Another SoCal Guy
Hello,
I'm an amateur welder and fabricator, primarily focused on 3D design and constructing personal projects. Like just about everyone here, I love beautiful welds and outstanding fabricating. However, being realistic, I know it takes a lot of time and dedication to get to that level of performance and I have to balance my time with other life demands. So, I'm going to focus on becoming a competent welder: workman like results that are strong and clean.
I did oxy-acetylene welding in high school and had a 110V buzz box for light fab tasks after university. However, I didn't get serious about welding again until I retired ad started my first big project. It's a Lotus 7 replica based in good measure on the Haynes Roadster architecture.
It's a work in progress on both the design and construction sides. The photos below are a little dated, but give you a good idea of the project scope.
I took some welding classes at a local college before I began construction. We went through all 4 basic processes. I loved TIG, but could only afford an inexpensive flux core welder. That worked OK for infrastructure projects, but sucked for light tubing of 16- and 14-gauge variety that I used for the chassis. So, I bought an inexpensive, 110V ThermalArc TIG unit. It worked fine, except I was not good enough to do the large amount of out-of-position welding required in the first phases of construction. I saved and bought a decent, 110V Miller MIG unit. That got me to where I am today.
Many of the parts I will be fabricating now are small enough to do on the bench, and some will be in aluminum now. So, I stepped way up and bought an Everlast 250EX. I'm going to take this opportunity to develop my welding and fabricating skills. We spent time on a bodacious Millermatic at the college, so I know what most of the controls on the 250EX do. But, now it's time to get in there and do it for real.
I expect there are a number of "turd welds" in my near future, but I'm smart enough to practice on scrap before I do real parts. So, there it is. My welding "life" spelt out in 6 small paragraphs.
Cheers,
Lonnie
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