I have been reading in the forums, and I thought I was a welder. I use a 3M Hood with grind shield and breathe easy air hook up. I run depending on position a Thermal Arc, and an older Lincoln mig welder. I run day to day 1/16 metal cored wire at 280 wfs, and run hot to cut down the spatter. We grind our starts and stops and wire brush, scrape or grind any spatter that may be on the weldment. I am skilled with an arc gougher, 0.45 flux cored wire running both over head and uphill beads, and the same with 0.52 metal cored.
Day to day I generally run beads anywhere from 20 to 50 feet. I thought I had some skills, but honestly I don't understand half the terminology you guys are using. I feel humbled. I have had to repair other welder's welds alot so I know many of the defects. I won't say where I work or what I do on the forums here, but I will say the 3 years I have worked there I thought I had learned a thing or two. Now I'm thinking I should take some classes. My weld test for this job required only a three bead pass on a flat T and a 45 degree angle. The same with flux, and a 20 ft weld on your knees. They did a bend test. I have learned much more since then, aluminum, stainless. I'm good with a stick.
I don't have a clue what half of the technical terms you guys use mean. I guess I'm someone who welds more than a welder.
barcode5150
Don't feel alone man....there are some very smart/highly informed sharp guys and gals on this forum! Whats really cool here is you can ask anything...no such thing as a stupid question...and somone will come back with a complete in-depth response that will make the water clear. A lot of these folks are premium grade weld instructors and or inspectors..so its there buisiness to know things that are not everyday stuff on the shop floor. I have been doing this all my life and in the short time I have been visiting here I have learned much im sure I would never have known otherwise. Understanding the details of whats happening on a given process just makes us better welders by my rekoning... Terminology? I did not know what the heck HAZ meant a year ago (Heat Affected Zone). I have already been able to converse with our engineers on a better level simply because of this forum. Don't worry you are still a welder!! LOL and so am I....we just might be better informed welders now than otherwise. Somthing you want to know? Do a search on the term/subject or just post the question...you will get a good answer here.
Best Regards
Tommy
p.s. humbled..yea tell me about it!!
Hey
I have welded on and off since 1960. I've also done a whole lot of other things and I lurk here just for those comments.
I also teach maintenance classes and in EVERY class I learn something. The only time a question is stupid is if it isn't asked.
In my 40 plus years I have watched a lot of guys, the ones that want to learn are the ones who get ahead. My Dad used to tell me that the only security I will ever have is between my ears.
A good post. And I know you ain't the only one.
When I read your post it brought back old memories. My first welding job, (1972) for money, was on heavy plate running E7024 jet rod and I was good "just xsk me". The next job was a sheet metal shop so to speak and I found I did not know Jack. I listened and soaked up all I could. The next job was a welding instructor and again I found out how dumb I was, but I never stopped. Through training and people like this forum has to offer you will be learning the day you retire. I am! Good Luck there is no ceiling in this area except you. Again Good Luck
Gary
I've welded for several years myself and I was the same way. I have learned a lot also. There is something new every day on this forum.
You know, I feel the same way as you do, and I have taken part in this forum for several years now. I still read many things that are way over my head, but I keep reading. I found that by reading alot of this that I didn't really understood, it made me do some research and look things up for myself, finally one day the item that I didn't understand just clicked and the light came on and things started to fall into place and make sense. I said all of that to tell you to keep reading and one day something that didn't make sense...will, and you will be able to share that with somebody else who didn't quite get it...its all about growing.
There is no one person who is the know-it-all of welding, regardless of how long they have been in the biz. Newer welding technology keeps evolving and so will the welders who weld with these new advances and materials. Codes are forever changing, so that too will be a challenge to keep on top of. Enjoy the journey.
20 years in the Navy as a pipe and plate welder, and the Navy only teaches you to do things the Navy way! Then you get your first "real" job and start finding out about AWS, ASME, codes, and that there are more processes than just stick, MIG and TIG...quite an eye-opener.
Great post!
To all posted here,
This is a refreshing thread. In a lot of discussions on the forum, we hear the "I'm a welder and I know everything". Guess what, you don't.
I was a welder, going through a Naval Shipyard 4 year apprenticeship and welded everything from cast iron sewer pipe, from a 3-wheeled scooter with OAW, to Navy Nuclear, with Class A restriction in a mirror with GTAW. With that background, I can speak as a welder. Welding is the least understood trade/art known to Industry. If I am a machinist or electrician everyone can watch what I do, when plying my trade. If I am a welder, when I ply my trade everyone looks away and may even scatter due to the "bright light" and spatter. This gives welders a "I know more than you" attitude.
Post apprenticeship, I went back to school and got my BS degree in Welding Engineering. Look out now!! I was a welder and now a Welding Engineer. I gained experience in Shipbuilding, Nuclear and commercial power generation and petrochemical, pluse welding consumable development and sales. Holy cow, now did I know everything!
Starting in 2000, I entered the offshore Oil & Gas business. Prior to that, if you told me we were going to weld up 50,000 feet of 12" OD x 1" wall thickness, high yield strength pipe, roll it up on a spool (layer level wound, like GMAW wire), take it offshore and unspool it to the Gulf of Mexico seabed (in 8,000 feet of water), I would have said you were ready for the looney bin. Well, we do that on a regular basis.
Short story is after being in the welding businees for 35+ years, I found out I didn't know everything. But now again "I know it all"!
You can never learn enough. The nice thing about welding is that what I learned in my apprenticeship is still applicable today. Keep up the "close mouth (just a bit), open ears and eyes, and learn baby learn".
