I thought this might be a good thing to learn and would come in handy when working on cars, has anyone had experience learning how to weld?

could I just pick up a book and learn it?
are the equipment expensive?

what are your thoughts?

 

ha, i have about a semesters worth of learning to weld, in my metals class, freshman year in high school. its mainly just about experience. pretty easy if you ask me. depends what type of welding your trying to do though. arc welding, gas welding, wire feed electric, etc.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SilverCIVIC96 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I thought this might be a good thing to learn and would come in handy when working on cars, has anyone had experience learning how to weld?

could I just pick up a book and learn it?
are the equipment expensive?

what are your thoughts? </TD></TR></TABLE>

Suggest a college class. Intro to welding......there is too much danger in learning on your own.

It's like driving you think you know what your doing until you have time, then you realise all the stupid mistakes you made.

 

yeah, how many kinds of welding are there? what are the differences? Ill look into a communitry college class, its hard though because I dont have much time...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SilverCIVIC96 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">yeah, how many kinds of welding are there? what are the differences? Ill look into a communitry college class, its hard though because I dont have much time...</TD></TR></TABLE>

Tig, Mig, arch.....those are the ones I know.

Too many to list too little time to learn it all....suggest Howstuffworks.com

 

Tig, Mig, Arc, and Oxy-acetiline are the ones I know of.
Tig is where you use tungston and a filler rod
Mig is the most common, wire fed welder
Arc is the one where you have a stick in a clamp, and you strike the metal to start the arc
and oxy-acetiline is where you use oxygen and acetiline in a torch, and use filler rod.

I took a class a couple years ago, and I find welding fun as hell, I think you'll like it. And I agree with the person above, take a class, there can be a lot of dangers if you're not thinking right.

 

pretty much the deal is that you could easyly learn to weld with a book and some practice i have found tha ta learning to weld book is very helpful welders are expensive the most commom type would be a mig welder you can pretty much use a mig welder for anything your welding on your car liek i said practice is the key

 

so what do you guys suggest for a inexpensive at-home kit? MIG, or oxy-gas welder? Which one is safer, I dont really like the idea of flamable tanks in my garage...

pretty much just looking to weld things like exhaust components, and certain aluminum boxes/ brackets for DIY projects...

 

if you're gonna weld aluminum...you'll need a tig welder....can get expensive and probably not the easiest to start learning how to weld on at first... gas and arc welding can only weld steel/iron, tig probably being the most versatile...stainless steel, aluminum, etc but you still gotta learn how to use it..mig (wire fed) is mostly used for steel as well, not too hard to learn after you get arc welding down. i'd try to start learning on gas or arc to get the feel for it then move on and learn the others, just my opinion though...good luck!

 

hmm... Mt. SAC and Fullerton JC both have welding classes, maybe I should look into that so I can save some money when it comes time for my JDM front I saw this cheap paid advertisement on tv a week or so ago, Aluminoid or something like that? They used a propane torch to heat the metal to 700 degrees or so... anybody catch that? Highly skeptical about it like all other "As seen on TV" products.

 

I just got done with welding class in college... uhmm wire fed is my choice.. also get a speedglass mask... and try not to get sparks on your hair... or clothes.. easy way to start fires

 

No one uses oxy-acetiline anymore, inexpensive home kit is what MIG is all about. Pick a machine up and start having some fun! Yeeeehaw!

 

grab a mig from home depot. something simple
get some metal
and start learning.
basics. stick with the stabilizer gas, too much power you burn a hole, too little you dont get proper arc, be careful on rusty surfaces. they suck and will make a hole through em so quick.

 

what about alumnized exhaust piping, would a small home depot MIG kit work for that?

 

need a tig to weld aluminum

 

i have both mig and gas welded. i think mig is the easiest. once u get it down, u cant even stop thinking of things that u can weld together. actually pretty fun. u can turn a fairly good buck buy doing random **** for friends/neighbors.

 

So you want to weld , Have a lot of patience. It dosnt come over night. I have been doing it for years and im only 22 and you only get better as you do it more. For a good beginer welder i would go with a nice small Lincoln Mig welder that you can plug into 110 , if you have 220 it just opens the door on what you can weld.But a good Mig can do a lot in the garage.

 

its pretty easy really. i bought a mig/flex core welder at Lows. its a Lincoln Electric "handy MIG" if you dont use the gas (argon/co2 or the less common just CO2) its called welding but just with the flex-core wire. MIg is when you use the gas to sheild the soild wire. MIG is really clean lookin, really no splatter and you dont have to chip all that junk off. i bought it for 220 and it comes with everything really. the day i bought it i also bought some metal at the store and designed and welded my own rear strut tower brace... (88crx91integra helped) if i get a camera ill show you. i did that welding with no experience. all data may not be accurate

 

Welding for me is my new hobby. My car has actually been put on the back-burner because Im just looking for new things to weld everyday. Granted I now make manifolds too, but once you start, you cant stop
I learned on Mig, then did ARC, now I use TIG, its the ONLY way to go....
You feel like God, becuase you can tame such a hard material as steel, and make it do what you want

 

If at all possible; TAKE A CLASS!

There are a couple of very good reasons.

1. If you just pick it up and figure it out your self, you will tend to get all sorts of bad habits that will carry over for all your life.

2. If you go to a school, you can try several different types of welding. This is the best way to learn what type is best for what you want to do. There are advantages and limitations to each of the different types. Think about this; a good MIG welder will cost you about 500 bucks and if you know what to look for PRIOR to buying it you will make a better purchase.

3. You may be able to get a discount on a welding set-up through the school.

4. If you keep in "good" with the instructor you could always stop by to use the equipment that you can't afford to buy and only use on a limited basis (as an example, I can't afford or justify buying a TIG set-up. I end up going by a friend's street rod shop and use his when the need comes up).

5. If you get your certificate, your friends will think of you as a god!

I personally own both a mig set-up and also an oxy-acetele (sp) set-up for the "hobby" stuff that I do. Normally I don't bother dragging out the oxy set-up unless I'm planning on using the cutting torch.

Wes Vann

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bunmango &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">hmm... Mt. SAC and Fullerton JC both have welding classes, maybe I should look into that so I can save some money when it comes time for my JDM front I saw this cheap paid advertisement on tv a week or so ago, Aluminoid or something like that? They used a propane torch to heat the metal to 700 degrees or so... anybody catch that? Highly skeptical about it like all other "As seen on TV" products.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Regarding Mt.SAC, A good friend of mine was a welding instructor there. Even though he no longer teaches there, I woud highly recommend their welding program.

At minimum, take an intro class, you'll learn a lot! If other schools are like Mt.SAC, their intro class will cover all types of welding and more importantly welding safety, which is something you don't want to learn on your own by trial and error.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by toyosupr &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">its pretty easy really. i bought a mig/flex core welder at Lows. its a Lincoln Electric "handy MIG" if you dont use the gas (argon/co2 or the less common just CO2) its called welding but just with the flex-core wire. MIg is when you use the gas to sheild the soild wire. MIG is really clean lookin, really no splatter and you dont have to chip all that junk off. i bought it for 220 and it comes with everything really. the day i bought it i also bought some metal at the store and designed and welded my own rear strut tower brace... (88crx91integra helped) if i get a camera ill show you. i did that welding with no experience. all data may not be accurate</TD></TR></TABLE>

let's see some pics of the strut bar!