When i was doing my MIG flat test our instructor had us prop our forearms against the edge of the table in our booth at a low angle and after doing that for 8 hours your arm really killed to the point it was really distracting. So I found these childrens shin guards for soccer at a local liquidators and put one on my left arm under my leather coat and it worked great it helped me actually pivot cleanly and focus on a consistent bead. I believe it actually helped my pass the test.
However, when i tried it for my Stick Flat test i found it hindered me with pivoting and trying to change angle with a reducing electrode. but I am sure it can work if you need to prop and you can slide it down a vertical support or something.
it made the last 48 hours of booth time easy and effortless.
The downside to training that way, is you don't always get to prop when you work.
I've used skateboard guards on my elbows and knees, for the awkward positions I weld in, but much of the time I have nothing to prop on, whether Mig, stick, or Tig.
It will benefit you to practice without propping when you can, particularly in MIG and stick.
well thats how we were taught. out teacher was a nazi about that. he had a load of full semester students and only 40% of them passed their tests. and my part time class that was 8 hours on saturdays and only 6 weeks got 90% pass rates. I wish i had the opportunity blow and education like they did, cause we just crammed a lot of practice plates into every class. yes not proping is nice, but if your doing production work and things get painful and or hot or awkward this may work. a couple guys had bruises, but other than that it was helpful to me. i didnt get a great education, but its the best i got and now i got tickets to show for it. which was required for certain factory work.
We have a guy that uses a skateboard elbow pad when welding long fillets when laying on his stomach. I have also used them to avoid nerve tenderness from resting on the point of my elbow....(a bad habit.)
I like the idea of a child-size shin guard. That's "ouside the box" thinking.
I'll prop on something every chance I get, and when I responded, I wasn't thinking in terms of factory/production/bench type work, as I do mostly repair/replace, and my opportunities to prop are often limited.
thanks, they aren't really that new anymore. I got them in march, and since them I've only done one stick job of 40 dock pins and strangely almost no paying MIG work, just building frames for tables and computer cubbys for the CNC machines. the most work I've done has been spool gun. I bet if i got my TIG tickets I'd be spending the next year doing MIG or FCAW. I am very interested in going back to school and my boss would probably pay for it too, so i could get TIG Steel and Aluminum tickets.
