Huge respect for sharing your knowledge and experience instead of focussing on yourself profiting from it. Sharing ideas which have actual potential is a really good character trait.
I recommend a cheap £300 bandsaw if you have a lot of this kind of work. You can clamp 5 bits of angle together and cut them all at once. While it’s cutting you’re free to get on with other things. It’s a great time saver to have precut steel and with a saw you can get a weeks worth of metal cut in a day for relatively little work and still get on with other tasks.
I bought a cut50 plasma cutter and it sat in its box for several months before I tried it out. Never worked right out of the box. Beyond time I could return it. If you buy one, set it up immediately.
Had a job back in the 90's making stainless industrial heaters. Plasma cut all the holes for the heat exchanger on a trammel. That's another advantage of plasma, it cuts ferrous and non-ferrous. Also no reg's to follow to store flammable gases
Your a top guy , enjoy watching your vids, unfortunately I've got autism so always been extremely accident prone, so stick to timber when making things, obviously if I started welding or using gas id probably blow the street up, plus I think the wife would be to worried everytime I went into my workshop,
Flux core welder has no gas. I have autism as well. I am not good with wood at all, can't seem to cut an accurate or straight line. So welding and metal work is way easier for me. It doesn't have to be cut perfect or precise. Fill the gaps with a weld bead!
best part was the "valuing your family more" quote! i often work to much and regret not doing things with the family on weekends. im trying to change 💪
For me Its been a case of fighting to survive and provide with all the hours I can get. My family has always been understanding but also would voice that they actually want to spend time with me. I'm actually now able to because I work at home and get to spend lunches and evenings with them. For the first time in a long time we can enjoy a holiday without me worrying about spending time away from work and affording paying bills which hasn't been the case for a long time. All the very best and blessings to and your family. Cheers J
I've seen some really good construction/off grid youtubers, but, they have a sort of pride that prevents them from mentioning good equipment and cost, i really wish they were like you and talked products and costs, makes so much sense and as you say alot of gear is affordable online but getting insight into what is the most logical, well we need help and your videos are incredibly helpful
That little tip about the plasma welder at the end - only going through one layer .. absolute gold, right there! Although I can tell you for free that if the layer immediately underneath the metal is sound deadening foam in a late 90s Jag, it might not go through, but it will certainly catch fire.. good job it wasn't right next to the fuel tank or anything (and we were just hacking the last 3' off the car so it would fit in the garage!).
Good to hear about the longevity of the Rohr welder, I got one to weld up my van with the assumption that it would be dead within a year, so bonus! Thanks for the update!
Mate, inspiring stuff. Been thinking about a plasma cutter, now know more about practical use. Will be binge watching your ch. All the practical info is priceless.
Hey Joshua! The fabrication process fascinates me but learning how to work faster and make a living is something most don’t get into. This was an eye opener for sure! Thanks for the insight.
I have a big workshop with gas welder, blast cabinet, wood work tools etc, just finding things to make to sell. Would love a plasma cutter and laser blaster, the laser blaster being very expensive.
Working smart always makes sense. Finding ourselves in a similar position pre CNC, I had a jig for every product and the right tools make a huge difference, I couldn't justify that punch I needed a deeper throat, however, with the punches I do now have, I use them far more than the drill press when the need for a quick hole arises.
You're one Awesome guy we don't find many men like yourself who truely share expertise openly i'm glad that i came a cross you now i've subscribed looking forward to following you Joshua.
Brill Joshua' Take me months to save up for the hole punch, I have everything else, however I never got the pilot arc plasma cutter. but great info all the same. I was a blacksmith when I was younger And worked with Old Bob Wilson my mentor, I have most of my gear together just stuck now for a decent anvil. Some on ebay are just not usable. Thanks for all your great info.
Props to you JDL. Can I call you that? 🙂 I can't make anything like that or could never make anything like that, but I fully respect your efforts because you know your trade and have the nouse to translate that to a decent income that approximates your skill. I'm jealous, a bit, but not a lot as I see that you earned it!
Your very kind. You can call me JDL if you like. I think by me de-mystifying the skills I can give courage to someone to have a go and fail, fail a few more times and then get it. My experience is that all those who are succeeding have failed more times than their wins and that's the only way to progress in a skilled craft. Some one who failed has learned something and still achieved more than someone who does not try. Your situation is probably different and so what I said is relative but I'll always discourage someone from saying they can't. 😉 Cheers J
@@750triton I was using them in a commercial environment. The old hands, there, used to use them for forming small springs. They'd make one with the help of as many presses as they needed to setup each operation, produce the spring, then drop it onto a projector to throw the image onto a screen (remember those at school? Them!) Any minor deviations in the spring pattern was then easily picked up. I was regularly getting 0.2mm tolerance on sheet metal fabrications, without even really trying. Amazing!
