The Art of Welding by Paul Greco

If it’s broke, someone has to fix it. Sometimes a bolt or sheet metal screw just won’t do the job. Time to call in the big guns. Anytime metal needs to come together there are many options, but none are as much fun as welding! I cannot remember my discovery of joining metal by welding. It seems to have been a part of my life forever. Probably my older brother and his friends were involved in something and I saw it there, but the exact memory eludes me. Not so the beginning of the utilization of welding on my boyhood projects. At about the age of 13, I had decided that it was time to get motorized. This resulted in a string of mini-bikes and go-karts added among the bicycles in the garage. Of course, never one to leave well enough alone, I had to build and modify these vehicles to my tastes. Through word of mouth, I was introduced to the local welder, Fritz. This leather faced German World War II survivor appeared to be older than the dirt on the floor of his shop. For two bucks, he would weld just about anything you needed. He was always on duty in his metal Quonset hut, working on all sorts of interesting projects like bulldozers and cranes but most of which a boy at my age had little understanding. All I knew was that this stuff was incredibly cool. I took advantage of the kindness he showed me (probably because I was so young) and had Fritz build all kinds of stuff for me. Our relationship lasted for years and he treated me as a friend. When I grew older and my neighborhood expanded, I was introduced to a fellow who had just about every tool known to man in his garage. Danny was an easygoing young adult who was involved in building race cars. I was grateful that he allowed me to hang around from time to time and check out all the action. Besides welding, he introduced me to machine tools. These tools could turn metal into anything you wanted it to be! He would moan and grown every time I asked him to make something for me, but he always did it. Hanging around his garage was like a dream come true for a boy with an interest in mechanical stuff. The years passed and I acquired automobiles and vans. I would perform various custom treatments to them and anytime I needed something welded, I would head on down to Fritz and he would do it for me. I learned basic bodywork skills and did my first full restoration, a ‘69 Bug. Time moved on though, and I bought a house on Long Island and moved away from my boyhood hometown. The next seven years were spent working with wood. When the time came to re-enter the automobile world, I knew that I wanted to do some serious modifications (like building a roadster out of a Beetle). It was time to learn to weld. As with any new endeavor, I bridled my fears and jumped in. Not one to dive into the deep end, I borrowed my friend’s MIG welder and started out. Let’s just say that initially I was a hack. Still am, basically, but now I am a somewhat skilled hack. Slowly but surely, my ability to connect two pieces of metal increased. What I found is that one could easily learn the basic knowledge, but the skill required can only come from practice. There are a lot of questionable welds on my early projects. Despite what seems like a formidable challenge, anyone can learn to weld. Proper safety precautions have to be observed though, but you haven’t lived until you’ve had hot metal in your sneaker, or your project catches fire from an errant spark, or worse, you’re on fire! All in all, though, the rewards far outweigh the risks (make sure your insurance is in effect). The unleashed creativity is like an awesome power. Say, I wonder how it would look if I cut this off and re-attached it over there….. Hmmmm….. Next Month: EleMental Design