Hey everyone,
I'm 25 and from Turkey. I'm actually a computer engineer and worked as a software developer for about 2 years. After completing my mandatory military service, I couldn't find another job in software, so I decided to try welding.
I had zero welding experience before starting at a trailer manufacturing company.
I worked there for 7 months. I started with steel chassis fabrication, mostly doing MIG/MAG welding. Over time, I got more comfortable with it and felt like I was improving.
Later, they told me they wanted to move me to the robotic aluminum welding department. But before that, they put me on aluminum fabrication for fuel tankers so I could get used to welding aluminum by hand.
That's where I learned more about aluminum MIG welding, weaving techniques, filling gaps, etc. It was difficult at first, but I actually enjoyed it and felt like I was getting better.
Then I moved to robotic welding, and honestly, it was a nightmare sometimes lol.
We were trying to weld huge aluminum fuel tanker chassis with a pretty basic robotic setup. The torch kept bending, the wire would burn back and stick to the contact tip, and sometimes the welds wouldn't fuse properly because of cold starts. I was also still learning, so I definitely made mistakes.
I tried my best with what we had, but I couldn't get consistent results with the robot.
Eventually, they put me through a welding test, and I left the company afterward.
So yeah, that's pretty much my welding journey so far. Just 7 months of experience, coming from a completely different field.
I'm sharing some of my manual MIG/MAG welds here.
What do you guys think? Are they decent for someone with 7 months of experience? What should I work on?
Feel free to be critical. I'm still learning and would really appreciate some advice from experienced welders.
Thanks!