Great video as always and yes we all need to look after each other at the moment I'm finding my feet still even now and I'm almost at the 1 year milestone
Yes. I used anti spatter on my torch. The duty cycle is apparently 60% which means 6 minutes if continuous use. However I've never triggered over heating and I've used it for longer than 6minutes for some projects. All the very best. Cheers J
Joshua awesome job. We all start somewhere my friend. Very nice video this week explaining and review video. Can't wait to see more videos soon Joshua. Keep up the great craftsmanship and hard work my friend. Hopefully you get great use out of them tools for many years to come my friend. Forge On. Fab On. Weld On. Keep Making. God bless.
Another great video, thanks for sharing. I'm interested in your electrical distribution board setup in the background there. Could you tell us a bit more about that please? Thanks.
Thank you. I paid an electrician to set that up so it has the right tickets. It's plugged into a 32amp outlet linked to a separate breaker in the house. I can unplug it and take it onsite to do large architectural projects if I wanted and also take it with me if ever we move location. I believe it's a good idea to keep things portable/dismantle and not permanent just incase you need to set up somewhere else all of a sudden. Cheers J
I bought myself a scratch start plasma a while ago, still regretting that decision 🤦♂️ Lots of good tips there, much appreciated. I have just forked out for some steel tressles after seeing yours, not having a decent surface to work on whilst welding up a pair of driveway gates from 50 x 30 rectangle section was an absolute pita. Keep up the good work, vids are superb 👍
Thank you so much. I like these adjustable trestles so I can get a level on things. Mine are a bit thin but cheap enough and just strong enough for work like this. Cheers J
Just some information that you can decide if you want to convert your scratch start to pilot arc. Look at Pete's Tools on RU-vid and he has several videos on the conversion process. P80 is a good torch for conversion. Just make sure you use the proper tips for the size of your machine if you decide to use the P80 torch. 30 amp = 0.80mm tip, 40 -50 amp 1.1mm tip, etc. Good Luck.
@@joshuadelisle you are welcomed. I suggest you check out Pete's video on how to use a plasma torch to heat and bend metal without cutting. He modifies worn out consumables so no cutting occurs.
Loving this video. When I started in the building game in the 80’s, it was all smoke and mirrors as opposed to encouragement and help. Pricing jobs is, I believe, one of the most difficult skills to master. You are a true inspiration
I wanted one of those, they look great. Im not sponsored on these though. All bought with my own money and they've given a good return on my investment. Cheers J
Hi Joshua, I am still having trouble getting my laser cutting guys to be able to convert the Patterns I bought, also my wife saw the ally pool cover and now I have to make something similar, I would be really keen to buy the DXf's of the scrolls. That's an amazing cover. Cheers, Pete. NZ
Hi Peter. Remind me which patterns you wanted cut? And have you tried another company or is it a local small business who may need a bit of guidance? Feel free to contact me on Etsy that way I can trace your account and our messages are private. All the very best. Cheers J
For big jobs like that you mentioned you should really charge an up front consultation fee to at least come out with something if things get abandoned.
Your right. But for risk losing the job to competition with free quotes is what I was up against. I can't quote without a design to win over the client. I went by the advice of the design contractor which was a mistake as their advice was way off what the client wanted. Cheers J
Just ran across your site. I am impressed with your knowledge and abilities!. I am a fabricator part time and an equipment mechanic full time. I am looking at your videos on the laser tables now. Got a cnc plasma cutting table, but wondering it the lightburn program could work on my table? Anyways, great job on these videos you share, Awesome!
Hi pat, thank you so much, yes it can, I used lightburn on my plasma table the other day as it's GRBL controlled. Lightburn has z height control, lead in and pierce settings. Also you can turn images into DXFs super easy. Cheers J
Thank you so much. My tip would be to invest in making something that shows of your skill and build a portfolio that you can show to someone. Then I've found the best way to get clients are social events just talking to people and showing them my work in casual conversation. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle That's excellent, I'm now taking my first batch of flower garden stakes to the galvanizers. Half way through your tip already. Planning on doing some local craft fairs next month. Been working for an artist in Suffolk for the last 6 years, so I've got plenty of pictures for a portfolio. Thanks Josh. Looking forward to more videos from you.
@@joshuadelisle Lotos make very good welding equipment at very fair to low cost..which scares away people but check them out if you can find them they should be on AMAZON and Ebay over there..outstanding equipment..for chinesium prices..vevor actually has their analong tig welder they rebranded its a ac/dc 200amp machine..
@@agentcovert that sounds great. I think the simpler the build of the machine the better as there is less to go wrong. Picking up second hand old good brands I think is the best way to get a good deal. The expensive modern versions with auto settings I think don't have the longevity in the technology. My little cheap Chinese TIG is still going strong despite abuse I give it. Testament to simplicity of design I believe. Cheers J
Want to REALLY help the millwright/ fabricating community? Please share some details about the job that almost bankrupted you and why it almost did. THAT could be very beneficial to help the rest of us to avoid similar mistakes! We really need to hear about that one, please..... Thank you for sharing! Very interesting and informative stuff! Thanks! :)
Some jobs unfortunately are a gamble and can't really change that. You need to quote but you can't quote competitively without a design first. So I had to spend a long time designing and consulting before we had a good idea of the price. Unfortunately the client rejected the design but wanted much more quoted. At that point I ask to be paid for the work I've already done. If they pay that great and I'll continue to design and quote further but if not it ends there. For short term jobs worth 6 figures is worth the risk if you know you can pull it off and know how to survive If it goes south. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle Thank you! Your journey sounds like that of many small entrepreneurs. No guarantees and a lot of work. Being self employed can be rewarding and it can be tortuous as well. Cheers! :)
My best tip is to work for a small fabrication business for a while as a contractor if you can. Learn what they do and how they operate and build your business on the side in your free time. I worked for several companies whilst I built my business and gained my own client list. there is no time for TV or holidays if you want to do this. Spend your earnings on investments for your business and not eating out or on alcohol and you'll do well. The first 3 years will be you building it without reward. If you survived and have a good reputation for your service, quality and timely delivery then you'll do well. Cheers J
I have the exact same plasma and it is a P.O.S. Won't make clean cuts and won't cut anything over 1/4''. I think it has more to do with the torch rather with the machine.
Well done. I also buy a lot of Chinese stuff. I’m often kidded Those don’t last. They’ve partially correct. But I’m not a full time metal worker. And I often can buy several before I would be a deficit. Except job.
Thank you Larry. I love my £200 TIG I've used it tons over the years and it gets abused. Its Probably earned me £20k worth of work over its lifetime so it owes me nothing and I would replace it with the same model in a heartbeat. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle I don't suppose that it's an AC/DC one is it? I'd love to buy a TIG machine, the versions that can do aluminium too is what I would want.
@@joshuadelisle Thanks,.. would like to know more, will have to search your channel for that video now. I have a MIG and Arc welder, small lathe and milling machine, love making and repairing metal objects, I lost my job this year, have you any ideas on what would be good to make/sell here in the UK? I paid my mortgage off 7 years ago so I don't need to earn £600 a day, I'd be more than happy to earn that in a month. Time spent with my wife is more important, I've had 3 day a week jobs ever since we paid the bank off.
@@steveclark.. the jobs I get are very random and come from word of mouth mainly from people who have used my services previously. I would say the jobs come as all or nothing meaning I can get tied down to working 7 days a week with 12hour days for a few weeks and then having nothing for a few weeks. Rarely convenient hours. So between jobs I do my RU-vid videos and CAD design metal working patterns for sculpture. Cheers J
Hey Josh thanks for the great content love the set up, but I was wondering if you would be able to release the files for your p80 torch head the one with three ball bearings kinda like a guide? I need me one of those
After 50 years as a fabricator I always found the trade to be a constant race to the bottom and would respectfully advise anyone to look at another trade in which to earn a living. I would become a nurse if I was young again, they make 30 % more than trade welders for little work and nowadays they don't even have to care. Good luck with your channel.
It's relative to what your market is. But Competing in price is definitely not the way. The companies I've worked for are earning very well because they also have great designers and often win high paying clients based on the quality of the design. A good designer will also understand efficient making processes to make the fabrication as simple as possible. A man could be the best craftsman in his trade but if he doesn't understand the market value of his products then he could be missing a trick. Cheers J
A bloke I know specifically did that, chose to be a nurse. True, the money is good, but he's doing rotating shifts and has grown realy realy really to be over cleaning up other peoples excrement and the political BS. Everything becomea a slog.....
It so ironic as I have been a Nurse for 25years if you count my training. I get good money 50k. I do crappy shifts, deal with some grim things at times, and then some very entitled people. The politics gets boring, and people can be right back stabbers, but good call for me. Ironically, I love all this stuff, making and creating. I’d like to buy a welder as I want to make a log arch and some forestry type equipment, carts and things any recommendations please?
@@lenawilkinson9667 I recommend learning stick welding first. it produces strong welds if done right, you'll know it if it's done wrong unlike Mig or Tig which can look good on the outside but may have no structural integrity. Stick is also good on site as the inverters are very small and light and don't require bottles of gas to transport around. They're also cheap to buy and so are the electrodes. Use 7018 type as they're pretty good for most steels. You can also get good use with a regular house plug with these also. Perfect for beginners but it's hard to do it right, takes practice but if you can stick weld successfully you'll find other types of welding easy to master afterwards. Cheers J
Well I've got a compressor for lots of other tools so I think it's fine to separate it from the list. I got a 3hp 15cfm 150ltr for £100 second hand. Cheers J
You can weld over rust as long as you have enough amps. As long as there isn't too much oil or grease the welds won't get porosity. It's best practice to grind back to bare metal but it's not always cost effective to do so. TIG definitely requires clean metal. Stick welding doesn't care as much. Mig is fine with enough power. But it depends on the application. If we did a weld test on this 3mm steel you wouldn't find any difference between clean and rusty metal but you would on stainless or heavier steel. Cheers J
Hi Joshua! In one of your videos you mentioned a future plan to build a hydraulic forging press. Right now i'm in the material collecting part(scrap yard) and planning., but zero experience with plasma cutting. My main question is that little plasma will be able to cut through a 20mm plate...I'll bet you tested it's limits, or what is your recommendations for a budget bilder. Thanks.
You could be right. There was a lot of them and took a few weeks. Prices will definitely be high today with the way the world is. They were also powder coated and shipped which is an added cost on top. Client also bought the material so they can claim VAT which I wasn't registered for. Cheers J
Worked for a multi -multi millionaire for 15 months and she was really REALLY pissed that she had to pay me double on Christmas and Boxing day . £260 for each day instead of my usual £130 , I had to sort my own tax , no holiday or sick pay . I looked after her and she fought for 2 years to get £60,000 for her care from a fund set up for the needy. She got it... GREEDY . She lives in a £5M mansion !. She found out I could repair TV's and got her friends £10,000 TV and TOLD me I was going to repair it . She thought I could just take the back of and twiddle a screwdriver in the back and say 'abracadabra' and it would be fixed , She was fuming when I laughed at the mere suggestion and told her it was impossible without all my tools and diagnostic and soldering equipment . She MADE me bring it home and when I had spent 14 hours on it getting it repaired her friend told me she wasn't happy paying the £395 for the repair , I had paid £80 in parts ! . Not only that , but she EXPECTED me to drive the 275 miles back to her house (at my expense) to drop the damned thing off ! 550 mile round trip and approx 12 hours on the road ...Just not happening ! I told her to COME and collect her friends TV AFTER she had paid for the repair . These people DO NOT appreciate hard work or skill . DO NOT work for such people as they WILL expect everything done in a heartbeat and you will end up paying them indirectly in time and lost earnings .
In my experience the "well off" but not rich customers are the best. Those that can afford to splurge a couple of grand here and there on something they like, but wouldn't even dare to dream about a 5M mansion. Meanwhile the actully rich folks are a total hit or miss, some are fine... others are the absolute worst.
good honest video ,,, but you never actually mentioned materials cost in any of it ,, so was the end price to the client of 150 inc materials , or plus materials ,,,
Hi. Thank you. No the client bought the materials, paid for powder coating and the delivery so they could claim the VAT which I'm not currently registered for. So the £150 is my wage minus workshop expenses only. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle If your getting that rate your certainly onto a winner ,,,, local polish guys would be knocking those out for thirty quid a pop , and no ones making money . But they are on the dole too so the government tops up the low pay , but that leaves no market for anyone else either .
@@tomthompson7400 very true. I think they come to me because they know it's going to be done right and on time especially if it's going to London. Having a good reputation is key. Cheers J
I always dress the cut back little removing the oxidation on the edge. I would do the same with band saw cut material to clean off cutting fluid residue. Cropping with a guillotine is probably the cleanest and fastest. Cheers J
I struggle to be efficient with plasma cutters. Too much slag, and if you fail to cut for whatever reason, it fucks up the steel completely. Equally fast would be a carbide mitre chop saw. There would be no dross to clean eiter, maybe a little burr depending on how fresh the blade is. You might use a whole blade in a day though, and they're rising in price like a bitch I've just noticed. Cheap bandsaws I would not recommend, they are slow and finicky, and a nuisance to get cutting straight. Proper bandsaw though, any day.
