Another welding repair job you can do to make money 💰 

Thanks for the kind words 😀. The truth is when doing critical work I am capable of doing absolutely flawless welds. However I think people have a misconception of how taxing the focus is to do that. It’s simply not achievable on a general basis and displaying it as though I could do that all the time is not realistic. Don’t get me wrong, I have a phone full of perfect welds I have done, but when you weld a lot it’s not that hard to have some perfect ones. Again that’s not a reflection of reality. Especially in the repair business, nothing is flat and with perfect access infront of you. I have seen guys that are so fragile that they only post absolutely perfect weld pics, and even go as far as to tell people less than perfect looking welds on something they took a pic of aren’t theirs. I have had people criticize my welds many times on videos as well. I just laugh about it because anyone who welds a lot knows what a realistic average weld looks like and trying to suggest perfect welds should be the average is nonsense. Like you said, unrealistic expectations can be bad because beginners have no concept of what’s really going on. It’s funny you mentioned this too, because I am Currently editing 2 videos on things I screwed up 😅. They will be good for a laugh. Also completely relevant to being realistic.

Thanks for the kind comment and thanks for your 47 years of welding service. I agree with your outlook on doing something you enjoy 😀

Repairing stuff is a great feeling, far better than sitting in a office chair. Good for you on welding school. If you continue to watch videos online and put in the practice time, you’ll be doing real good for yourself in a short amount of time. Welding in itself doesn’t pay that well, fixing stuff does. Being able to weld cast iron, stainless, and aluminum will also improve the money you can make. It’s not hard to get to a very functional level with welding, like I always say “master the easy so the hard becomes possible”. Very few hobbies can pay for themselves and then some like welding can. Speaking of which I am going to do a mobile budget welding setup soon and break down the total costs so everyone understands what’s going on. I am sure you will find value in that 😀

​@Making mistakes with Greg first time here. I'm not saying I'm professional welder with all that knowledge but I have enough people to bring me stuff or go on the road. People think you need to spend a bunch of money to start but in reality you don't. I have less than $3000 in a whole outfit where I can weld almost any thing on site. Stick, mig, pulse mig(aluminum), and tig. Just showing people you don't need a fortune.

@@neilkratzer3182 100% agree. The skill of the person matters so much more than the equipment. Certain tools can reduce the time it takes, but no tool can replace knowledge, experience, and skill when it comes to welding and fixing stuff. Sounds like you have the skills 😀

*It's cut and bent because they got stuck going downhill out of a parking lot etc. The truck was longer than the hypotenuse of the ramp they drove down.*

oooo, “Mobile Welding Kit” sounds like a great video! I’m technically “as mobile as my generator.” 😂 That “smallest, cheapest DC stick-welder in the world” situation is *super* portable! 💜👍

What’s your email address? I want to show you this grill rack I built… I feel like I did good and I owe a lot of my skills to you…👊🏼

Real life is definitely harder no doubt. I can sit and tig weld perfect welds on stainless pipe on a bench, now trying to put perfect welds on a exhaust system with 0 access is going to be tough. That’s why I always say master the easy, because it’s the only way the hard will become possible. Technically the repair in the video wasn’t hard, but if someone hasn’t mastered horizontal and flat plate welds it will be almost impossible. Glad to hear you’re knocking jobs out 👍👍. That’s the work that you learn the most 😀. And of course occasionally fail the hardest at lol.

Weldingoldschool@gmail.com

@@makingmistakeswithgreg I sent those pictures of the grill rack… Don’t laugh at my plywood table…😆 I’m working on making a welding table next…😂 That’s actually the fire box on a big smoker. I’m thinking maybe I should have put another cross brace in the middle. The reason the old one rusted out is because they welded it in there and it wasn’t removable… I’m gonna make so he can take it out and clean it…

100% agree. By time I realized they weren’t integral to the unit I already had done a bunch of work. It’s always best to make a job easy on yourself anytime you can. I am still confused as to how those were damaged like they were lol.

