My first welder. I laid down a few welds today. There is no way I'm showing you guys what they look like! I'm sure you can all imagine. My 914 was looking pretty nervous however. "You ain't comin' near me with that thing!"

Now to find some classes somewhere. Maybe a book or two. Any ideas?

Practice, practice, practice.....I sucked when I first started....now I suck less....

QUOTE ("Z" @ Apr 9 2005, 11:09 PM)

Practice, practice, practice.....I sucked when I first started....now I suck less....

X10

Shannon,
Haynes has a decent little welding book. You can pick one up for $12 or so. Money well spent. Congrats on the welder. You got a great one. Much better IMHO than the cheaper alternatives. You'll love it forever. Oh, and you'll be "fryin' bacon" in no time.

-Ben M. (fryed about 5ft of bacon today myself)

I got one of them. I love my Miller. Keep practicing. You should also pick up the Welders Handbook or The Monster Garage "How to Weld Damn Near Anything" book. Both offer excellent info.

I want one! Really. I was looking at the high-kwalitee ones at harbor freight. Y'know, not the cheapest, but prolly only $300. How much was the Miller? It appears to have much greater control capabilities....

Awesome!

If you're anything like me, you will absolutely love welding. It's addictive.

I had to check my garageto make sure mine was still there. Looks just like it. Does an awesome job and yes practice makes close to perfect

Scott: This one is a notch up from the Harbor/Home Depot/Lowes jobbies. I got this one for just over $700. There were several features that made me make the jump up but the continuously variable controls was one of them. I'm a guy who just can't stop tweeking with things.

Riverman: I was concerned that I may not have the talent for welding so maybe I wouldn't like it. I was partly right. I suck. BUT you're right - it's addictive! This is the reason I want to get a good book. I can practice practice practice but I wouldn't know a good weld if it bit me in the butt! (and one of them almost did yesterday.... did you guys know the metal is still hot after you get done? )

shannon, that's a great welder! Nice choice. I second the "Welder's Handbook." I've got a copy of it, it's a good resource. I took a class a couple winter/springs ago 2 nights a week for 3 hours for 8 weeks at an area high school. It was in their adult education department. It was well worth the time and $. I learned to stick, MIG and TIG as well as how to use a plasma cutter. I could have (and should have) learned to oxy/acetlyne weld and cut as well.

Knowing what a proper weld looks and sounds like when going down gives me peace of mind that my stuff is good. Heck, I even taught a buddy to weld with his Miller 135 (I have one, too) and he build a formula toyota offroad buggy with it.

Get yourself some nice welding gloves for moving around material when it's hot, too.
Oh, and an auto-darkening helmet makes starting your weld in the right spot much easier.

I really dig the Miller 175 that I've been using. In fact I'm headed out to weld in the inner long kit now with it.

Welding is pretty simple once you learn the little tricks.

Best,

Nice welder, got the same model myself. Practice, practice, practice. A book will help, and find someone who is a proficient welder and have them demonstrate for you (I learn easier by watching than reading).