Picked up a welder yesterday

[mscribellito]

I finally bought a welder. Nothing fancy, just a Northern Tool Brand. Regular $189. Was on sale for $149. Got it for $129 with a $20 coupon. Also bought a cart that was on clearance at HD as well as some metal blades and clamps. I'm new to the whole welding thing so if anybody has any advice or tips I'd appreciate it. I'm a noob

I practiced for a few hours yesterday, messing with settings and some scrap metal. I got a little better!

 

[toomanytoyzz]

I finally bought a welder. Nothing fancy, just a Northern Tool Brand. Regular $189. Was on sale for $149. Got it for $129 with a $20 coupon. Also bought a cart that was on clearance at HD as well as some metal blades and clamps. I'm new to the whole welding thing so if anybody has any advice or tips I'd appreciate it. I'm a noob

I practiced for a few hours yesterday, messing with settings and some scrap metal. I got a little better!

Not too familiar with NT's line, but is it capable of running shielding gas? If so, I'd definitely buck up and get a bottle and regulator. The main problem with a smaller 110v welder that only allows you to run flux core wire is that it ***** for thinner metal especially autos because of the increased amount of splatter.

Don't get me wrong. You gotta start somewhere. That machine may suit your needs just fine for years to come, but if you really get serious about welding you'll be putting that on CL all too soon.

 

[Conor]

couple of tips ive learned over the years of playing with welding.

Wear long sleeves or you will get some pretty bad sunburn
I would really recommend a respirator as well 3M makes one with pink pancakes (p100 iirc) for like 18.00 on amazon, i also notice you are using a standard welding helmet...an auto darkening helmet makes it MUCH easier to see the start of the weld. (I have a cheap HF 39.99 auto darkening helmet and it works great)

it should sound like sizzling bacon when you have your voltage/wire speed tuned in well.
(dont be afraid to go hotter when testing as it seems lots of newbies weld too cold)

Prep your metal well, clean it and get your fit up nice so you arent welding material that has all types of different gaps as this will greatly change your results.


I'm sure others will chime in with helpful advice, welding is really fun!