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Welding Basics

To: british-cars@autox.team.net, mgs@autox.team.net
Subject: Welding Basics
From: Railroad2@aol.com
Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 18:57:44 -0500
Here's some input from a near amateur welder (if that) which might be of
benefit to someone who has never welded at all.

I don't think it's fair to give a rank beginner the impression that welding
is child's play right from the start.  That's the impression I've gotten from
some of the comments.

I bought a wire-fed flux-core MIG welder from SIP a few years back to use on
an MGB.  I found that it is CRITICAL to get all the welder settings
practically dead-on in order not to do more damage than you already had.
 It's VERY easy to burn a hole straight through your new replacement panel or
burn away that last piece of original metal you hoped to weld onto.
 Remember, we're dealing with very thin metal here.  

When I managed to get everything right, I produced some pretty impressive
welds.  When I went back six months later, I was back to square one and
having all kinds of trouble.  It's very much an art.

My feeling is that a beginner would very likely be wasting a lot of money on
a gas shield MIG welder unless he or she had someone to demonstrate how it's
done.  Remember, we're talking upwards of $300.00 here.  It's not just a good
idea to have a teacher, it would be pretty foolish not to arrange for one.

A lot of the articles in the british car magazines say cut this and weld
that, and it's a lot like the sheetrock/plastering pros on This Old House who
do an entire wall in three quick and perfect swipes (no sanding required).

I don't want to discourage anyone from learning to weld, but let's not make
it sound like you read 

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