I do like stick welding too. Works really good for how low tech it is 😀

I will have a bunch more repair videos in the future. I am in the process of editing 10 or so videos I have and then I will be going mobile and focusing on a lot of repair type videos. 😀

@@makingmistakeswithgreg thats awesome.i feel I can learn from you. Your a teach I can understand. I'll watch them all.

I have probably 4 hours of content regarding repairs at my new job that I am sorting through right now. I have been doing a lot of heavy equipment repairs and will definitely have content on that. I just have to get through testing gloves and a few welders and I can start publishing that content 😀

@@makingmistakeswithgreg AWESOME! Thanks for the heads-up! Looking forward to it. Curious to know how someone would go about knowing what grade(?) of steel they are welding on? I'm thinking heavy equipment has to be some hard stuff, yet somewhat flexible as not to crack/break.

Have a great day too 😀

Thanks for the kind words 😀. I have a few totally realistic welding situation videos coming out soon. Fixing/building stuff is the fun part of knowing how to weld 😀

You’re welcome 😀

Thanks 😀. It definitely pays to know exactly how a welder runs. You’re right, most welders do have a particular sweet spot and when you’re outside of it things aren’t quite right.

It was 😀

I will be having a bunch out in the future. I have a few more videos to cover on the basics of MiG welding and then it will be far more “let’s build stuff” and less of “how to build stuff”. Everything from roll cages to fire pits, axles to railing repairs. 😀

@@makingmistakeswithgreg anything that shows how to use basic tools is helpful. I’m a hobbyist with some equipment, most of it basics. Thanks for the videos.

That makes total sense. There seems to be a general trend with the tow truck drivers I fix stuff for, and that’s wearing things completely out 😅. I hit the point where people come to me before there is nothing left, it’s far easier to make things better when it’s not 90% gone lol.

You’re welcome, thanks for watching 😀

I will have more hands on job videos coming out now that I have a new workshop and some jobs rolling in. I like teaching but fixing stuff is far more fun 😀

You’re welcome 😀

Thanks 😀

There is a easy reason for that: time. To completely cut off both vertical struts on both sides square, in a manner that it leaves minimal gap to reattach a new piece, would have taken a lot longer. It is also far stronger to leave that piece that was left and weld onto it. There was nothing wrong with the factory welds and it didn’t make sense to cut them off.

Interesting, I never thought of that, and it makes sense. The tow truck guys I know are well known to overload, and they buy their trucks well used to start off with 😅. Entirely possible lol

I agree, definitely a viable option. My dynasty welder has a easier time running 5/32 rods and filling a big gap, it can produce more than enough voltage. I think the 225 titanium was on the edge of what voltage it could supply at the amperage I was running. It ran flat fine but horizontal with a slight arc gap due to the gap was a bit much. 7018 1/8th ram like butter, definitely would have been less frustrating.

Never welded before but I've been watching his videos for a while, someday I hope to make an aerator. Excellent channel.

With about 40 hours of practice on some plates you could do exactly what I did. Flux core wire would have been even easier. Definitely doable for you 😀

When welding shut a pipe or square tube you will develop pressure. Normally what can happen is the last bit of weld can “blow out” as you cover it. This is very common on roll cage tubing with tig, far less common with thicker tube with stick. The actual pressure build up is minimal at best. The main danger with pressure is if you weld on something that contains flammable materials.

If I am welding far away from any electronics and can ground right next to the area I am welding on I dont disconnect the battery. Even with with battery disconnected you can still short through something like a ECM if you have a poor path between your ground clamp and your rod/wire. A great example of this would be welding on a front fender while clamped to the frame of a truck. If the ECM is in the kick panel (like 80s vehicles) you could inadvertently send power through it as part of the ground path. Disconnecting the battery won't hurt, but pulling the ECU harness off the ECU or atleast its fuse is far better.

