Posted: 9/21/2008 1:09:24 AM EDT
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What's the best way to learn? I've thought of taking a community college class but scheduling is awful due to my work hours. I'd love to learn to weld (mainly steel). My main goal is to be able to fabricate and repair things for my jeep and truck for off-road use. Unfortunately, most of my friends' welding skills are no better than mine (I can burn holes through metal and occasionally make metal stick to other metal for a temporary period of time) What say you guys? |
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I taught myself. Start with a torch and then work up to electric. The torch will teach you the fundamentals of melting a metal and then joining it together. It will also give you a method to cut metal with. My first welds weren't pretty. I can do a pretty nice weld with a torch now. Then learn to weld on a stick welder. You can get one pretty cheap...about $250 new and they are all over the place used. You can weld real thick metal with a stick welder. It takes some skill to do so practice!! Then buy a MIG welder. Once you use a MIG welder, you'll love it. It's so easy. But learning the first two techniques will teach you the fundamentals. That's as far as I know. I don't TIG weld or anything exotic. |
| I went the community college route and was glad I did. You had all the scrap steel, rod, tools, and different types of welders you could ever use. If you went out and bought all that to practice on until you were good, it would really cost alot. We burned as much rod as we could in the 3 hours of class time. For me, learning the right way to start welding was worth it. My instructor was very flexable as to hours and classes, in fact once the 2 basic classes were out of the way you could come and go as you pleased. |