I am taking a welding class at our local community college. We started out with oxy/acetylene to learn the basics and then on to stick welding. We did the basics: running beads, butt joints, overlaps, tee joints, outside corner joints. These were all done flat, then with stick welding we also had to do them vertical (tacked up on a jig). I am still in the stick phase doing my vertical tee joint (not a lot of fun when you have bi-focals, my head can't go back far enough - time for a different set of glasses). We do wire feed next. We have also used the plasma cutter - what a trip!

I know a lot of people say to just grab a mig welder and read a book or watch a video to learn or to just try it but I wanted to learn some basics. I remember when I was much younger I tried to weld a piece back on a snow blade. Looked good but after it cooled off I hit it with a hammer and it flew off (and I thought I had reinforced it).

Last night I had a chance to do some tig welding. Talk about nice. It was amazing and I thought much easier than stick welding. In the next couple of weeks we will learn a bit about mig and we will get to try it.

I wanted to get into a class that taught mig but I had to have this class first, then it will be tig, then mig. sigh.. The reason is that they alternate teaching tig and then mig.

Why did I want to learn to use a welder? I own a 914!

M

Good job. Sounds like you are really doing it the right way. Not like how I did it. Practice, practice, practice. Weld, weld, weld. F%*&. Grind, grind, grind.......

Mike, I took an adult education class as well. You are doing it the right way, but usually Mig would be before Tig. I remember after doing stick thinking that this was the ticket, then we did Mig and it was "WOW!" this is sooo much cleaner and easier, then there was Tig Talk about quiet and clean! It takes a bit longer, but Tig is awesome, great control, clean, quiet, good looking welds

QUOTE (seanery @ Oct 28 2005, 07:44 AM)

Mike, I took an adult education class as well. You are doing it the right way, but usually Mig would be before Tig. I remember after doing stick thinking that this was the ticket, then we did Mig and it was "WOW!" this is sooo much cleaner and easier, then there was Tig Talk about quiet and clean! It takes a bit longer, but Tig is awesome, great control, clean, quiet, good looking welds

Yea I know that MIG should come before TIG but they won't offer MIG until until next fall. They are teaching it now so TIG starts in January. sigh....

I might not be able to take the next class anyway because of work travels but I am going to try. It is a lot of fun and you find a bit of competition between students. Our instructor teaches shop at a local high school and he spent many years as a welder as a civilian and while in the Navy and Army (he retired from the reserve). He is a good welder and instructor and he is turning into a good friend. Some of the students in the class are his high school students.

Mike

I was just talking aboutthis with my wife last night. I called Ivy Tech here and they are going to send me the info for Spring 2006, just missed the fall classes

Usually people that start w/ oxy acetylene Take to Tig really easy. For everyone else it's like picking up bowling balls w/ chopsticks

I use a mig almost exclusively when i'm working on a car. It's hard to reach that damned pedal when you are tied up welding the last corner of a cage. Tig is the way to go on the bench though. No need to grind it down afterwards, so it's only slightly slower than Mig, and a LOT prettier

BJH

You want to have some fun touch the electrode with the rod when doing the TIG

QUOTE (Crazyhippy @ Oct 28 2005, 11:34 AM)

Usually people that start w/ oxy acetylene Take to Tig really easy. For everyone else it's like picking up bowling balls w/ chopsticks I use a mig almost exclusively when i'm working on a car. It's hard to reach that damned pedal when you are tied up welding the last corner of a cage. Tig is the way to go on the bench though. No need to grind it down afterwards, so it's only slightly slower than Mig, and a LOT prettier BJH

better than trying to find cylinder TDC with chopsticks!

Not as easy to do however.... requires years of finger muscle building practice, and some Big Friggin hands

BJH

Well I finished all of my required projects in the welding class so now I get to play with the other welders. I played with the MIG welder last night running lines and doing butt joints. I will do verticals on Thursday. Man it is so much easier to run good lines and do good butt joints. Next I will play with the TIG welder and see what more I can do on that.

For those of you who have not welded before I would recommend taking a class on welding. Our local community college offers them and I heard that one of the local park districts also offers them. As I have found out it is easy to create bad welds but it takes knowledge and experience to create a good weld. You need to learn things about arc length, angle, speed, joint preparation and penetration to create a good weld and after you learn that you need to practice, practice, and practice.

Now how do I convience my wife that I need to buy a good MIG welder? hmmmm......

M

Just filled out my application for Ivy Tech here in town to start taking classes in January. I can't wait.

Learn the theory/basics/concepts. After that, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. I'm in agreement with the phases of your classes. Oxy/acet then stick; after that, everything else falls into place quite easily, IMO.

Andys

A few hours of practice with a good MIG, and some 20 gauge sheet metal, and you'll be ready to work on your 914.

TIG is awesome, but it doesn't work very good on rusty metal.

Do not, DO NOT, waste your time getting a flux coated wire welder, it's not a MIG, it won't work as good on thin metal, and you'll have slag to chip off just like the stick welds you did in class.

I would also recommend choosing a MIG welder that has infinately variable heat or wire (or both) settings. It makes it easier to dial in for rust repair work. Check out Indiana Oxygen. They have a great price on a Miller 175, if you can run 220.

Have fun, and don't forget to wear a welding mask when using weld through primer.

Oh yea, what andys said, you just can't practice too much.

I second Indiana Oxygen Supply as a good vendor. They are local to me and warrantied a bad solar switch on a Miller helmet even when it was slightly out of date.

QUOTE (seanery @ Dec 7 2005, 09:04 PM)

I second Indiana Oxygen Supply as a good vendor. They are local to me and warrantied a bad solar switch on a Miller helmet even when it was slightly out of date.

Me too, I got my millermatic 175 from them. Awesome welder.