That's a great question, and something I will cover in depth in a future video. Since I don't have the video up now, I will give you some thoughts: Pricing stuff is hard, welding is the easy part. Much like any person with skills people will pay for, you obviously know how to do a repair but you don't know how to price things/run a business. That's perfectly normal because they are two completely different things. From a business side (legit or unlicensed "back yard" side hustle) you need to understand how to charge, and how much. Lets use a simple example, a repair job hits your lap to put a bid on, and it will take you 4 hours to do it (your estimation). A fully licensed shop estimates it as a 2 hour job, and estimates 200$ cost. You might be tempted to charge the same rate as the shop (100$ a hour) but then you would be doubt what their estimate is, and you're not likely to get the job. You could also charge 50$ a hour and come out at the same price of 200$ but youre "making less money". The truth is, your cost to do the job and a shops cost are completely different. A legit shop has a lot of overhead (likely 20-40$ a hour worth of overhead) that you simply dont. They also have better tools/more experience which allows them to do more jobs in a day (aka faster). So even though their hourly rate is high, their bill is fairly low because of the speed in which they work. Back to your situation. If your costs are low (no insurance, legit business costs, low overhead) you can make more money at 30$ cash with no taxes than a legit business might at 80+. ITs not what you make its what you can keep. As a starting point I would look at 30$ a hour cash plus materials. If its a job that takes a bunch of skill, closer to 40-45 cash. If its a stupidly easy job that takes no work, 25$ a hour cash. Those are in the ballpark in northern states, they may be less in southern states. Keep in mind to get a accurate rate you need to take all your monthly expenses, and divide them into a hourly cost. Take that number and add it to what a reasonable welder pay is (15-30$ a hour depending on location). That is your "rate" that you should be shooting for. It doesn't make sense to weld for someone for less money that you can make somewhere else, if you are looking to do a lot of work. I do a ton of "side work" for straight cash, and my hourly rate is somewhere between 25 and 80 a hour, based on how much I want to do it, how much skill is involved, and who I am doing it for. That is a crazy range, but because I work for cash, I turn far more money than if I was "legit". If I was a licensed business I couldn't touch a single job for under 70$ a hour. Right now insurance cost is 2.5$ a hour (40hr week, 4 weeks a month) alone. Add it commercial mortgage for a building or expensive truck payment, (12.5$ a hour), tools (5-10$ a hour) and youre talking upwards of 25$ a hour actual cost (plus tons of additional stuff). So a realistic number would be around 35-40$ a hour is expenses. Well at 70$ a hour your making 30-35 a hour for doing all the work and running the business, which does not include health insurance, retirement, etc. You can see why many businesses charge over 100$ hour. So basically what I am saying is if you don't have huge expenses and aren't a "legit" business, you should be looking at 30-40 a hour as a target, plus materials. If you make 25 cash per hour for a easy job, your ok, but shoot for 30-40. In most states as a side hustle I wouldn't take less than 25 unless its a friend of family.

@@makingmistakeswithgreg wow, thank you for the detailed reply. That pretty much sums up what I needed to know, at least to get started. What welding skills I possess pertain to just mig at the moment as it's all I've ever really done, but I'm trying to learn stick and tig so I can tackle a wider range of jobs, but that will likely be quite a bit further down the road. I'm hoping I can do enough side work with my little mig that I can afford better equipment and progress into better higher paying jobs. I really appreciate the time and information.

