at the local high school's Adult Education Center. I learned how to MIG, TIG & STICK weld. I wish that I would have asked to learn Gas welding as well.

People say TIG'ing aluminum is hard, but I picked it up right away. I really, really enjoy TIG welding. MIG is fast and reasonably clean, but TIG is clean and very quiet. STICK, well, stick penetrates well but makes a lot of mess and has a bit less control than I like.

[sgomes]

The idea being.... if you can't break it apart, it's a good weld?

I've got another question. How much should I plan on spending for a decent MIG setup with all the sundries? Just a ballpark figure. Yes I know it depends on what materials I plan on welding and all that but give me an idea of what kinda rigs you guys have. Hmmmm... sounds like another thread... "show us your rig"... hmmm wait no that 's a bad idea with this group of freaks.. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

Shannon

[seanery]

Check this book out Welder's Handbook I read it before I took my class. It's pretty good and it has charts for what rod/filler to use. *EDIT* THis book is available at Lowe's & Home Depot for $17 - $19.

My buddy Paul bought a Miller 135 setup and he spent about a grand which included, Welder, Cart, Tanks, Gas, Auto-Helmet, Gloves. There may have been a couple more things like magnets thrown in there, too. The 135 is a 110 V / 135 A welder.

I really like the Miller welders. I was able to teach him how to MIG correctly in 2 sessions one afternoon.

[Andy]

The idea being.... if you can't break it apart, it's a good weld?

Basically, there are people who should be able to explain much better than me but generally a good weld won't fail at the weld itself, the pieces you welded will fail - however you need to watch for material that breaks too easily near the weld - usually thats crystalization, too much heat or brought on or removed too quickly can cause a serious weakening of the surrounding material. Not really a problem for sheet metal.

Most of my welding junk I bought for 4x4 work, (read 1/8" to 1/2" mild steel) but check out www.cyberweld.com they have good prices, but you'll still need to get gas locally. I've used Miller, Hobart and Lincoln and they're all reasonably good. I'd avoid the harbor freight special (though I love my Century 131 it's useless for sheet metal). If you're only going to do light duty work 110V is OK. 220V gives a lot more power though.

[TimT]

The idea being.... if you can't break it apart, it's a good weld?

Thats a part of being a good weld... just because you cant break it "now" has nothing to do with whether it will break "then" having full penetration and fusion are paramount when welding.. however, inclusions, porosity, undercut can affect the strength and durabilty of your weld..

Welding thin gauge metal is usually a one pass procedure.. so most of the worries are sort of cleanlliness is next to godliness..

have clean base metal, and fit up the parts better than they should be...thats means spend extra time fitting the pieces to be welded, when you think they fit right... take it apart and see if goes fits up the same the next go round..put yourself in a comfortable welding position....

The welding of the parts is the easy part... making them be ready to weld is the hard stuff...

BTW I learned to weld when I was a kid... then High School metal shop...Studied Engineering in college, received training and certification from the American Welding Society

just pratice practice.... and get an Auto dark helmet...

[morph]

here is some good info
http://www.aussieweld.com.au/arcwelding/

[fiid]

I read a couple of books, bought a home despot welder - upgraded it to mig, and also did a bit of MAPP/oxy brazing work.

You may want to think twice before buying a welder from home depot, if you are considering that. Those welders have aluminium windings that apparently die quite easily, plus you have to pay more to upgrade the thing to MIG. I would find a local welding store and see what they have on the low end, there are very similar units at similar prices that are a little better built.

You will need gas for MIG. It is illegal to transport gas around in an enclosed vehicle, and the penalty is around $5k (I think). So find your nearest gas place, and drive directly to your house, and drop it off. Also drive with all the windows open and make sure the thing is secured. Rolling around in the trunk is not secure. A friend of mine expienced the removal of the valve from the top of a gas tank. Apparently it flew around the room 5 times, through a brick wall, and they later found it quarter of a mile away. You don't want this happining in your house, or your car.

As far as Oxy-acetylene gas welding goes, I have been advised that it pretty much terminates your fire insurance if it is on a residential property. I do not have evidence to back this up, but check first :-).

As for welding itself - it's not rocket science - there are lots of courses around if you are not happy with the progress you are making on your own. It is a reasonably dangerous sport, but all the risks can be mitigated, and you can fix your own shit when it breaks. It's a very happy, fun endeavor, and I get lots of satisfaction from it.

[sgomes]

You will need gas for MIG

What's the story with flux core MIG? I was looking at a Millermatic 175 and it says that it can do gas MIG as well as flux core. They claimed the flux core stuff was for outside when the wind is blowing. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif) Does it make a difference in the weld?

Shannon

[TimT]

Wind blows the shielding gas away.. unless you tent around your work area... flux core welds just fine.... you have to clean between each pass though... of course on thin sheet metal its usually one pass welding so just one pass to clean