Welding Tips and Tricks

Howdy all,
Just signed on, glad to find like minded people to learn from.
My welding experience while covering a long time line, is not hugely extensive. I started
stick welding around 12 years old on my dads old Sears buzz box. Adulthood found me in a job
that got me more exposure to occasional stick welding and learned some more. Then I got into auto repair
after leaving PA and landing in MW Montana. Eventually bought 110v/140A MIG machine. That worked for 20 years
with some O/A gas welding thrown in once in a while. My auto career change directions when I went to work in an
engine machine shop, building everything from Harley engines to 4208 Caterpillars . This lead to a week long course in welding aluminum heads and the shop bought an ESAB252 TIG machine to repair cylinder heads. Several years of that & I ended up owning the shop. Later, diabetes and health caused me to loose the business and the ESAB went away. I missed it many times.
I now just piddle around as my body will allow, doing some light fabrication and I also do sand casting of aluminum.
This gave me the need for another TIG machine.
Tomorrow, the Big Brown truck Santa, is delivering a 2016 AHP AlphaTIG 200x
I also have a serious gun, shooting, and bullet casting hobby so this welder will get a work out.

I've spent months and months watching YouTube videos and scouring everything I could find about affordable TIG machines
and Jody's videos sold me on this one.

Anyway, long winded intro but now you know me little bit, look forward to gettign to know you all

Welcome, Jim!

You'll find a lot of us have backgrounds that got us where we are in peculiar ways, and a lot of like-minded people, as you said.

It's not common for a moderator to be on at this time of night to approve your post, but I was out quite late and need to wind down before bed. I do apologize for the "first post approval" thing, but before we started that, we were spending more time dealing with spammers than actually moderating the forum.

Steve S

Jim, welcome to the forum.

Otto Nobedder wrote:Welcome, Jim!

You'll find a lot of us have backgrounds that got us where we are in peculiar ways, and a lot of like-minded people, as you said.

It's not common for a moderator to be on at this time of night to approve your post, but I was out quite late and need to wind down before bed. I do apologize for the "first post approval" thing, but before we started that, we were spending more time dealing with spammers than actually moderating the forum.

Steve S

No need to apologize, I belong to one forum that you have to be invited to, to even know they exist!
Dang spammers and miscreants!