I wish I could weld

[Eric Salop]

I am 52 and want to learn to weld. I've looked into the vo-techs in the area, and can't find any that offer welding as continuing ed, only full-blown courses for those wanting to make welding a career. I've considered just buying a mig welder and going for it, but haven't done yet. I've watched lots of how-to videos on youtube, and if I can't find someone/someplace to teach me, they may be my primary source for getting started.

Not being able to find a suitable course was one reason I didn't start this earlier in life. I have friends who are good welders and they have always helped me out with anything that was broken, but I don't like putting on them too much, so time now for me to at least give it a try.

Welding tips and tricks.com is the best. Jody really knows his stuff.

Welding Tips and Tricks - TIG, MIG, Stick and a pantload of other info

Thanks, that site looks very good. What a nice easy going guy as a tutor.

Agree, but get a good textbook too. The problem with videos is that they provide snippets of good information but generally fail to go over theory and safety in an organized manner. I bought several welding books but find that just one is head and shoulders above the others as an organized text with clear photographs, specific exercises at each level and is clearly written. That text is Welding Principles and Applications by Larry Jeffus. It is in the seventh or eighth edition now but I am very happy with the sixth edition I got used from Amazon.

After seeing an earlier recommendation for that same book last year, I said to my wife it would make a good Christmas present. I got to unwrap a couple of book shaped presents on Christmas day, but nothing about welding. I forgot all about it, then a couple of months later a well used copy came in the post ! My wife is a treasure and the book is not bad either.

 

[BigBoyToys]

One thing you need to be careful with is how you clean your metal. Brake Cleaner spray is a common cleaner I use a lot around the shop...However, NEVER use it to clean metal you're going to weld!!!!! When heated it can create phosgene gas which can be fatal. I either use a grinder, wire wheel or sandblaster on the metal.

Poisonous phosgene gas produced from heating chlorinated solvents

 

[STx]

As dirty as the metal you were practicing on is, those welds look great, especially for a stick welding newbie. I think EVERYONE should be forced to learn to stick weld before they're allowed anywhere near a MIG. A stick welder teaches good technique, arc control and penetration. You won't be able to keep your arc lit if you're not running it hot enough so it forces you to make strong welds.

I've seen guys use a MIG to produce absolutely BEAUTIFUL welds that I could pull apart with my hands. It's entirely possible to lay a perfect bead right on top of your material with 0 penetration using a MIG. I say stick with that stick welder until you intuitively know what a good weld looks, sounds and feels like as it's going down and then you can think about a MIG welder.

One thing you'll find really helpful in learning is to weld up some material and then beat it up with a sledgehammer, put it in a vise and bend it, cut it apart, etc. See where it fails and improve from there.

 

[sdef]

One thing you need to be careful with is how you clean your metal. Brake Cleaner spray is a common cleaner I use a lot around the shop...However, NEVER use it to clean metal you're going to weld!!!!! When heated it can create phosgene gas which can be fatal. I either use a grinder, wire wheel or sandblaster on the metal.

Holy Moly. I had no idea. I use brake cleaner when I suspect a surface is/has been greasy, etc. Actually used it two weeks ago. But fortunately most of my welding is out in the open or in an open barn, with degreasing performed well prior to welding. May have to rethink my welding, degreasing process.

OP: I have a Miller 210 MWP MIG and am a neophyte welder. Welded a bunch of heavy duty d-ring tie downs on two trailers and a knowledgeable person later mentioned most welds looked professional. The equipment can make a difference. Your welds look great to me. Now just apply them to something non structural for practice. Welding is a great skill to have

 

[k0ua]

Holy Moly. I had no idea. I use brake cleaner when I suspect a surface is/has been greasy, etc. Actually used it two weeks ago. But fortunately most of my welding is out in the open or in an open barn, with degreasing performed well prior to welding. May have to rethink my welding, degreasing process.

OP: I have a Miller 210 MWP MIG and am a neophyte welder. Welded a bunch of heavy duty d-ring tie downs on two trailers and a knowledgeable person later mentioned most welds looked professional. The equipment can make a difference. Your welds look great to me. Now just apply them to something non structural for practice. Welding is a great skill to have

If you go on welding web and read up on the number of guys that have died and been severely injured from using brake cleaner, you would NEVER EVER use it again. Throw it away.

DANGER using BrakeCleaner to clean your Parts

 

[Shield Arc]

Sorry, I didn't mean to imply there is no skill in Mig welding, I appreciate there is far more to making a good strong weld and dealing with all the other factors. Maybe one day I will have time to do some Mig, or even Tig, but there seems so much I can potentially do with stick, that I will, err stick with it, for now

Eric when you get further along with your welding you can do some bend testing. It doesn't take much to build a bender. A 1-inch thick V-butt plate welded in the 2-G, 3-G, and 4-G positions. Then cut the coupons 3/8-inch thick and side bend them. This will tell you if you are ready to weld up something that some one's life will depend on. Without testing, you are just guessing!
This test plate was run with self-shielded flux core wire.

 

[dstig1]

The brake cleaner issue is not as clear as some believe. The issue is Chlorinated solvents, not all brake cleaners, per se. Many brake cleaners are chlorinated, and many are not. Read the label to find out. If you see anything with "chlor-" in the chemical list, then it has chlorine, and you should follow the advice to avoid it when welding. If it is totally non-chlorinated, then it is fine. You would run into a similar issue of you used some straight solvents like methylene chloride or tri-chlor also. Those just aren't all that common anymore due to the fact that they are kind of nasty (and it took time to really learn that..). Phosgene is a chlorine compound - it can't be created without chlorine present. No chlorine, no problem.

 

[Sodo]

If you don't weld while the brake-cleaner is wet on the steel, is there any danger? I don't think anyone cleans and welds that quickly (while steel is wet). Does anyone have links telling more about this, including the deaths?

I've seen guys use a MIG to produce absolutely BEAUTIFUL welds that I could pull apart with my hands. It's entirely possible to lay a perfect bead right on top of your material with 0 penetration using a MIG.

I've never seen this but read about it often on forums.
Sounds like it's pretty easy to do, but I can't imagine how. Can someone do it and post a pic?

 

[Eric Salop]

Eric when you get further along with your welding you can do some bend testing. It doesn't take much to build a bender. A 1-inch thick V-butt plate welded in the 2-G, 3-G, and 4-G positions. Then cut the coupons 3/8-inch thick and side bend them. This will tell you if you are ready to weld up something that some one's life will depend on. Without testing, you are just guessing!
This test plate was run with self-shielded flux core wire.

I intended to have a go at crudely testing some joints with a big hammer. You reminded me that I am storing a dismantled press for a friend. When there is some spare time I may put that together and do a proper test as you suggest, before he takes it away.


Could I ask you a question about tacking ? When I do this to hold two pieces of metal in position, should I be stopping and cleaning the tacks up before I weld the joint ?

 

[Shield Arc]

Could I ask you a question about tacking ? When I do this to hold two pieces of metal in position, should I be stopping and cleaning the tacks up before I weld the joint ?

You should knock the slag off, so when you weld over the tack there won't be any issues. Some times I'll even grind the tacks down some before welding over them.