kinetichotshot said:
and just for reference... oxy acetelyne "welding" is actually "brazing" not welding...
No, O/A
is welding, and you can braze with it.
Brazing occures at temperatures above 800*F, but
does not melt the base metals. The brazing rod is drawn into the joint by capillary action (very similar to soldering...)
Welding is where you actually melt the base metals together.
Both are easily done with a O/A set-up...as I have one and do both with it (I suck at Brazing BTW....never got the hang of it...but then again, I only played with it for a few days).
I highly suggest you take a course at the local college or VO-Tech school. I am going to a local Community College to get my welding cert. I have taken a semester in O/A, SMAW (stick), and a split course in GTAW/GMAW (TIG and MIG...half semester of one, half of the other). I still want to go back and take a full semester of each.
Once you get the hang of O/A welding, TIG will come easy for you...as both are nearly the same process. One uses a flame, and the other uses an electric arc.
MIG is pretty simple....the hardest part is setting your wire speed and voltage for the correct joint and thickness.
Stick is by far my favorite. Just stick it in there and go! No cylinder to buy, no gas to buy, no worrying about the wind blowing the shielding gas away, you can bend the electrode to fit in places a MIG or TIG won't reach, etc...
Here's a picture of one of my TIG joints. Keep in mind that this was made on just my 3rd time with a TIG torch in my hand: