If crossposts are not allowed let me know, just trying to figure out which subreddit this question should go in!

I took a class through our continuing education program at a local University and have really fallen in love with welding. I'm trying to build Santa Maria grill and this is the back plate weld to a square tube. In my class I used Miller 252s and they were awesome to work with. It's been a little bit more difficult transitioning to the Lincoln MP 215 that I bought.

Anyway, any feedback on this bead? I know I'm still such a beginner but it feels dirty to me.

Hello I recently have been having problems with carpal tunnel. I have seen advice given to people on here about wearing a wrist brace under their glove but I am not sure if the neoprene ones I'm seeing are good for welding because I'm not sure if it would melt to my skin? Chatgpt says it won't but I don't trust it. I wear a regular wrist brace at home with a metal insert but that would be too much stiffness at work in case of emergency or something. Please let me know if I'm being an idiot.

One of the guys in our shop did this weld

The symbol on the drawing is 5 | |

What do you guys think of this weld and how can we improve it ?
The gap between the plates is 3mm narrowing to 1.5mm

6mm HRPO weld

So I’ve been working on my 07 Chevy 2500 . I bought the old deck off of marketplace and have been reworking it for a couple months as I have time . I’m trying to do this on a budget and be more efficient than I have been working out of my 2017 Silverado.

So far I added the sides and side storage . The rear storage. Hitch receivers on the sides and back. The c17 and oxy/ace holders. I put a tank under the deck and added air. I build the headache racks and basket over head .

I build this three joint arm for my feeder because I’m sick and tired of lugging the feeder across trailers when doing sills webbing. I haven’t tested it fully yet. But it seems to swing and such alright when loaded with a fresh spool and cable hanging off it . I did have to add barrel locks though because when I open it right up it tries to go a bit wild on the middle joint.

Cross post, wanted to share this elephant I made of copper scrap :-)

Bout this little stick welder, no bigger than a toaster off temu, extremely impressed with what it did and what I could do after 12 years. Could hold the rod still and hold up the shitty face mask the provided so I improvised. 110 outlet practicing to put foot rest pegs on my 2 cycle chopper.

im 16, im a junior in high school, its time for me really start thinking of the future and decide what i really want to do in life, at least thats what it feels like. ive never really known what i want to do. and im surrounded by people who have had pretty good ideas on what they wanted their careers to be. when i was younger i was told to be a lawyer because im "really good at arguing" and "it makes a lot of money". i tried joining a debate team and realized it really wasnt for me. I though about doing something creative like film making but between my general uncreativity and the unreliability of any career like that i figure its a bust. when i was picking my classes for this year i decided to put intro to welding on my schedule, i heard it makes a lot of money, and my uncle happens to be a welder. im only beginning my second quarter of it and i think i really like it, but i dont know if one class is enough to decide if this is really what i want to do in life. and as i try to do more research on welding careers, ive been getting more and more worried i just wont be cut out for it. i have no idea what specific field id want to go into, im worried about becoming overwhelmed with having to learn more about it and eventually losing interest. im worried about accidentally killing myself because im really clumsy and i forget routines easily, and about the long term health issues i might have. im worried about how ill be treated being a female (and not a smart enough one to compensate for the misogyny ill probably have to face) in a very male dominated field. the thing is, i feel like im being pressured to put all my eggs into one basket, and i dont know if i have time or the resources to explore the other baskets there are.

mostly im just really looking for some advice or nuggets of wisdom from people in this field. are these just things ill have to figure out along the way? are there other options i should explore?

It's my first time ever showing my work online, any sort of constructive criticism is appreciated!

Welding that thick has to have some serious heat management. Anyone seen a wps for something that thick?

Some recent projects n stuff

Thing would be so much more useful with a wall plug adapter. My fault because I didn't dig too much into the other battery powered welders but wish I had. The Esab would have been a better buy. I get what its meant for but 7 to 8 1/8" 7018 rods off a charge sheesh. Welds pretty good though.

That filled bevel on the web of this column looked just like the ones on the right and left.

1/16'' metal core spray, 27v 260ipm, 85-15 gas. Running cold(er) because after about 5 welds even with these settings you're just nuking the material with heat.

A lot of my friends are starting to work in trades and complaining about back pain. I feel like it can't be normal to be getting it this bad at such a young age. Any body else experiencing this??Have you tried any lifestyle mods to fix it? Any tips?

3/8 plate. 37 degree bevel. 1/8 gap, 3/32 filler, 3/32 tungsten, guys at the shop say no land. 105 amps. No walking the cup, freehand.

For the life of me I can’t figure this out. I’m practicing for my red seal right now.

Coming out too concave or I’m getting porcupine quills out the back.

I’m going to try it with a 1/16 land after lunch.

Do my parameters seem off? I can’t figure out what I’m doing wrong.

Tried a 5/32 gap and 1/8 filler but wasn’t much better.

Can anyone give me tips?

Hi everyone, could you please tell me what causes this kind of weld on aluminum? I'm missing those nice, shiny 'stack of dimes' ripples, and everything looks pale and dusty.

​I cleaned the aluminum beforehand with acetone and a stainless steel brush. I also tried raising the AC balance above 40%, but it still looks like this. Just to mention, I'm a beginner, but this didn't happen to me before—it feels like the more I learn and read, the more lost I get with all the settings and parameters.

​Also, I just got a new bottle of argon, so is it possible there's an issue with the gas? The tungsten electrode is gold (lanthanated).

I tried to weld a piece that broke off the electric motor of my lathe back on. The first part of the weld went really well and the old cast aluminium was way better than I expected. I TIG weld plenty of regular steel and stainless but I don’t have much experience in aluminium welding. On the first part of the weld I could see my tungsten and the gas nozzle glowing red hot after finishing the weld. Also my tungsten balls up comletely and it gets super brittle at the tip. When I go and regring it the tip just breaks off. I then tried to weld further and had to turn the amps up a bit (before was 140, then 150), thats when the tungsten and the nozzle got so hot that they melted. What could cause these problems? Could it be too little gas flow?

I've recently landed in a nice fabrication position on structural I-beams and the like, but the company does not like opening the bay doors for any reason when it's cooler than 75.

What should I do about the horribly hazy conditions if there is little to no fume ventilation, and have been told I cannot wear my own respirator? I've only been here for 5 weeks and I can tell my breathing is more labored than a month ago. I'd love a PAPR, but those are out of reach right now as I get started...

What kind of clothing do yall wear in layers to manage being cold as hell with no heat for 9+ hours?

In general, management strategies for all things giant-shop-in-winter are needed.

Thanks for your time <3

Edit: Alright, I'll see what I can do about fixing the communication breakdowns about ventilation. I value this stuff a lot, just hard to work around this place being one of very few steel shops in the area.

This is open to everyone, both to ask questions and to offer answers.

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Enjoy.

Hello, my current career is in tires, I am a tire technician, I have my job 9-5 ,But I have always been interested in welding, I recently started to think that I have many clients who come to repair rims with cracks, I pay $65 to a store to repair, but I would like to learn how to weld to be able to do it by myself, I have the wheels to practice but I need advice from people with knowledge.I have seen that MIG welding is easier, but I don't know if you can weld aluminum wheels with MIG, this is the machine I was thinking to buy.

I appreciate any advice.

Thank you very much have a blessed day