Hmmmmm!
Wonderful thread!
Best regards!
Stephan
You never know it all!! Your allways going to learn something in this trade no matter how long you've been doing it or how much training or schooling you have had. ;-)
The people you need to avoid are those that think they do know everything. There's always something new to learn if you keep your eyes and ears open.
Simply asking a question usually opens the doors. You may not like what you see or hear on the other side of the door, but never the less, it will cause you to rethink what you have believed to be true up to that point.
This forum has pushed me back to my books on more than one occasion and that in itself has forced me to rethink what I thought I knew.
Best regards - Al
Arrogance really does run deep in this profession. I've been humbled plenty of times over the years, and I've only been doing this 17 years which is nothing compared to many of you. The way I see it, the more arrogant someone is tells me how much they know. Very arrogant = very little understanding of the profession = very few questions. It really seems the more knowledgeable someone is measured by how many questions they are asking. The most knowledgeable people seem to ask the most questions. Kind of weird compared to other professions.
How long did it take you to get your bs degree in Welding Engineering??? My husband is a welder as well & he is looking to further his education... he has also thought about being a welding inspector...... wow all of you have some wisdom on this especially you age defining men!
I did my BS at Ohio State and had a 2-year Associates Degree in Electronics prior to going there. I took 3-1/2 years to complete, but normal is 4, without some of the prerequisite classes out of the way (English, lower level maths, humanities, etc). Depending where you live, there are good welding programs at other schools (e.g., LeTourneau in TX, Ferris State in MI, etc) but their degrees are not BS in Welding Engineering, but a BS in Welding Technology or something similar. Don't get me wrong, they are still good schools/programs. We have WE's working form my company from various schools, but the majority are from Ohio State.
We also have CWI's and Sr. Weld Techs that have been through 2 year programs at North Harris Community College here in the Houston area and TSTC in Waco, TX. There are a lot of good welding programs in Community Colleges around the Country. It just depends on what final goal you have.
Good luck.
I had somebody once tell me that If I ever stopped learning that I should just kiss my @$$ off the face of this earth. The point is if U ever stop learning about the trade u love (WHITCH I LOVE VERY MUCH) you should start digging your own grave!!!!!!!! These are some of the nicest and most knowledgable and straight forward people I have talked to. Pay attention you'll learn something. I have, Alot. My old man told me "you have 2 ears and 1 mouth so you can listen twice as much as you talk".
THANKS FELLAS
Greg Walker
I work in a fabrication shop as a QC inspector. I watch guys with a 20th of the experience I have in years and still admire what they do. The skill to just put down feet and feet of weld in various positions is unmatched in ANY other trade. They are welders, I am a welder. We just have different things going on in our lives right now. I could be in their position in the future and they could very well be in mine
I love the opportunity to let them in on some of what I have learned when they are interested. It may not help their skill but it may give a better understanding of what we ALL go through to keep this trade going.
It takes the entry level mig welder to the guys welding the space shuttles together. And SOME OF those inspectors that have never welded a lick desrve some respect too.
Have a nice day
Gerald
Barcode5150: You don't need to feel ashamed of what You do or who You do it for. There are all kinds here. While I am a toolmaker by trade I have ben doing repair welding and simple fabricating since I was 9 years old, and after 38 years I can honestly say I am mediocre. I can't hold a candle to most of these guys. The pipline and steel construction guys use terminology that I never heard before coming to this website, and I have never been exposed to welding to code. Here You have world class people who are willing to help You, they are most likely better qualified than anyone You could ask at work. This site is a great resource.
first of All Barcode 5150, "Weldcome" to the AWS Forum!!! ;)
I've got two words that I always try my best to adhere to, and they are: "Remain Teachable!!!" ;)
These two words have taken me to places I used to dream about with some, and honestly never in my wildest dreams ever thought I'd travel to!!! ;) I'm always learning something in here so once again "Weldcome" to class!!! ;) World class that is!!! ;)
Respectfully,
Henry
Well thanks to you all, makes me feel ok to ask questions here.
I guess I could tell you what I do as long as I don't say what company. All I'm worried about is giving out sensitive company information, like procedures that I don't know may be secure.
I weld the interior of covered hopper railcars. We have inspectors that do visual inspection on every weld, some welds are air tested, some water tested, and some even x-ray tests are used. I have been there long enough if I have a good mag light I can spot porosity, undercut, washout, and anything unsavory about the weld in general heh. I'm 29 and I started welding when I was 18. This isn't my first welding job, it's just the only one that has been this involved.
Thanks for making me feel welcome folks. One thing I would like to know. Why can't people spell or sometimes even say Porosity? I've seen and heard: Prosisity, Prosty, Puracity, Puracy, and Proxy. The first time I heard it and saw what it was, I equated it to Pores in your skin, or porus rock. So I knew what they meant. I've seen guys scrape spatter and make little dents in the weld and yell, PROSITY!
The funniest one I heard was when a guy said he failed his welding test because he had velosity in the weld.
Was that a Mr. Goorpersad Sookoo? (Seriously)
Vel yuo wery don hab ta wuri avout speelin heer cuz i beleeve eeverione heer haz miispeeled ad 1 thyme oor anoder ;) ;) ;)
Reespecctfuuli,
Henery
The best thing about working in the trades is there is always something new to learn or new technique to perfect. I consistently strive for 2% . Meaning that for every job I do or see I try to be at least 2% better then the last time or the last guy that came by.
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