Welding...

[blkmazda90]

I just started a welding training course through my highschool. The reason I'm doing it is so when i get out of high school at least I'll have numerous options for jobs.

Anyway, welding is fun if you do it every once in a while. But if you do it every day it must get old fast. Fumes suck. but alot of companies are cracking down on that with respirators.

Anyone that welds or anyone who has input let me know what you think of welding for a career?

 

[mkpecor]

i started welding when i was about 10 years old im 25 now and when i got out of high school i went to calage for welding and started a job at country stoves did that for 2 years and the moved to tourk lift loved it,now im a finesh carpenter its nice but i realy want to go back to welding, i miss it alot, remember stick with the job you can wake up and do , dont do a job that you dont like 100%,

 

[Jim Oaks]

My father was a welder. He had his own welding business for a while as a side job. He ended up as a foreman (supervisor) for the company he worked for and didn't have time for his own business, but was always welding stuff at home and for his cousin who had trucks for cleaning septic tanks. He became a general foreman which just meant he had foremans under him and did it since his 20's until he retired. He made a good living and was a great welder.

He never taught me to weld. He didn't want to do it. Back in the mid 80's the company he worked for moved and he got a new job as a foreman in a large bulding making large presses. The conditions were horrible. It has effected his lungs. The building had very poor ventilation. He couldn't wait to retire because he was constantly worried about the health and safety of guys that worked for him. He was fearful one of his guys was going to get killed. He always wanted me to do something different.

I never learned to weld. I only have a small mig for up to 3/16 metal. I use it for small jobs. I don't have a good welder but hope to buy one this year and teach myself.

I can come up with designs/ideas and even make the drawings with all the proper welding symbols. If I need something welded I pay someone to do it. Even though I want to learn, I still plan to pay people to weld for me.

If you're in to 4x4 trucks and you want to weld, you could have some good opportunities. The off-road market is booming. The cost of some of the products out there is crazy! Everyone is jumping on the bandwagon to get a piece of the pie.

Just right here within 30-minutes of me is Solid Axle, MAD 4-Wheel Drive and 4WD Hardware. The market is booming.

I know people around here who weld, but they have to travel.

I have no problem paying people to weld for me.

My goal is to eventually have my own small shop and hire a few people to weld/fabricate for me. There is a big market out there and I get a lot of people that inquire about having stuff built.

My plan is to draw on my fathers experiences and emphasize on a safe/healthy environment to work in. 2007 didn't allow much money to invest in business because I got married, but I'm looking forward to 2008.

So to get back to your original question....

It CAN be a good career if you find the right company to work for. Take a look at the facility though and if they take health in to consideration. Make sure it isn't real smokey with guys working without proper ventilation.

 

[c_note]

if you get a chance, go for some GTAW aka TIG welding. you make a few more bucks with that skill. its a bit harder to learn at first but once you get it down, you wont want to weld with stick or mig.
if your school offers it, take some machining courses too.
good luck and let us know what you think a few days down the road.

 

[351ranger]

I weld for a living and its ok. I also run a cnc mill every now and then so it changes things up a little. Welding and fabing is my favorite thing to do though.

 

[MrE_Powers]

i am in a very reputable tech college here in Missouri named ranken for welding. it is a 1 1/2 year course first semester you learn oxy and smaw (stick) welding second you learn gmaw(Mig) and gtaw (tig). the last semester is advanced where you learn pipe welding.

ventilation is key in the field if you are welding indoors you want to have the fumes sucked away as apposed to ventilators. but those do in a pinch.

there is alot of info to be found on welding on the net, for one the welding machine manufactures usually have online how to books. you might be able to find info on online libraries, and on bittorrent also i saw videos on youtube. but book learning is no substitute to practice.

also sometime welding supply stores like cee kay or airgass for instance may have a workshop where you pay a 300 dollar or so fee for how to classes

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I'd like to have some formal training in welding. Looking back I'm kinda wishing I would have done that before now. In my search for a new job, one place asked me if I was certified in welding. When I said no, they asked me if I knew how to weld at all. I had to answer no at the time. Then they said that they still might be able to find a spot for me there, but if I would have had at least some welding experience I would have been hired on the spot.

