Welding Courses

[Dead Eye]

So I like the idea of learning to weld as I feel like its the next step in my progress of working on cars and bikes. I'd like to do a simple course which introduces welding and gives me an idea of how to do it but unfortunately it seems like these things just don't exist anymore The main stuff available is full time courses and education colleges which last for 9 months and cost a fortune, but you get a certification which I don't need

I'm curious if any of the foccers local to the likes of Hertfordshire have any experience of any night classes that are hidden away from the mighty Google.

Based on a few old forum threads I've run in to this is what I want to do;
Work with steel / stainless steel and potentially aluminium
Small work, nothing too crazy and not likely to be particularly often unless I sink my teeth in to a large project
Primarily working on cars I expect - so seals, custom brackets, exhaust work etc

Figure that I may just end up practising some basic stick welding and try not to set fire to anything - just learn from making all the mistakes possible haha. The other option for me I think would be MIG but the setup costs are somewhat more prohibitive it seems...

Advice is welcome

[Deefer666]

Buy yourself a cheap welder, scrounge some scrap metal from a local engineering shop.... Read the tips on welding on line. Then crack on and teach yourself. That's what I did, when you get better buy yourself a better welder and you'll get better results.

Ali welding will require a TIG set up and they are big bucks, not only to buy but to run (gas/rods/nozzles). Start with MIG and take it from there, I couldn't weld for shit  a few months ago, however I have just rebuilt the entire rear bumper section on the company van and built a new fold down step for it. All this came from just practising with a cheap MIG and a load of scrap metal.

[devilsyam]

tbh im self taught

bought the gear and went to youtube good vids there on stick and mig now tig is a whole new ball game and even i aint gone there yet

[Deefer666]

I had a stick (arc) welder, it was only good for blowing holes in stuff. I then bought a gasless MIG which was good to start as a novice then bought a gas MIG... Self taught is the best way unless you have a tame welder on hand to show you the way.

[chaz]

I bought a stick welder 35 years ago, still got it, it's great for making trailers out of angle iron but hard to use on car bodywork. I also had oxy/acetylene to do cars with as I could get the bottles filled then, I also bought a mig 20 odd years ago but not used it much as cars don't rust as soon as it looks like rain like they used to do. Go on youtube to see how it's done and buy one of those fancy screens that dim automaticley to save you getting flashes while you're learning,lol. I was taught how to gas weld, braze and leadburn when plumbing but learned electric myself, before there was youtube.

[johnakay]

I've been welding/fabricating for well over 40 years.easy to learn mig welding once you get the drift.
but welding s/steel  requires a bit more skill and not as easy as it look.
aluminium is all together a different kettle of fish and best left well alone for health reason unless you've got all the equipment and I don't mean tig etc.
back to mild steel.
learn to weld mild steel 1st before you try to weld other materials.
best gas is a mixture of argon/co2 better weld and a little less spatter.


join this forum the guys on there will help you through.
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/

[Andy FZS]

I was lucky enough to have a cousin that tought welding at the local college  so I used to get him to do all my welding until I bought a mini and thought I'd better learn to do my own.

[limax2]

I did a welding course at night school many years ago for stick welding and then gas (oxy/acetylene) welding. It didn't cost much but even then it got stopped because of cost to the college. Things are now a whole lot worse so I'm not surprised there are no cheap courses.
Stick welding is good for thicker stuff, say 3mm plus, but requires more practice and (for me at least) is difficult when you get down to 1.5mm or less. And while practicing you will invariably end up with arc eye to some extent. Like having sand in your eye for eight to twenty four hours depending on how big a flash you get without the mask.
I have a 150 amp Mig gas welder which is much better and a lot easier for thinner stuff like car body work and can still make a decent weld at 3mm and with more skill, i.e. practice, do o.k. at 5 or 6mm. I am self taught, plus some reading etc. as suggested by others, with mig so I wouldn't like my 5mm welds to be something safety critical. An expert opinion on mig welding at 5mm plus would be good.
Hardly ever use my little oxy/acetylene apart from brazing.
I've never used a gasless mig which I think are more expensive to use due to the coated wire.
In short get yourself a mig welder and get going. Quite satisfying actually.
Top tip.Throw away the mask that comes with a hobby welder and get one that is arc activated. Less than £50 but leaves both hands free to steady the gun (with a leather welding glove) and means you should never get a flash in the eyes.
Aldi sometimes have Mig welders in I seem to remember.

[Dead Eye]

Thanks a lot everyone for your comments so far

Looks like MIG welding may be the better option for my general use. Cost wise they seem to ramp up quite quickly and the majority of the gas supplies seem to be disposable bottles now. I briefly looked for a gas supplier but the suppliers no longer list the refillable bottles and only offer the disposable stuff. I understand you can do gasless MIG welding but most of what I've read suggests that you can get tidier welds with a gas supply.

For now, I think I'll have to bookmark a lot of this information and wait until I can afford to buy the equipment (I prefer to buy decent stuff straight away instead of buying twice later on) and then practice by myself.

I'd definitely be getting a decent welders mask as my eyesight is bad enough already without destroying it further :P Oh and definitely some decent protective gear as I've had more than enough experience with fire

[ChristoT]

Oh and definitely some decent protective gear as I've had more than enough experience with fire

I don't think you need the gear - more the world needs protecting from you!! 

[Dead Eye]

Does that mean bikes and cars need protecting from you?

[lew600fazer]

I served my time as a pipe fitter welder, stick , mig , tig etc!
A wee tip, there is a dance called the slag kickers waltz. Always wear protective gear when welding.
Before HSSE became the norm we would weld wearing anything you like. Just now and then you would get a bit of welding slag maybe down your boots, I have been burnt down to the bone on my ankle, still have the scar. The most painful burn was right on my bell end. I was in a tank at the time welding in pipe stub pieces (stainless steel) the slag tends to ping off on its own. This piece of slag went down the front of my boiler suit and landed on me jocks(anyone remember those Wosley nylon things) melted straight through and right on my dicks eye. I have never felt pain like it, fecking agony and couild not have a shag for ages, so always wear protection, lol, oh me eyes are watering now trhinking about it, ouch!!!!!!!!!!

[ChristoT]

I served my time as a pipe fitter welder, stick , mig , tig etc!
A wee tip, there is a dance called the slag kickers waltz. Always wear protective gear when welding.
Before HSSE became the norm we would weld wearing anything you like. Just now and then you would get a bit of welding slag maybe down your boots, I have been burnt down to the bone on my ankle, still have the scar. The most painful burn was right on my bell end. I was in a tank at the time welding in pipe stub pieces (stainless steel) the slag tends to ping off on its own. This piece of slag went down the front of my boiler suit and landed on me jocks(anyone remember those Wosley nylon things) melted straight through and right on my dicks eye. I have never felt pain like it, fecking agony and couild not have a shag for ages, so always wear protection, lol, oh me eyes are watering now trhinking about it, ouch!!!!!!!!!!

Good pickup line for a different kind of slag? 

[Andy FZS]

And I thought welders always seemed to wear daft hats ..

[odbguy]

Iv been thinking of doing a welding course. .. come across this not so long back although I haven't yet looked further into it ..
http://www.cityandguilds.com/qualifications-and-apprenticeships/engineering/mechanical/3268-welding-skills#tab=information&acc=general-info