First Welding project ideas

[HoustonR6ryda]

X2 on the welding table

[treestand]

Welding table was my first project. Took me much longer than it would today but I still use it whenever I weld something that needs clamped down.

[gatorgrizz27]

Whatever you build, it is much easier to weld thick material than thin. 1/8" or 3/16" will let you slow down and work on your technique without burning through. 20 gauge sheetmetal on the other hand with a MIG makes you so mad you want to quit, even when you've been doing it awhile!

[smokeless]

Get some scrap pieces and play. Learning how to use the machine will help you later.

[bboswell]

OR....don't build anything that needs to be square or level :-D. Took me a while to figure out how to build stuff without my angles pulling out of square as the weld cooled. No kidding, first pretty bead I ran was on a piece of 1/8" plate, just a long bead right down the center from one edge to the other. I chipped the slag off, brushed it with the wire brush and said to myself, "Dang, that's pretty, I should show Dad." Went and got the old man, and when we got back out there, the plate was curled up in a wide "v" shape. I've also seen guys building ladders out of square tubing that would weld all the rungs into one beam, then couldn't get the other beam welded on because all their welds cooled on one side of the first beam and pulled it into an arc. Solution? Like putting together a factory made item, where you get all the bolts in, then go back and tighten them up. On your welding projects, tack weld the whole thing, then go back and finish weld all the joints.

And skip around while welding it out.