If you haven't seen this thing yet, you're missing out:

http://www.lincolnelectric.com/en-us.../vrtex360.aspx

Heres a video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9mNFpv_mdw

 

School just received one a couple weeks ago now it just a big paperweight.

 

yea, seems useless in the real world. these probably cost 5X that of an actual mig welder.

 

Why did they quit using it?

 

I could see how this could grow into a very useful tool. Now you are not wasting tons of material on complete beginners. I dunno, id try it out if I had access to it to see how realistic it was.

 

i was checking them out at the fabtech expo. they really seemed awkward, but alot of people were were useing them.

 

I helped set one up at a school. The cool thing is being able to see what your torch angle and other values. No substitute for the real thing.

They cost more than 10x as a mig welder...

 

 

Seems useful as a tool to really obtain an effective technique as a basis for a student. I don't think the aim here is to replace real world training, but to obtain an analysis of weld quality and technique advancement over time.

If I owned a tech school and purchased this unit only to have it become a paperweight, the instructor and I would be having a conversation. Setup shouldn't be an issue if the instructor is well versed and trained to do it.

 

I've never used it so I can't say for sure whether its a waste or not. First impression though is I think it's a waste and doesn't give the full experience. But I understand where they are coming from about saving on material cost, etc. Seems like it could be useful to some highschool kids starting out though.