That was 3 months ago and I still haven't found a new job....

That said, I needed some welding done on my choptop. I couldn't take the truck anywhere because it was for the body mounts. I had a guy who was gonna stop down with his MIG an do it up for me but before that happened someone burned out the feed motor on his MIG. So my solution to my problem ended up being to pull out the parts and books that dad had with his oxy-act rig for welding. (I had been using the cutting torch part and generally ignored the welding part). Then I set to work. It actually seemed way easier than I thought it would be, IMHO for me it's even easier than learning to use a cutting torch.

 

[Jim Oaks]

Looks good for someone with no experience!

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

Looks good for someone with no experience!

Yea, I think if I woulda had better access to it I coulda made it look a lil better, but it ain't bad all things considered.


Oh, yea, did I mention that I didn't do any practicing first? I just took the torch and welding rods over to the truck an went to work...

 

[MrE_Powers]

to get certified, all you have to do is weld in a 5 g position on a thick enough plate a grove weld then send it to a aws testing firm to be destruction tested where they cut out a couple of inch strips and bend test them

i feel if you were to find a supply house for welding stuff that had the workshops you might find how experienced you are. lil blue ford.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

to get certified, all you have to do is weld in a 5 g position on a thick enough plate a grove weld then send it to a aws testing firm to be destruction tested where they cut out a couple of inch strips and bend test them

i feel if you were to find a supply house for welding stuff that had the workshops you might find how experienced you are. lil blue ford.

I'll have to ask at the one welding supply store that's around here...

I know I can get good penetration with the torch, I know how to look for that. I know I need lots of practice yet to be really good and neat as well.

 

[metalmacguyver]

Wow that doesnt look bad. I think thats the first time I have ever seen a torch weld though so my opinion means absolutely nothing.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

Wow that doesnt look bad. I think thats the first time I have ever seen a torch weld though so my opinion means absolutely nothing.

Don't worry, you'll probably be seeing more torch welding. I was gonna buy a mig and stick, but I think I'm hooked on torch welding for now.

I just want the weather to get nicer so I can get to work...

 

[Will]

I learned torch welding in aviation maintenance school. I think it's easier in a lot of ways because it's slower. Stick welding isn't like that--you have to get going right away. I've never MIG welded though that seems easy with the thin wire.

I wouldn't want to be an industrial welder, but I like welding. With a stick welder at 180amps you've got about 6 hp being delivered at a target the size of the head of a pin.

 

[Destroyer000]

i graduated back in 06 from high school an a trade school took 2years of welding did tig, mig, stick, oxy act welding, spray transfer built some wood stoves an a bunch of stuff. .. i became certified with 7018 stick welding.. basically certified structural steel welding. i learned a ton an loved every minute of being their.. iam considering going back to learn pipe welding .. i work at the local grocery store right now pt an do a bunch of fabrication stuff on the side... i first got into the hole welding scene via my pop. he used to work for hoods an did a ton if tig welding on the stainless an would always be down in the shop doing something building some thing. iam in the works of building a nice custom bumper for my truck an building a bed for my buddies.. i mean we have band saws, 3 welders torches, grinders pretty much everything.. i just spent some cash an purchased a plasma cutter. its always an excitement when some one asks you where you got that awesome looking piece ,bumpers,slides, what ever an you tell them its custom an you made it. as jim stated the 4x4 market is BOOMING .. ive got a few guys already interested in some custom bumpers an what not. iam really trying to start my own business with some custom metal working an fiberglassing.. sub woofer boxes an kick panels custom stuff..

hey jim if you end up starting your own place an are looking to hire a welder iam right around the corner haha