Learning TIG first, or should I start somewhere else?

[Jim Johnstone]

Hi guys,

I have a light background with welding, I was taught stick and MIG by a pipe fitter that was running the maintenance department I worked in back in college. It's been 5 or so years now and I'm way out of practice, and would like to get some proper training before I build anything too crazy.

The local community college has Saturday morning welding classes, but before I get to the TIG course, I'd have to do 3 separate stick welding classes, each class being a semester long, so I'd be another year before I'd get to TIG with their program.

Does this seem like a reasonable way to start, or should I search around harder and see if I can find any other places that would teach TIG off the hop?

Thanks,
Jim

 

[mike13u]

The problem that I see with that program is that, as a hobby guy, you will take a lot of stick before getting to the parts that you will actually use in your garage.
It would be great to get as much knowledge as possible about all processes. But, as a weekend warrior, you will really only use MIG or TIG. Your call. But if given the choice, I would save the money on that class and try and find something specific to the process you will be useing.
You might talk to the instructor and explain that you are not going into the industy but would like to learn TIG as a hobby and see if he can work something out to get you in that class only.

 

[weegaz22]

personally I'd say skip the class and buy a decent TIG machine and a load of metal and filler rods and practice practice, I'm sure there's probably a few guys near you that TIG that are on here that could give you pointers for supplying them in beer for the time they give.

youtube also has some good video lessons which will help give you the basics you need with some practice, there is also dedicated welding forums out there as well, so you wont be stuck for information if you have questions

 

[tmoneyr007]

I learned TIG at a local welding shop 4 hour classes, they provided all equipment, materials and instruction, easy to learn while I searched for a good used setup

 

[Jim Johnstone]

I learned TIG at a local welding shop 4 hour classes, they provided all equipment, materials and instruction, easy to learn while I searched for a good used setup

Hmmm I never thought about contacting welding shops to see if they offer classes. Maybe I'll give that a shot.

 

[outcast]

i taught myself, with the help of welding forums. i am pretty darned good at it. ymmv

Miller Dynasty 200DX (i HAD to have a machine that ran on 120v.)

 

[7echo]

Some of the tech schools are adamant that you go through the process. They are missing out on potential students and dollars, but they don't seem to care.

weegaz22 has a good suggestion. The guys I know that are really good practice the skill. Inquire at the local supply house(s), they may be able to help.

 

[justanengineer]

Every school Ive ever known that has had any sort of a decent welding program starts with gas welding. They then usually go to stick, then either tig or mig last. You may be able to pick up tig without additional classes, its a fairly easy process to learn technique wise bc its so slow, but taking a class or two on stick alone is also a very good idea as they usually teach joint design and weld testing. If youve never done very much welding or havent mastered out of position welding I would take the stick classes, but if youre proficient on other processes you should be able to step right into tig without much issue.

If you wanted to learn a process I would recommend either tig or stick as they are the most useful IMHO with gas welding close behind. As always, I also advocate strongly taking a real class from a qualified school/instructor. The basic mechanics of welding isnt difficult to learn, nor is the mountain of necessary knowledge difficult to find. What you pay for and want is an instructor watching you and evaluating your work and correcting mistakes before they become bad habits.

Those who think they can learn to weld entirely from videos/web sites are playing with fire IMHO as they dont realize the mistakes theyre making. Often they mistake appearance with quality.

 

[t100]

MIG and Stick has very little to do with Tig, I strongly suggest you take on Oxy Acetylene gas welding first.

 

[jhn9840]

Every school Ive ever known that has had any sort of a decent welding program starts with gas welding. They then usually go to stick, then either tig or mig last. You may be able to pick up tig without additional classes, its a fairly easy process to learn technique wise bc its so slow, but taking a class or two on stick alone is also a very good idea as they usually teach joint design and weld testing. If youve never done very much welding or havent mastered out of position welding I would take the stick classes, but if youre proficient on other processes you should be able to step right into tig without much issue.

If you wanted to learn a process I would recommend either tig or stick as they are the most useful IMHO with gas welding close behind. As always, I also advocate strongly taking a real class from a qualified school/instructor. The basic mechanics of welding isnt difficult to learn, nor is the mountain of necessary knowledge difficult to find. What you pay for and want is an instructor watching you and evaluating your work and correcting mistakes before they become bad habits.

Those who think they can learn to weld entirely from videos/web sites are playing with fire IMHO as they dont realize the mistakes theyre making. Often they mistake appearance with quality.

Been welding since the mid 70's and justanengineer is absolutely correct. You cannot just start Tig welding with out a solid foundation in the basics first.

jhn9840
John

 

[CaseyJoes.]

Agreed with t100, Oxy acetylene welding is much closer to TIG and will give you a good point to jump up to TIG from. The skills needed to MIG and stick are only vaguely related to TIG welding when compared to oxy acetylene

 

[outcast]

Those who think they can learn to weld entirely from videos/web sites are playing with fire IMHO as they dont realize the mistakes theyre making. Often they mistake appearance with quality.

often, this is true. but not in my case.

 

[CAOS]

The goal of any process is knowing what to do with the puddle when you have it. There are the same principles that carry over through each process, just a different technique to mastering each one.

In arc welding your dragging your puddle, tig your pushing it. Once you have gotten a good hold on what to do with the puddle in one process you can take that experience to the next one.

 

[Jim Johnstone]

I'm thinking maybe the best course of action (and cheapest) would be to pick up a good OA torch with a variety of tips, get some scrap cut offs from the local aircraft supplier and start learning that way. I'm gonna keep checking around for other welding schools, I just can't see taking a year's worth of classes before I get to TIG anything.

 

[spv]

I have been TIG welding for a year or so now with a cheap machine. A couple of points on the machine; Get a machine with a foot pedal and a HF start. I am using scratch start and it is a real PITA. Additionally if you do not have a foot pedal it makes it super easy to burn through thin sheet metal. I found the Ron Covell DVD's to be helpful and I purchased a few books on welding (not so helpful). Outside the general theory (tungsten, amps, gas flow, filler rod, movement) it is all down to practice - at least I hope it is! Get in and get started!

 

[gorilla]

Your plan to buy a Ox-Acetylene welder is good choice. If you learn to gas weld you are more than half way to tig welding. You may find a torch to be useful around the shop anyway. I've been tig welding for about 40 years so I may know a little about it. Good luck.

 

[BWS]

I grew up in thje const biz with torches and stick welders.......started taking classes at CC for sumthin to do back when the kids were little(get out of house).Took everything they offer'd.Even though I was dang proficient with OA and stick,I still learned right much.The safety element is POUNDED into you when going through tech programs.....And for very good reason.Its such an important part of the whole trade.I know what was learned (safety) got implemented pronto in all cases for our const co.Common sense approaches to safety......you either abide by "our safety rules" or you're fired.

I recomend guys learn OA......its such a versatile process.Few safety concerns,but they're very manageable.Nuthin like a "gas axe".Once you get good at gas welding(and theres still uses even after gettin Tig)....Tig is like somebody turnin the light on in a dark room.BUT,you should've already gotten good with the gas welding.BW

 

[NASTYZEN]

I agree with the others. Learn Oxy-Ace techniques first and that will go a long way to learning tig.
Make sure you have a slightly carburizing flame , a bit more Ace,to avoid the popping that sends the molten puddle all over!
Have fun!

 

[Professur]

There's only one real problem with getting an O/A kit to learn ... once you've learned O/A ... you're already welding. Unless you're doing all thin sheet, you don't really need the tig at that point.

 

[zmotorsports]

I agree with the others about learning gas welding basics first. When I first started TIG welding I had a real problem controlling my heat/puddle. My dad told me to go back to the basics and get really, really comfortable gas welding and then learn TIG.

That was the best advice I had been given. At first I thought why would I go backwards but it made sense. I gas welded for a few weeks playing with different thicknesses and positions. At the point I felt comfortable with my puddle control and moving the puddle around with the gas torch I picked up the TIG and taught myself in a very short period of time.

Mike.

 

[Jim Johnstone]

There's only one real problem with getting an O/A kit to learn ... once you've learned O/A ... you're already welding. Unless you're doing all thin sheet, you don't really need the tig at that point.

Well you're right with regards to mid thickness steel. I'm mainly interested in TIG for aluminum and thin gauge steel.

 

[Frank The Plumber]

I went through an apprentice ship and learned SMAW in a trade school.

By just going straight to TIG you will be skipping all of the fundamentals of control, all of the safety, all of the set up. The proper angles of work, the proper setup techniques.

95% of everything you learn will be completely applicable to TIG. In the SMAW class you will be taught all of your basic instincts of welding.

By just skipping over all other types and going towards only TIG you will be treated as someone who should be educated in the welding basics. Not having this training will let you have your own bad habits established in TIG. This may make you forever an amatuer.

I want to be a master chef........but I don't want to waste my time learning to cut stuff up or checking heat. And washing pans...not for me.

Once in a proper welding class you won't be disappointed, I doubt you will just blow through it either. I've seen plenty of guys who thought they were god's gift to welding start their shirts on fire on the first day and turn into spatter hogs on the second. By the end of the class a few of them could actually put something together that might not cause death. Respect it, it really is an art form.

 

[suss427]

Hi guys,

I have a light background with welding, I was taught stick and MIG by a pipe fitter that was running the maintenance department I worked in back in college. It's been 5 or so years now and I'm way out of practice, and would like to get some proper training before I build anything too crazy.

The local community college has Saturday morning welding classes, but before I get to the TIG course, I'd have to do 3 separate stick welding classes, each class being a semester long, so I'd be another year before I'd get to TIG with their program.

Does this seem like a reasonable way to start, or should I search around harder and see if I can find any other places that would teach TIG off the hop?

Thanks,
Jim

I would skip stick welding.

Learn how to gas weld first. Tig is very similar in technique to gas welding.

I learned at a metal sculpture class and find that TIG welding is pretty easy (with steel at least)

 

[beee85]

I walked up to a fabrication shop, told them i wanted to learn to weld and they taught me how to polish the welds first, when they saw that I was serious,so they taught me tig welding, with miller maxstar 150. It was awesome.

 

[ibedayank]

often, this is true. but not in my case.

prove it...post up pics of your welds after a bend test and cutting one or more of your welds in half

 

[ibedayank]

With a TIG machine you can also arc weld..... try tig welding something outside in a 30 mph wind once

 

[38D]

I am going to go against the flow here and say go straight for the TIG work. I found a retired welder that was willing to teach. I started with TIG on aluminum, figuring if you start with the difficult stuff that you learn better. It definitely taught me puddle & heat control. After I learned TIG, we went back and did a couple fo hours on MIG and stick welding. We did cover safety, angles, pushing the puddle, rod type, etc, so I don't think you have to do another process to learn those. I will say that welding out of position is something that takes time. I'm pretty good on the bench, but upside-down all bets are off! Of course part of my issue is that I don't have a thumb control, and its a real pain to operate the pedal out of position.

In addition to the basics, the single most important thing I learned is to clean the dang metal before you weld it. I've seen people trying to weld thru mill scale, rust or anodizing, then wondering why their welds look like ****.

I also ended up buying a Miller Dynasty 200DX...its an awesome machine.

 

[mike13u]

prove it...post up pics of your welds after a bend test and cutting one or more of your welds in half

Called Out!!!

This is going to be cool.. Either we will see a good weld or nice flame thread....Cant wait...

 

[kartracer55]

Take a class. Even if it is a stick welding class or two, you will develop really good habits regarding welding in general. THIS in itself will be worth it. Then mess with GTAW.

While plenty of "self taught" weldors (and yes, WELDOR, the welder is the machine) can stick things together, I'd bet 75+ % of them (mostly the guys who learn on MIG) produce, and will always produce mediocre work at best, no matter how nice the beads look.

 

[mike13u]

"While plenty of "self taught" weldors (and yes, WELDOR, the welder is the machine) "

To call a person that welds a welder isnt incorrect although weldor can be used. A search for weldor on AWS's website will produce no results. Also, searching for a job as a weldor might prove difficult. It might make more sense to use wedlor but it isnt as common and both are acceptable

 

[outcast]

prove it...post up pics of your welds after a bend test and cutting one or more of your welds in half

i can't. i threw away the 100's of coupons that i cut in half and bent the hell out of. those coupons are what i learned on. you can flame me if you want. but do you really expect a guy to keep a box of that stuff

and i can't just go out in the garage and whip something up. all my metal is in my moms garage. and most all of my gear and tools are in my mother-in-laws garage. i am trying to sell my home, and buyers really don't like tools and welding gear.

 

[mike13u]

i can't. i threw away the 100's of coupons that i cut in half and bent the hell out of. those coupons are what i learned on. you can flame me if you want. but do you really expect a guy to keep a box of that stuff

and i can't just go out in the garage and whip something up. all my metal is in my moms garage. and most all of my gear and tools are in my mother-in-laws garage. i am trying to sell my home, and buyers really don't like tools and welding gear.

Come on my man... Tell the mother-in-law to start grindin' some tips on 1.5% lanthanated (your machine likes that) and head over with a dozen roses.

