Welding Tips and Tricks

1. You will master the eraser before the welder.
2. Grinding on things makes them hot. Welding on things makes them incredibly freaking hot.
3. Your shirt CAN catch on fire from grinding sparks.
4. That polarity thing? Pay attention to that in the welder directions.
5. GMAW. The G stands for GAS. Turn it on; makes a big difference.
6. The welding glove is not a shield completely impervious to welding type heat.
7. Welding in short sleeves will give you sunburn on your arm facing the arc.
8. If in the middle of welding a weld, and it’s hot so sweat drips in your eyes causing you not to be able to see, stop welding. Otherwise, grab the eraser.
9. It’s not an angle grinder. It’s an eraser. As in “that weld sucks, hand me the eraser…”
10. Your wife will not understand why the first thing you build with your new welder is a welding table since she figures you wouldn’t need the welder at all if you didn’t have to build the table.

LMAO!

GREAT list!

#5 cracked me up... The "G" means the same thing in GTAW. I've smoked more than one tungsten you could tattoo with not turning the gas on...

I like "eraser" for "grinder".

#7... I MIG and TIG in short sleeves all the time.... SPF45 or better... liquid sleeves.

#6... That's why Jody sells so many TigFingers. They work for MIG too, on your pinkey.

As for #10, my wife once asked me why I like the work I do so much. I told her that "normal" people bore me.

Steve S

Soon you'll be answering questions like "why do you need that red thing when you have that blue thing that takes up the whole garage?". My standard response "but I can make you those shepard's hooks you wanted for in the garden". Her standard response " I wanted four of them and at this rate they're well over $1000 a hook, nevermind I'll pick them up at Kmart for $9 each". #11 If you find yourself in a hole stop digging.

Len

LMAO! awesome. yea I found my self showing my Co-op student some mig welding and he ran off a few things, like power? check. ground clamp? check. Gas? oh yea (I turn it on) check. Start welding splat! oh yea forgot to turn on the regulator as well as the tank. I felt pretty lame at that point.

PaterNovem,

I was doing a little maint. work here and just thought about your username. Nine kids. Yikes! Three keeps me busy. Maybe your next project should be something to put between you and the little woman. And if your kids are anything like mine you should think about building stockades also. Alright I'll quit thinking and get back to work.

Len

Yeah, 9 kids... That's why I have other hobbies now. One of my boys does quite a bit of the welding so we are learning together. We are building a jetski stand and after that it'll be a welded tube laundry sorter. Wife put In a request for that after somebody smashed up her PVC one. Might have to pick up a tubing bender and bill it to her project...