Hi all
just checking in... i am semi retired and have always wanted to weld.. i have dabbled since in mid 60's but kids, business etc kept me busy.. got heavy into R/c aircraft (along with full scale flying) now want to learn how to do a decent job with hobby welding. Partnered with neighbor on a miller 140 mig and have a lincoln 225 Ac/ Dc buzz box. just ordered a Longevity tig / plasma Combo.. looking forward to learning tig...seems a cleaner system for welding thiner metals as a hobbiyist... we'll see
will be reading most posts for general knowledge and hope to be able to contribute someday
joe

Hi Joe. Nice to meet you.

I have no idea what your skill level is so forgive me if this is inappropriate: I weld with stick and oxy acet. Stick is considered the most difficult to learn and I found it so! I went out most evenings and just ran beads for 20mins or so. They say you have to burn 50# of rod to learn stick. I think thats about right but there is big improvement after just 10# & 20#.

Like maddog said, you gotta practice. While there is a vast amount of technical knowledge that will you make a better weldor, it's still a manual skill. Running beads across a plate may seem boring but it's the only way to get good.

If you have the time and money, I'll strongly suggest looking into some welding classes. You can become a fine weldor being self taught, however a good instructor can reduce the time of the learning curve by many orders of magnitude. Having someone who is very qualified watching you to tell you what you are doing wrong and give you tips and tricks is very invaluable.

If you take any classes, be sure to tell the instructor you're not there to get a welding job, but be a hobby weldor. He may be able to tailor some course work more to what you are interested in rather then what you need to know to work in industry.

There is alot of great welding info here on these forums, but I'll also suggest checking out the forums at the manufacturer's websites.

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