Welding Woes, to buy and learn / to hire a pro Options

[stateofidleness]

So im almost to the point where welding will be happening on the ol' floorpans

Im wondering whether it is worth the investment to buy a welder and all the accessories needed for the job (could be pricey i presume) or whether it's best just to hire a shop to weld up the holes in my floorpan?

if i DO buy a welder (which i think could be fun and a neat thing to learn), what am i looking for? i have a few small pencil diameter holes to patch and a couple baseball size holes to replace in the corners...

what type of welder should i look for?
what type of welding is best?
what type of metal to use?
where can i buy a cheap welder and acc. needed? (as cheap as possible! i dont mind used)
best to hire a pro?

this would be my first time welding so id probably practice on other things first, but im willing to learn and do it right. ive also got an engman kit on the way, so it would be nice to be able to weld that in myself!

Thanks for the help!

[Rick_Eberle]

I had the same problem. Spring for the welder, and you'll come out way in front. You DON'T need to spend over a grand... and you don't NEED gas, though it's nice to have. With the prices over there, you can probably get a decent mig welder for the cost of a case of beer (good beer, that is!) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/drunk.gif)

I did mine with 0.8mm gasless wire, mostly. Gas is neater, gasless is cheaper (I was using disposable bottles).

Take a course if you can, otherwise go here. That's where I learned to weld.

Here's my floorpan thread.