No problem. You can do a ton with MiG and you can definitely make enough money to pay for better equipment. It might sound ridiculous, but focus on being able to make the straightest, most consistent welds with your setup while you practice. The better you can MiG weld the faster you will be able to pickup other welding. Make sure you practice both flux core and gas shielded MiG, wire welding is very versatile when you add flux core in the mix. Most of my side hustle money comes from doing repair work others can’t, aka cast aluminum, stainless, one of a kind headers, cast iron repairs, etc. I also do a lot of repair work on tow trucks which is 3/8th + steel and often high strength steel. Although a lot of those things you can’t easily do with a MiG machine, you can do a ton of repair jobs in field with the help of flux core wire. Flux core wire is far easier to do a trailer repair with than stick. You also have the ability to weld super thin material too. So focus on doing quality work, and focus on doing things people need done that are hard for the average person. You will get there, just build the skills, the confidence, and ability. Take pictures of quality work and use them to show what you do. Money will come your way. Also, always call people back, and call them when you say you will.

6010 would have been a solid option 100%. I just didn’t have any rods bigger than 1/8th, and due to low deposition rates I figured I would run out of 6010s before the job was up lol. The 5/32 7018 rods were perfect for the outside corners of the tubes. For the rest of it having some gaps made it way harder with 7018 over 6010.

Great question, I will definitely need to tackle this in a future video. For now here are some thoughts: Welding generally operates at low voltage (10-30 volts) and high amperage (50-200 amps). Vehicle electrical systems also operate on similar principals at slightly lower values (voltage is 12-15 and amperage is often 5-50 amps). There is genuine risk of shorting out electronics while welding near them because they aren’t designed to handle to the voltage and more importantly the amperage that welding operates at. In a tractor or a vehicle the frame/body/etc act as a wire to conduct electricity through. Electricity follows the path of least resistance, and in the case of a big hunk of steel it will follow multiple paths. If you put a welders ground clamp (regardless of polarity) on a piece of metal and there is some form of resistance between it and the welding arc, the electricity can flow in alternative paths to what you would think. A easy example would be you grounded to a engine to weld on a intake and it’s rubber isolated to the frame. The electricity may flow through a engine to frame ground cable, but without one of those it could attempt to flow through something like a ECU/computer ground wire off of a sensor which could destroy that wire and the computer. On the truck in the video everything is 1/4in steel or thicker, all of the controls are hydraulic, and other than the tail lights nothing is electrical in the back of the truck. By making sure to have the clamp on a solid ground on what I was welding, the probability of the electricity using ecu or sensor wires is virtually nothing. They are simply too far away and the heavy steel is far better of a path for current to take. If I was welding on the front or anywhere near a computer/wiring harness I would likely disconnect the computer because the risk isn’t worth it. By simply disconnecting the computer the wires can’t be used as a path for electricity to flow which will save the wire and obviously the computer. The best solution to welding on anything with a existing electrical system is to disconnect the battery (which won’t actually isolate the computer completely) pull the computer fuse, put your ground clamp as close as possible to what your welding, and make sure the clamp is attached to clean/solid surface. If you do that odds are you will be safe. It’s completely impractical to remove everything off a vehicle just to weld it, auto body repair would be impossible. You just have to be smart about it and do what you can to mitigate the risks.

Also, surprisingly enough many tractor dealers have very little knowledge of electricity and welding in general. I know this because I have done specialty jobs for a few of them as far as welding is concerned. The advice of don’t weld it on the tractor isn’t bad (it can’t possibly destroy anything on the tractor when it’s not attached) but sometimes that may be impractical. Again it goes back to being smart about it.

😁😁🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Hahaha that had me rolling… I did the same thing the other day and I was like wtf is wrong with this thing…😆 I was totally baffled for like 20 seconds…🤣

Sounds like a nightmare job lol. Jobs like that if possible I would run flux core wire. Flux core is infinitely easier to weld uphill with, and out of position compared to stick. 6013 is not a rod I particularly like to run uphill. I find that 6010 or 7018 are far easier (still no way as easy as flux core wire). Something you were welding on may have been galvanized/zinc treated, or treated with some other anti rust layer. This can make it weld terribly. Sometimes the setup or material is just wrong and will make a day out of a hour job. I tend to find a way around that any way possible but if you can’t it’s going to be tough.

