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Welding has been used for many years to join two if not more pieces of metal together. It was commonly used in the second world war to join panels of planes together but now days it is used for just about everything like the manufacturing of bicycles ,cars and even shopping trolleys.

There are 4 different types of welders arc, mig, tig and gas but the one we are interested in is mig. Mig stands for metal inert gas with a mig welder you do not have to hold onto the electrode wire as it is held in a spool that releases some wire out of the tip of the gun when the trigger is pressed.

First off you want to make sure that all the preparation is done before you start welding this includes using sand paper or a angle grinder to grind any excess paint that may still be on the metal the metal should also be clean with no dirt or grime on it. Then you should place your two pieces of metal into your vice, this is not completely necessary because you can hold onto your work with one hand but if you want your work to be completely strait you must use a vice.

Then it is time to set the settings of the welder. If you want to weld thick steel then you will have to have your welder voltage very high and the wire speed high also but if you are welding very thin sheet metal then you should have your voltage very low and the wire speed low. You should always try the setting on a scrap piece of metal about the same thickness all you have to do is a strait line down the piece of metal. If the weld that you have just done does not look brown and spluttered then you are generally fine on those settings.

Now pick up the earth clamp and place it onto the metal that you want to weld then pick up the welding gun and place the tip of the wire 1mm away from the metals that you want to join and pull the trigger just for a few seconds and then let go and do the same about 5cm up and keep going until you reach the bottom. This is called a tack it holds the metal in place very lightly so then you can weld it without the metal coming apart or bending. You should then go to the top of the join and put it 1mm away again and pull the trigger now as you do slowly make little semi-circle motions with the gun once you are finished welding all down the join it should be very strong and look very nice. Don't worry if you don't get it strait away as welding is an art.

There is also something called a puddle weld this is where you drill some holes in sheet metal and then you weld through the holes so it attaches the two pieces of Metal together but once you grind it down it wont even look like it has been welded.

safety

Remember to always wear a welding certified helmet, to wear gloves also wear old clothing and an apron and never look directly at a welding arc.