would it be worth it to learn how to weld

i was thinking about learnign how to weld so i could use my d ads shop and make bumper gaurds and sliders, also maybe a flag rack

 

i was wandering if i would save money doing these projects myself

 

Depending on the costs/quality of materials, you can save some money. The better part is that you can make your parts purely customer, exactly the way you want them.

I often miss my small welder.. tons of projects I could do myself.

Don't skimp on your mask, use the best lens available.. even then, I've heard many welders say it will damage your eyes after time.

 

YES!! Learn the skill and perfect it. Great skill to have. You could save alot of money on doing your own projects.

 

Well if you really want to make sliders/bumpers anything else custom, you would need to get a steel bender as well. PRojects that only use straight metal welded at angle look like poo

 

Sure!!! Learn how to weld and start playing with stuff.
We have a mig and I never really did anything with it. I've played with it repairing things, made myself a steering strut mount, all little stupid stuff. At home, we just don't have the space, or equipment to build the BIG stuff.

But seriously - dgerm already touched on this....

To build quality bumpers & sliders - you need a lot more than just a welder and welding skills. You also need some good metal cutting & bending equipment, finishing equipment/tools, etc. It's not cheap to get all that stuff.

But - if you have access to someone else's tools/equipment - it makes the effort in building the stuff that much easier!!

But go for it!! Even playing with the dumb little stuff is fun!

 

a good fabricator can make any of that stuff
with a 4 inch grinder/(with matabo attachment plades)
A Band saw
A pipe bender
and a welding machine

course your gonna fak alot of material up in the process of learning. thank god companys paid for me to learn
but as a welder...
Id say give it a try you might like it you might not... but you will get burned...

And welders are born not made...
but thats just from a professional stand point...
anyone can be an amature

 

any skill you can learn would be great. not to brag but i have done autobody and paint for 17 years. hvac and electric for 6-7 years. general construction
(plumbing ,sheet rock,whatever to do with a house) as well. i hate to pay anybody to do anything for me. so anything you can learn and do yourself is waaaaay better than paying someone to do it. making extra money on the side doesnt hurt to mod the taco.

 

Damn! wanna com help me with a tailgate dent, or at least give me some advice

 

Contrary to almost all the posts before, I say...errr, maybe. If you think this is a skill that you may want to use for work/other projects, then maybe, otherwise it probably isn't worth gearing up just for a couple of projects. From a money standpoint, find some used equipment (if you want the cheapest).

I had the same dilemma a few yrs ago, wanted to do some projects on my Land Rover. With hindsight it would have been a LOT easier and cheaper to buy stuff ready made. And I haven't used my welding skills since.

 

All depends on if you'd like to know a really useful trade that could help you out multiple times every year.

If you have the opportunity, jump all over it. Especially if you have someone to give you pointers (your dad?). It's a killer skill to have and will save you a ton of dough on various projects.

 

Even if you lack the experience to make sliders and bumpers, you can still save some money fabbing brackets to make things fit, and other small projects like that. Maybe even buy some sliders and weld them on yourself

 

well my dad is the financial director at a construction company with a huge garrage/metal shop and i am pretty sure b/c on the f150 i was going to get before the taco they had custom built the side steps and a couple of other things that needed a steel bender

 

If your dad has a shop with all the equipment, heck ya! I had a guy at work teach me how to weld because I wanted to learn, but if I didn't have access to a welder at work I don't think I would have bothered with buying the equipment and learning. Most people can be taught to lay down a good bead, it's a bit harder to be a good fabricator.

 

I say go for it, but know what you are getting into before you start. Welding is a learned skill....it isn't something you will pick up in a few hours. Growing up on a farm I learned to weld (poorly) and I can tell you that I KNOW I'm not good enough to build anything professionally enough to put on my truck w/o several practice runs. If you think you'll use it beyond the taco, then go for it. If it's just something to save some cash on custom taco parts it would be cheaper to do drawings of what you want and pay a pro to do the work.

 

well im only 15 so im guessing i will have much more time to do other projects, and im going to do bumpers for my friends bronco before i toutch my taco

 

deff. i wouldnt try if i had to buy it all... and im not desiging the projects, thats for my sister and uncle who are engineers and architects, maybe i can let my sister tell the professor about it and they can let the whole class drow sketches haha

 

I learned at about 12....probably didn't get "decent" until I was 17 with frequent welding on farm projects. If you are interested (and you clearly are because you are asking) it's a great skill to have in your back pocket. Try it and keep at it, your first items will probably have sloppy welds which can be hidden by some grinding and prep work before paint. It sounds like this is little to no investment to you (since you have access to the tools) so go for it and post pictures when you've got something completed.

 

well im going to have to pay for the metal so im going to start small