@@makingmistakeswithgreg I tried fluxcore but couldn't get the tip in far enough to get a good weld . Just a very awkward set up . I need to get some 6010 . It took about a hour to find a decent spot to weld on as where the steel looked solid it was rusted in the post and would just blow out. Joys of onsite repairs..lol

@@colinhudson3723 definitely use 6010 for that. The 5p+ grey rods will have a bit more liquid puddle, the red rods will probably do a bit better for you (faster puddle freeze). Field work always sucks in comparison to bench work lol. That’s why I laugh at guys who say “I could do a better weld” as they sit at a bench with clean material and the ability to position it anyway they want. Doing a halfway decent weld out of position in the field is way harder lol.

😅 yeah it’s cold up here for sure. When I was younger I didn’t mind the cold but as of the last 5 years I am miserable once winter hits. I am planning on buying some land down in Tennessee/Kentucky soon and doing what I can to avoid the cold lol.

I'm in SC but suggest NC for temp and humidity. @@makingmistakeswithgreg

I have worn thorogood heritage moc toe boots for 14+ years, that’s pretty much all I wear. That particular boot is made in Wisconsin (3 hours from me) and last a long time. Check out their site, Google “thorogood” and they will come up. Not all are made in the USA but their heritage are. You can get them in a ton of colors including all black 😀

It takes about 4-5 attempted arc strikes before you realize what’s going on lol.

You could be right. I didn’t screw with the flatbed part, but those didn’t move with the hydraulic arm/claw. If those legs/bumpers drop as part of the flat bed it would make sense. I still don’t know why the ones that were on it were cut/bent the way they were with the bottom flapping in the breeze lol. The owner didn’t seem to know why either. I like tow truck owners though, they always pay in cash, don’t argue about the price, and everything is always thick steel that’s easy to weld lol. I swear they can break anything though lol.

The owner of the truck bought it a few months prior and it was like what was shown in the video. I never put the roll back bed down but the whole way that was cut or wore down made no sense to me lol. I work with a lot of wore out tow trucks and such but if that was due to scraping on the ground I am pretty surprised how bad it was lol.

I charged 200$ plus a taco dinner. A reasonable rate would be somewhere between 130 and 230$. That’s a wide spread but it really depends on where a person lives and their costs.

It’s a harbor freight titanium 225, it will weld with 6010 no problem. Best sub 300$ stick welder I have ever used.

So the common name for that is Texas tig. It can be done but I am not a huge fan of it. It would have worked in the situation, but the risk is poor penetration, porosity, and a weld with unknown strength. Not a big issue in the particular situation In the video, but definitely not something you want to do when welding something that needs strength lol.

@@makingmistakeswithgreg thanks for the lesson - and naming that - since I’ve seen it done a few times. I’ll be sure to be careful if I use it to only use it for non structural welds.

@@armedmariner it definitely can be a life saver when faced with real rusty material and no way to patch it properly. Common for dumpsters, and just overall poor condition material with gaps. Mig and flux core wire welding is far more forgiving on filling gaps than stick, but more people have/use stick for poor material. When you have no choice it will solve a otherwise unsolvable problem lol. Definitely practice a bit with it to get a feel. You can use a bare 7018 rod (with the flux knocked off) like the filler in tig, or you can put the rod in the gap and weld over it. I will actually do a video where I Texas tig some stuff and do a cut/etch, it will be interesting to see what’s inside lol.

@@makingmistakeswithgreg I’d vote for a video on Texas TIG where you cut and etch to show penetration. Seems very viable. But how strong?

Are you talking about welding a worn loader edge? I have done a bunch of those, generally you build them up with hardface rods. 😀

Yes it does surprisingly. I don’t think there is a better sub 400$ welder for 6010.

It’s the titanium 225 from harbor freight. 110v stick welders generally only output 70-90 amps which makes it tough to weld 1/4in steel. The titanium 225 can run on 110 but only at 70 amps output ☹️