Intro to Welding?

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  • southerncanuck

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    Dec 3, 2019
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    Hey dudes!

    Anyone know of an intro to hobby welding class anywhere on the approximate stretch between Baton Rouge and Gulfport?

    I’m wanting to learn the basics just for little projects and stuff around the house, etc.
     

    Bigchillin83

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    hobby????? right... i think you see a business opportunity to charge $70 a tac weld...:deadhorse:lol joking


    last time i took a class was in highschool ag class, lol i bought a little mig welder a few years ago and watched a few videos and just played around... Im back to running some nice beads... Not sure how many hobby classes they have around these days, i dont know if its still a thing but i remember 25 years ago being able to go to the library and sign up for hobby classes lol .. might wanna check out the ol you tube...
     

    PhalanX-SS

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    Honestly dude, utilize YouTube. That'll get you a lot of the basics.

    For general purpose id suggest looking into stick welding, using a 1/8" 6010 or 6011 rod (electrode). Stick welding is the cheapest and most reliable method, and those rods are what everyone starts on.

    Affordable decent quality wall machines are easy to come by. No gases and regulators, no finicky parts.

    Paint? Rust? Wind? No problem. Well okay I exaggerate a bit, prep is like 80% of welding.

    And then after that it's practice, and the occasional guiding hand/research.
     

    Bigchillin83

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    Honestly dude, utilize YouTube. That'll get you a lot of the basics.

    For general purpose id suggest looking into stick welding, using a 1/8" 6010 or 6011 rod (electrode). Stick welding is the cheapest and most reliable method, and those rods are what everyone starts on.

    Affordable decent quality wall machines are easy to come by. No gases and regulators, no finicky parts.

    Paint? Rust? Wind? No problem. Well okay I exaggerate a bit, prep is like 80% of welding.

    And then after that it's practice, and the occasional guiding hand/research.
    right.... lol literally the first video in the search, along with millions of other videos.....

     

    Bigchillin83

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    speaking of welding, i saw this a while ago and was blown away... the things people come up with lol

     

    PhalanX-SS

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    speaking of welding, i saw this a while ago and was blown away... the things people come up with lol


    Usually you let it cool down a little longer than that. Metal expands while heated, and since the majority of the heat is concentrated on the bolt and not the block it's gonna require more torque to twist out, increasing chance of twisting of the nut and having to start all over.

    On a side note, and keep in mind I've never used it, they make a special rod for "filling" up the void where a bolt twisted off deep inside. They're called extractor rods
     

    Magdump

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    My dad’s first trade was welding. He went to BR VoTec and got out working at Union Tank Car. I learned a lot from him and welded in high school. There are a lot of tips and tricks that are not gonna be easily learned on YouTube for sure, like how to manipulate steel. Torch cutting techniques, heat treating, how to soften and harden steel can all be a course in and of itself. I learned all that and how to stick weld and did plenty of it before I even graduated high school. I’ve always either owned an arc welder or had access to one. In the 90’s I decided I wanted to wire weld, being into motorcycles and needing to weld aluminum and for all sorts of other reasons I just went out and bought a full rig, argon tank and all and proceeded to teach myself to use it. I started with flux core and worked my way up to MIG/TIG.
    Weren’t no YouTube back in those days. I understand your desire and I can tell you that you can do it. If you’re looking to break into wire welding I’d suggest a Hobart or Miller (there’s also a cheaper version of Miller whose name escapes me), start with simple flux core (gasless) and go from there. If stick welding is what you’re after I’d pick up a small Lincoln on the cheap. The biggest hurdle will be an adequate 220v line. There’s a lot of difference in the 110v and 220v welders and what you can get done with them.

    Another option would be to befriend someone with a welding business and attempt to work out some sort of version of an apprenticeship. Work a day or two per month in return for some instruction and practice.
     

    3fifty7

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    I’d imagine if you show up to a welding shop, muffler shop or even a farm with one of your badass flashlights someone would be willing to trade for a couple hours instruction and practice if they aren’t jam up busy.
    I would if you’re ever in the Bunkie area.
     

    Bigchillin83

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    I agree for a hobbyist 120 V mig machine will handle everything you need on a small farm , tractors, lawnmowers, shop work ect… stick machines are usually cheaper but also harder for the beginner.. to me mig machine is like a bike with training wheels, great for learning and can still take the training wheels off and do more… even my 12-year-old can run a bead with a mig after only about five minutes of training, and my 8 year old can make metal stick aint pretty but you know.... :mamoru:


    E7CFCC6C-0BD6-4134-99ED-6A32BDA52DE6.jpeg
     
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    swampfoxx

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    I welded some in high school and played around with a Harbor Freight wire welder for a couple of years. I can stick metal together, but it aint pretty. I recently purchased a 250A, 120/240 combo MIG/TIG/SMAW IGBT Inverter welder for $250 from Vevor to learn MIG/TIG. So far, I have only used the SMAW function, but it worked great. Comes with everything except rods, tank and regulator.

     

    Stonehenge

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    I learned in high school, one of the few classes I showed up for my last two years. First year was almost all stick, second was lots of mig/flux core with a little tig and heliarc.

    I quit school and got a welder's helper job at IPS, two months later I was a tacker which was all tig.

    Then went to work for Anvil Attachments building crane buckets, grapples and drag line buckets. I never really used a stick rod since high school.

    I'd go to harbor freight and get a flux core welder to start out with, later on you can add tri-mix and mig with it. Then you can get a little stick welder and hook a tig torch and bottle to it and get into that. Or use it to stick weld. You can have all your bases covered that way for under a grand.
     

    JBP55

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    Ask a Pipefitter or Boilermaker Welder or anyone that has worked as a welder at a Nuclear Plant for assistance.
     

    Ellis1958

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    An aircraft mechanic is also a resource. As part of the training to obtain an Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic Certificate you have to weld. Granted Oxygen / Acetylene on 4130 tubular steel is what I was trained on 40+ years ago so I'm not much help. Stop by a hangar and find out who they use for welding exhaust systems for example. Then buy an hour or two of the mans time to teach you.
     

    southerncanuck

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    Alright fellas I splurged and got one. Had a 25% off coupon so I got this one from HF... I know I know...


    @Bigchillin83 You know I'm an opportunist, but this one is legitimately just for fun. I was bitching about my broken trailer gate to my wife, and she goes "Gee I'm surprised you don't know how to fix that." I explain that I never learned...

    Wife: I think you should learn
    Me: You know that means I'd have to buy a bunch more crap right?
    Wife: Yes
    Me: It might get expensive
    Wife: Yes
    Me: You know it's like, fire and sparks and danger right?
    Wife: Yes
    Me: Mmmk then!

    I'm assuming there was a glitch in the matrix and she was possessed by aliens for a few minutes, but I wasn't gonna wait around to ask twice.
     

    number1roadie19

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    Alright fellas I splurged and got one. Had a 25% off coupon so I got this one from HF... I know I know...


    @Bigchillin83 You know I'm an opportunist, but this one is legitimately just for fun. I was bitching about my broken trailer gate to my wife, and she goes "Gee I'm surprised you don't know how to fix that." I explain that I never learned...

    Wife: I think you should learn
    Me: You know that means I'd have to buy a bunch more crap right?
    Wife: Yes
    Me: It might get expensive
    Wife: Yes
    Me: You know it's like, fire and sparks and danger right?
    Wife: Yes
    Me: Mmmk then!

    I'm assuming there was a glitch in the matrix and she was possessed by aliens for a few minutes, but I wasn't gonna wait around to ask twice.
    You sure this wasn't a fever dream? I think any married man understands the struggle. lol
     

    shrxfn

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    1   0   0
    Oct 25, 2015
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    Alright fellas I splurged and got one. Had a 25% off coupon so I got this one from HF... I know I know...


    @Bigchillin83 You know I'm an opportunist, but this one is legitimately just for fun. I was bitching about my broken trailer gate to my wife, and she goes "Gee I'm surprised you don't know how to fix that." I explain that I never learned...

    Wife: I think you should learn
    Me: You know that means I'd have to buy a bunch more crap right?
    Wife: Yes
    Me: It might get expensive
    Wife: Yes
    Me: You know it's like, fire and sparks and danger right?
    Wife: Yes
    Me: Mmmk then!

    I'm assuming there was a glitch in the matrix and she was possessed by aliens for a few minutes, but I wasn't gonna wait around to ask twice.
    I would check and make sure she didn't just take out a million dollar life insurance policy.
     
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