We'll check back in a few hours.....

 

[ibedayank]

i can't. i threw away the 100's of coupons that i cut in half and bent the hell out of. those coupons are what i learned on. you can flame me if you want. but do you really expect a guy to keep a box of that stuff

and i can't just go out in the garage and whip something up. all my metal is in my moms garage. and most all of my gear and tools are in my mother-in-laws garage. i am trying to sell my home, and buyers really don't like tools and welding gear.

figures...and you don't have a digital camera either do you?

 

[cnc-me]

Take it from a stick weldor, turn up the heat until you blow through
and then back off 'till its just right.
Started stick welding when I was 13, with a Century Buzz Box that
Dad bought me and my Brother one year for Christmas.
I agree with the other posters on getting an O/A torch setup first.
Its the next closest process to TIG, besides its great to have a torch
for cutting and heating as well.

 

[mrpowderkeg]

I don't have time to read what people wrote, but my opinion (for what it's worth). If you're mostly going to be tig welding, then buy a tig and get started. With all the resources on the net and books at the local book store, you can teach yourself how to do it. That's the way I did, I had a 120v mig before, but I jumped in to tig and never looked back. I started with a scratch start setup, and progressed from there. There are videos, online guides, message fourms, etc... no reason why anyone with half a brain cannot learn how to tig weld within a month, from there on you're in a lifetime of learning on how to perfect your technique.

 

[sberry]

I know a couple pretty proficient tig welders who cant do much else. If your goal is to build with it,,, go ahead, if your daddy owns an excavating company and you are 19 or headed for the construction biz, want to be a career welder then you need to do other stuff.

 

[Jim Johnstone]

So I've give it some thought, and I think I like the idea of getting very good at the basics first. My father in law says he has a couple sets of torches buried in his garage, and will dig a set out for me, and a quick look on kijiji has found several old 240 volt stick welders for under $100 (lincoln, Airco, Canox etc.). I'm planning on getting the gas setup and a stick welder and just burning up tons of steel cut offs as well as seeking some professional guidance to get me up and going.

Thanks for the info,
Jim

 

[Frank The Plumber]

i can't. i threw away the 100's of coupons that i cut in half and bent the hell out of. those coupons are what i learned on. you can flame me if you want. but do you really expect a guy to keep a box of that stuff

and i can't just go out in the garage and whip something up. all my metal is in my moms garage. and most all of my gear and tools are in my mother-in-laws garage. i am trying to sell my home, and buyers really don't like tools and welding gear.

Ha ha ha.

I dig my 6G Tausig certified bend test in 1985.

1985...were you born?

So let's see. Am I supposed to be deemed proper to go weld at the nuke plant from the coupons I did in 1985? Nope. Should Ijust say that my stuff is all good because I welded up a few chunks of metal in 1985? Nope.

Do I when I'm bored or want to practice make up a sample that is hard to weld so I can keep my stuff tight? Yup.

Without spending $300 to have a guy scope it did my stuff look good when it was bend backwards and not crack out. Yup.

Could I go into my shop and make a sample and bend it over to see if my s&it still stinks? Yup.

So if the last time I did a sample and inspected it for stress by bending it was 1985 should I be saying that as of today 2011 that I can still do a cert weld?
nope.

If you can pass a cert on a SMAW unit should you automatically assume that you would pass a cert on a TIG?
nope.

The guys that do it every day have their stuff scoped almost constantly hunting for inclusions and impurities. BTW, I'm not talking about fence hangers.

And you can join aluminum nicer with an OA unit than a TIG. Go hunt the web for aluminum welding.

 

[sberry]

I worked with a bunch of 19 yr olds in a nuke back in about 83, they could tig with surgical skill, the only other tool they could use was a pair of number 9's to snip wire. Just like mig, lots of guys use them fine without much training, usually for intended purpose. Let a guy ask this type of question about one on AWS and he gets response like he should get a SAM 400 cause its what he broke out on back in the day,,, when the poster is 55 yrs old, retired and wants to fix a few home brew things with the grandkids in the garage, he wants results from the machine and many could care less about being proficient in every phase of welding.
I could make a good living in this biz knowing only one process, know a couple pretty good tig guys that couldn't weld themselves inside a box with stick.
Sometimes if a guy is good enough at one thing he doesn't need to know all this other ****. Pays the same or in some cases better with a lot less work.

 

[sberry]

If I lived closer to big city I would teach my wife to tig alum, stand around most of the day twirling that torch like some kind of golden arm.