Complete Newb

[simonlpearce]

Hello all,

I signed up here as i have just spent 12 hours with a friend working on my rotten 325 which im trying to get ready for tracking.I spent all my time doing the dirty jobs like cleaning and prepping the areas and watching to make sure it didnt catch fire! It failed its MOT on a couple of areas of rust which we have sorted, however i get the feeling that in the not too distant future i will be needing to do more welding.

From what i can gether a gas MIG welder is what i need to start me off? Along with a decent set of overalls (fireproof), a good mask which auto dims, gloves and fire extinguisher. Is there anything i am missing?

I have an old 525 which i can practice welding on and a couple of old doors which i can cut up to use to practice with.

Anyhow i expect there are hundreds of threads like this so if someone would be so kind as to point me in the direction of a good thread about getting started it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[stuvy]

afternoon mate, your on the right track with your shopping list but id advise on getting a new sheet of mild to practise on then get stuck into the 5 then finally the 3 series

Have a browse on the tutorials at the top left of the page

 

[simonlpearce]

Just spotted the tutorials, thanks.

What do people think to taking a course in welding? Or is it something that you become good at with practise rather than instruction, if that makes sense?

 

[troppo]

G`day Simon
Your on the right path but one thing i would do would be to find a mate who knows how to weld and get him to teach you, i`m sure a few beers will cover his time. It will be a hell of a lot easier to learn if you have someone to show where your going wrong and to teach you some decent technique. One thing, you can use the old panels but sand them till they shine, you need a good contact for your earth and the point your welding needs to be clean too

 

[simonlpearce]

Yeah i hear you on the clean thing. Have already got a wire wheel for my grinder which is pretty darn good at stripping things back to bare metal.

 

[stuvy]

id take a course as it wont teach you your mates bad habits! for what a course costs its defo worth it mate

 

[cumbriasteve]

I find a wire wheel is good for paint etc but not very effective for mill scale or rust, much prefer a flap wheel to get back to shiny steel.

For practice start with some 2 or 3mm steel, much easier to lay runs and get used to torch angles etc without the constant blowing through, once you are happy at that you will find moving to thinner steel easier... not easy...just easier

 

[simonlpearce]

Off to google a flap wheel

 

[stuvy]

one other tip, with flap wheels and wire wheels its like anything in life you get what you pay for but be aware that a few of us on here have had nasty accidents with cheap disks exploding and wire wheels embedding in someones face!

 

[pedrobedro]

Off to google a flap wheel

Google strip and clean polycarbide discs as well. I've used a couple over the last week and they do a sterling job of cleaning paint and rust without much damage to the sound metal underneath.

 

[simonlpearce]

Just been speaking to a friend who told me he has an Arc welder sat in his shed gathering dust, and that i can use it as much as i want.

What are peoples opinions on using an arc welder? Are there any advantages/disadvantages over a mig welder? Bearing in mind most (if not all) my welding will be on a car body/chassis.

 

[octo0072000]

arc verses mig

arc welder is no good for you on car work
it can be done but no good for a learner arc welding is better on thicker metal
like 3/4mm up for car work you need a MIG that that goes down to 30 amps or below if machine mart has a vat free day they are some good deal there as well but don't buy off ebay unless you can see one working and take someone who is a welder to try it out seen to much over priced scrap on the bay

http://www.weldequip.com/clarke-160tm.htm

 

[simonlpearce]

Ok thanks again for all the helpful advice.

Will probably stick with a mig then for the time being.

 

[PaulMcElhinney]

Tuition DVD.

My tip is buy this DVD :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsDxqb2p5OM

Good luck.

 

[tab]

If your after buying a clarke mig welder it might be worth having a look at a company called chronos ltd, i just bought some materials from them and they sent a leaflet through "clarke spring savers" loads of their tools on offer and some good savings on some items

 

[zx9]

If your after buying a clarke mig welder it might be worth having a look at a company called chronos ltd, i just bought some materials from them and they sent a leaflet through "clarke spring savers" loads of their tools on offer and some good savings on some items

I think most independent Clarke dealers will be doing the same offers, it is just a flier that Clarke do and add the dealers details a bit like a giant mail merge.

I was in my local welding suppliers yesterday, I did not pick up a copy but the dealer was complaining that it (flier) was too diverse, turns out he had just had a customer quizzing him about the push bikes on offer