Welding for dummies?

[stevensfo]

I've never done any welding in my life, but we have quite a few small repairs around the house that require it.

Single bars breaking off a Weber bbq grill, metal lines breaking off a clothes dryer, lawnmower chassis falling apart etc.

Blutac, sellotape and soldering just aren't strong enough.

Can anyone recommend a simple kit, preferably from from Amazon, that would be perfect for small jobs like these?


Steve

[GrahamPlatt]

Lidl do a nice piece of kit, which feeds a wire rather than using rods.
I’ll see if I can find a link.


https://www.lidl.ie/p/inverter-flux-cor ... /p10025218

https://forums.contractoruk.com/filedat ... 1717759879

I have one. Impressed with it.

[Imbiber]

Learning to weld without some tuition is a very steep learning curve. For the jobs you mention involving thin metal will need a mig welder of the type mentioned by Graham. Be aware not to weld galvanised steel and that aluminium is a whole different ball game.


Good luck.

[csearle]

I've never done any welding in my life, but we have quite a few small repairs around the house that require it.

I recall aluminium requires a kinda sixth sense to weld. Stick to steel if you can. C.

[y0rkiebar]

Evening classes at a local college could be worth looking into.

[GrahamPlatt]

I've never done any welding in my life, but we have quite a few small repairs around the house that require it.

I recall aluminium requires a kinda sixth sense to weld. Stick to steel if you can. C.

I see a lot of ads for aluminium rods. Supposedly easy - when done with a brazing torch, not MIG - but (from researching YT on the issue) the quality of rod varies greatly, so you have to be choosy. Not all of them melt at the advertised temp (~720-750°C). Not tried it, but it looks doable. https://yt.artemislena.eu/search?q=easy ... inium+rods

[GrahamPlatt]

I particularly like this one https://yt.artemislena.eu/watch?v=TBKlV5zb2oA
For the comments.

[Mike4]

I particularly like this one https://yt.artemislena.eu/watch?v=TBKlV5zb2oA
For the comments.

"After seeing this video I finally didn't hesitate to buy a new one"

I felt the same!!

My own intermittent experiences of welding over about 40 years is it is a practical skill that can only be learned effectively by spending many hours doing it.

Don't even bother trying unless you plan to commit tens or hundreds of hours learning. Its similar to learning a musical instrument.

[gryffron]

I learnt some welding techniques as part of practical skills at a polytechnic engineering degree. But have used it only infrequently since.

With a bit of practice and tuition, you can get reasonably competent in a few hours. But there are LOTs of different types of welding, for different materials, thicknesses, shapes and sizes. You may be able to bodge a few things after a few hours practice. You certainly won’t make a decent job of it. Yes, it takes a lot of practice to do well.

Aluminium forms an oxide shell in moments. It is a real pig to weld. And although there are stick solutions now, they’re even harder and more job specific than steel.

Welding is great for the right materials under the right circumstances. But you may also find it doesn’t help you nearly as much as you think. Thin wire, thin panels, and anything badly corroded, are also really hard to weld.

A gas torch and some silver solder might do the bbq. Still needs a bit of practice, but easier than arc.

Gryff

[Mike4]

I learnt some welding techniques as part of practical skills at a polytechnic engineering degree. But have used it only infrequently since.

With a bit of practice and tuition, you can get reasonably competent in a few hours. But there are LOTs of different types of welding, for different materials, thicknesses, shapes and sizes. You may be able to bodge a few things after a few hours practice. You certainly won’t make a decent job of it. Yes, it takes a lot of practice to do well.

Aluminium forms an oxide shell in moments. It is a real pig to weld. And although there are stick solutions now, they’re even harder and more job specific than steel.

Welding is great for the right materials under the right circumstances. But you may also find it doesn’t help you nearly as much as you think. Thin wire, thin panels, and anything badly corroded, are also really hard to weld.

A gas torch and some silver solder might do the bbq. Still needs a bit of practice, but easier than arc.

Gryff

My limited experience rhymes with yours, and I would add that not only are there lots of differing techniques with often only one suitable for any particular welding job, there are also lots of different types of welding gear needed for each technique, each of which one needs to invest in and have cluttering up the garage or workshop.

Another thing that strikes me is how fast the technology is evolving. MIG welding for example was very new back when I was as college and these neat, powerful and sophisticated inverter welders that are everywhere now didn't exist at all.

[stevensfo]

Oh well, as the OP, after reading all these comments, I've come to the conclusion that all this expense and faffing around is simply not worth it for the small jobs I need it for.

Best to try liquid metal epoxy, solder etc.

Besides, knowing my track record in DIY, I'd probably end up blowing up half the village.

Thanks for the advice!


Steve