positional welding how to improve?

[aidank]

gents,

going to be buying my own inverter soon as want to improve my arc skills, did the beginner 10night (1 a week) course and have done some price sice but still a lot of learning to do

have been looking around and don't see any evening courses suitable as I am working by day full time

any suggestions on an inverter, going to go to local hire shop and buy what they have I think, easy service if something goes wrong, awkward enough to return them if bought on line or can any good electrician fix an inverter?

local hire shop have Kuhtreiber, Paraweld, Sealey for reasonable money

EWM and fronius for more


am fairly good on the flat but need to improve skills and techniqes in all other positions

what material should I buy to practice on?

was thinking of getting ~150mm pipe 4mm thick maybe? cut into ~20mm lengths and bevelled ready or is there an easy method of bevelling it myself other than hacking it with the angle grinder

should get good value out of these samples as would allow keyhole run with a 2.5mm at ~80amps DC and then capping with 3.2mm at ~120amps DC

anyone know of any videos/DVDs or books for instrucion for someone like me at intermediate level?

 

[Frank The Plumber]

I wouldn't buy practice stock. I would look for junk steel to play with. I was trained through an apprentice program. Our first practice came from learning how to weld with gas. Oxy acetylene. After spending some time playing with gas puddles we then moved to SMAW welding. We used 6010 and 7018 electrodes. We progressed through a series of positions until we gained confidence comfort and control. The real trick to learning how to weld properly is the same as any other thing in life. Good discipline. Proper sanitation, patience, body control and the like. Very few guys ever really even master the art of gas welding, they just buy a wire spitter and say they can weld. If you google about on each of the specific welding disciplines you may get a lot of good info, I occasionally will do a search such as gas welding aluminum and get a batch of videos to enjoy. You may also try searching Amazon for some printed matter.

 

[btbsandman]

I wouldn't buy practice stock. I would look for junk steel to play with. I was trained through an apprentice program. Our first practice came from learning how to weld with gas. Oxy acetylene. After spending some time playing with gas puddles we then moved to SMAW welding. We used 6010 and 7018 electrodes. We progressed through a series of positions until we gained confidence comfort and control. The real trick to learning how to weld properly is the same as any other thing in life. Good discipline. Proper sanitation, patience, body control and the like. Very few guys ever really even master the art of gas welding, they just buy a wire spitter and say they can weld. If you google about on each of the specific welding disciplines you may get a lot of good info, I occasionally will do a search such as gas welding aluminum and get a batch of videos to enjoy. You may also try searching Amazon for some printed matter.

The plumber is right.

 

[ScottS]

I enjoy these videos and have learned a few tips worth the time to watch.

Here

I have read many a description on vertical uphill stick. I saw the video and heard the words, tried it and it was better.

Scott

 

[jhn9840]

The easiest way to improve in a word is practice.

jhn9840
John

 

[ibedayank]

aidank go to http://www.millerwelds.com/resources/
another good site is
www.weldingweb.com
buy a good quality welder not a cheap one much easier to use

 

[kristoferjohn]

Your video is amezing,this is extra ordinary vido,this video get many good things of welding,i like all tips of your video and i follow your tips.

 

[crewchief888]

I wouldn't buy practice stock. I would look for junk steel to play with. I was trained through an apprentice program. Our first practice came from learning how to weld with gas. Oxy acetylene. After spending some time playing with gas puddles we then moved to SMAW welding. We used 6010 and 7018 electrodes. We progressed through a series of positions until we gained confidence comfort and control. The real trick to learning how to weld properly is the same as any other thing in life. Good discipline. Proper sanitation, patience, body control and the like. Very few guys ever really even master the art of gas welding, they just buy a wire spitter and say they can weld. If you google about on each of the specific welding disciplines you may get a lot of good info, I occasionally will do a search such as gas welding aluminum and get a batch of videos to enjoy. You may also try searching Amazon for some printed matter.

practice practice practice.

then practice some more.

i very rarely buy a piece of steel for anything.
most of what i get is scrap.

last piece of steel i had to buy was for a custom driveshaft i was making for my off road truck.
i needed 3ft of 1 3/16" heavy wall DOM tube, and couldnt find anythingthat i could salvage to make what i needed.
$9 out of pocket, instead of $250+ for a driveshaft shop to make what i needed.

 

[ptschram]

Get a good helmet for arc welding. Nothing improved my welding skills as being able to see what I was really doing.

Then, practice.

 

[Garage5.9]

Get a good helmet for arc welding. Nothing improved my welding skills as being able to see what I was really doing.

Then, practice.

x2 when i bough my helmet i went all out and bought a auto darkening. No regrets here

 

[sberry]

Practice AFTER some lessons. Aint much good doing it first.

 

[5lima30]

+3 on a good auto-darkening hood! It will increase your learning curve quickly!

 

[Zeke]

Practice AFTER some lessons. Aint much good doing it first.

You're right, but having a little experience helps to identify bad habits and lack of specific knowledge. You learn that you don't know much in the presence of a certified instructor.

Welding up hill or down requires less heat and good technique. Don't stay in the center of the puddle. Lead the puddle to where you want and to what you want it to look like.