after trying to hire a welder (and after getting laid off and living in this
dot bomb economy), i considered learning how to weld. if you are good the
money is good and you can either work for yourself or someone else. plus
welding is really fun and could be automotive related. in fact, i need some
welding done now. -james "strike the arc" creasy
I second James'(oops, I mean james') remark. While building many race cars over
25 years, I had always adhered to a credo that "I wouldn't get into a race car
that I had welded on". At my advanced age ~50, I was beginning to build another
"Prepared" car. Frank Stagnaro convinced me to not "hire out" the welding, but
to invest in a good welder, learn how to use it, and go from there, build my
own roll cage, etc. I did that, but not in that order. I took a welding class
at the San Jose Metropolitan Regional Occupational Training center, on
Hillsdale Ave in San Jose, (right off Capitol Expressway.) The class was two
nights a week, with plenty of their equipment and their electricity/gas. It was
just over $100 for the semester, and you had to bring your own helmet and
gloves. (Which I was going to buy anyway!) After a few weeks of proving that I
could, too, weld, I bought a new TIG welder and used both their equipment and
mine to finish up most of the welds on the new car. I can't believe how useful
a welder is. Remember the line: "When all you have is a hammer, everything
looks like a nail?" I have found all sorts of extra uses for it, beyond just
automotive. Beyond the tool hobbiest, the school offers a welder certification
program which takes you through all the needed skills. A friend of mine,
Richard Finch, is an author of several books on welding. He once told me: "I
can teach you all you need to weld well in about 8 hours. Then, after 10 years
of practice, you should be a good welder." It is all a matter of practice. -
Seth Emerson
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