project without welding exprience?

[dude43]

well first off im kind of new to rat rods in general, and i was just wondering if it would be crazy to start a project if i have no welding exprience at all ? i know fab is a big part but how much can be done without welding yourself ? thanks

 

[Tripper]

No prob... everyone knows those rat rods are piles of junk held together by spit, bubble gum & bailing wire anyway!

BoB

 

[1952SSR]

Sure, I started my project with only a few hours welding experiance to my name and not even having a welder. My Dad and Father-in-law were both welders but passed away before they could teach me. My wife bought me a used Lincoln Weld Pak 100 (110V) for Christmas and I fixed our shop doors first then built me a welding cart and so on. It just takes practice, and more practice. No I'm not perfect by no means and I blow my fair share of holes and fill them in, but I'm learning as I go. I have a motto I follow in doing anything in life.....I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Good Luck

 

[dude43]

Sure, I started my project with only a few hours welding experiance to my name and not even having a welder. My Dad and Father-in-law were both welders but passed away before they could teach me. My wife bought me a used Lincoln Weld Pak 100 (110V) for Christmas and I fixed our shop doors first then built me a welding cart and so on. It just takes practice, and more practice. No I'm not perfect by no means and I blow my fair share of holes and fill them in, but I'm learning as I go. I have a motto I follow in doing anything in life.....I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Good Luck

Im just worried because i have zero wleding exprience

 

[Bonehead]

Sure, you can figure it out. But My advise would be save the critical welds for a pro. Frames, steering, and suspension really need to be good welds.

 

[dude43]

Sure, you can figure it out. But My advise would be save the critical welds for a pro. Frames, steering, and suspension really need to be good welds.

right, i dont want to be driving down the interstate and have it fall apart but i was just thinking like patching body panels and some light fab and such

 

[fuzz]

My 2 cents.....you need to learn to weld before you start your rat rod project!! Check you community colleges for welding courses. If you like it and get the hang of it then buy a mig welder you can afford, Then start your project!! It's more fun if you can do it yourself and don't have to beg for help or worse yet have to pay somebody to weld it for you.

 

[Hombre]

I'm going to leave the sarcasm to others, you asked a fair question and it deserves a fair answer.

For your stated use---Sheet metal patch panels, light fab, no problem at all learning as you go. Experiance can be a fine teacher.

But do take Boneheads advice about critical welds, these you need to leave, at least for now, to the pro.

Most community colleges have some sort of class on welding, that would be a good thing as well.

And remember Practice, Practice and then Practice some more.

RS

 

[dude43]

thanks to everyone for the advice, hombre i think im gonna go with your advice although our comunity college doesnthave any classes i will be a senior in high school next year and see if i cant get into the welding class.

 

[RPM]

Yes take the welding class in school. Look at the vocational schools they quite often have evening class.

There are a lot of how to videos on You Tube you might want to check out also.

 

[Sam_Fear]

Bonehead and Hombre petty much nailed it. All I'll add is start with stuff that won't be seen like floor pans - don't go straight to chopping a top before you get used to how metal shapes and bends.

 

[dude43]

Id love to just take the welding class at school and be set, but with budget cuts this year there may not be a welding department, theyre starting to cut out drafting ,auto, and welding classes. Plus its not something i think i can just figure out on my own ill have to look for a class around here somewhere.

 

[Caddyman Randi]

Dude43, a lot of good advice has been given, I will try a little more. Anyone can learn how to MIG weld good enough for body patches, I totally agree with leaving critical welds to experienced welders. Here is a tip, get a used 110 volt welder that uses a shielding gas Ar/CO2 and start on scrap pieces. Almost all good MIG welding sounds just like eggs frying in the hottest butter in a frying pan. Picture that sizzle in your mind and adjust your amperage/voltage and your wire speed until you get that sound. Search teh web for MIG welding tips (everywhere) and practice. You will be amazed at how well you will be doing after just a few hours under the helmet.
Good luck and welcome to the hobby.

 

[dude43]

thanks for all the advice really great. A good buddy of mine has a welder now that i think of it actually has two, live neaby said no problem if i borrow one even offered to show a little. Any other skills ill need on a project? ive worked on cars before but never something as ambitious as a rat.

 

[Willowbilly3]

Im just worried because i have zero wleding exprience

Everyone has to start somewhere and it just takes practice. You might start by seeing if you can get a class or two. Check with your local Lincoln or Miller dealer, they should know of any locally offered instruction. Also you can check the library for books on the basic fundamentals.
Also remember, the better welder you buy the better welder you will be. I have one of those flux core 120V units and I wouldn't trust it for anything structural.
Not to be a hack but this might be the kind of thing the lawmakers are trying to deal with by mandating frames be welded by certified welders.

 

[hillbilly4008]

we had a guy come into the shop last week. Cool dude, ya know one of those 60 year olds that still acts like hes goin on 20. He is actually the person i bought my 46Ford off of. We get to talkin, he sees what i turned the truck into and says "i didnt think that was possible! I could never have done that myself!" I told him pretty much the exact same thing the other guys have said so far. Anyone can weld, it just takes time. dont be afraid of the sparks, get use to the burns and ruined clothes, or you'll never follow this through.

Alot of the new welders are dummy proof. I know the new Miller 110v has all the different settings labeled right on the knobs now. The 220v have a chart located under the lid where the wire spool sits. real "simple" Weld for a while and you'll know how to fine tune them.

Another thing that guy mentioned was that he bought a book on welding. I told him he wasted his money, and the only way to learn was by actually doing it. Ties into that whole "book smarts VS. street smarts" thing. Kinda like when an engineer designs something, looks good on paper, but when it comes to actually building it........does it work?

 

[rockb1]

Sure you can! I bought a Truck cab and decided I was going to build one. Now I had to have my frame built since I knew I didnt want to screw that up. I did purchase a welder and picked up some junk steel from the junkyard. Well after a day or so of screwing up I had a couple of buddies come over and give me some advise. Its really easy. Now Im not doing any major welding yet. But i have welded in all of my floor bracing and Im about to start the patch panels, and floor. Practice, practice, grind a lot and practice some more. I get better every time I start the thing up

 

[Sam_Fear]

Id love to just take the welding class at school and be set, but with budget cuts this year there may not be a welding department, theyre starting to cut out drafting ,auto, and welding classes. Plus its not something i think i can just figure out on my own ill have to look for a class around here somewhere.

If you can find a class, find someone that'll teach you the basics. Or even let you watch and ask questions while they weld on a project. A lot guys will be willing to help.

 

[donsrods]

I've been playing with cars for 50 years and my welding still sucks. It holds, but sure isn't pretty. For the first bunch of years I would tack weld stuff and take it to a pro shop to have the finish welding done. Then my Son Dan turned into a really good welder/fabricator, so now I still tack it but I have someone free to do the finish welding for me.

A person has to know his limitations, so if you don't feel comfortable with any phase of building a car, don't feel bad about having a pro do that part of it for you. I would rather fess up that I can't weld well than have a critical part fall off going down the road at 70 mph.

Don

 

[dude43]

Thanks guys so should i get a used mig welder? i have a friend who will let me borrow one of his but its in north carolina with his brother we re in florida who knows when theyll get back here.