Hi Joshua, I took your advice and bought the electric hole punch, I have however broken the 6.5mm punch can you advise where I can get one. I did approach Vevor they can't seem to help.
Hi. Well done. I've actually broken my 6mm too. I thought I put a link in the description for the punches. If not simply put the model number into eBay or Amazon and they should come up. Cheers J
No a bid is a quotation but normally a client will get several quotes and so I call it my bid. As far as getting work goes the best methods I have found would be simply talking to people at social events which consist of people who are wealthy like car shows and horse shows etc. Also dropping in and handing cards to architect firms and building contractors is a good one. Finding houses that are just sold and need of restoring are a good to drop off cards at. Country shows are good to have a stand at because that's where a lot of wealthy people go with intent to spend on things for their home. You portfolio should have a range to inspire ideas in your customers to other things.
I guess you must have got all the materials for free, if you were able to make 4 a day and making £600? Cheap Chinese tools are ok for a one-off job (if they don't break while doing it!), but not a great idea for serious professional use. Have an old German gear head cold saw (£100), and a used Kemppi transformer MIG (£600), which are likely to keep running for a very long time, and if sold are going to return the £700 they cost me.
@@joshuadelisle Thats v good money then! Guess the Kemmpi would have been £2k new? Couldnt afford that, but made the £600 I paid for it back very quickly. Only problem is £600 a day jobs, dont come up often though. If you keep a look out good used gear often comes up. Few years ago I was looking for a TIG water cooler, and saw a Tweco TC900 on eBay. Bid £120 on it, never thinking I would get it (£900 new). Won it for £100! When I went to collect it, found that am Hitachi GP3 300A TIG machine came with it. Got the cooler working, put a plug on the Hitachi, the fans came on, all lighted up, but wouldnt strike an arc. Found there is still support for them from a shop in Bristol, and £450 of repairs later I had a working 300A inverter TIG. Very old school, but welded great, and after using it for 3 years, sold it for what I had paid in total, and got an OTC with maybe 100 hours from new for £1000.
@@humourless682 nice one. Old tools from good brands are always the best as most of the time you can fix them yourself. I have an old oil filled Oxford in storage it's old reliable for when when these inverters break. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle The main board, on a modern day Kemppi MLS2300 TIG, is £3k and cannot be repaired! So you are deffo right there. Do you do any TIG or just MIG and MMA?
@@humourless682 I use Tig both AC for aluminium and DC for stainless steel mainly. I use MAG for general production work and 7018 stick for most field repairs and structural parts. My DC Tig is 200amps cost me £200 new and lasted over 6 years now with good use and abuse. I have a CK superflex and lense kit for it. Check out my other videos. Cheers J
HI. to use my patterns you just need to print onto paper using adobe pdf view ideally. or the files come with DXFs for use on a cnc cutter and they need CAM software to use it. All purchase links will be in the description of my sculpture videos. cheers J
There's is ONLY a certain amount of ""efficiency "" and cutting back that one can do..Back to bare bones is one saying...You eventually reach a point where you can't streamline anymore or cut back...No matter what...Then that becomes a huge problem....Efficiency is ""carrot"" dangling in front of people to coercion them into thinking its good... Ask the postal workers at the moment if becoming more ""efficient "" is a good idea....Its a myth a ideology that's banded about by ""nonsense "" ppl..
It's relative but yes you can go too far. It's really a skill of quantifying the need of each process, asset and value of what you're hoping to achieve. I've worked for plenty of corporate businesses to see the wrong cuts being made and not enough investments purchased in the right areas. I would say the quest for efficiency is a good thing but it requires wisdom and to be in touch with the workforce to implement it well and not back fire. Cheers J
If you ask tesla or space X the same question you'll get a much different answer. That's everything to do with the quality of leadership implementing the efficiencies. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle I believe your taking 2 extreme companies here in this case...Owned by the richest guy in the world...In the ""real world"" nobody like I first posted is able to do this...Unless you include All the other billionaires..
@@markb1487 but they are the riches companies because they implemented good efficiency practices and many companies do not do this in a way that works which is why they fail or have strike action made against them. Just because a company made poor decisions doesn't mean the quest for efficiency is also a poor choice, its the ultimate goal. Otherwise your spending unnecessarily and performing below the potential which can also cause a company to fail. Cheers J
@@joshuadelisle I don't agree with this...The percentage of wealth accumulated by the rich is a tiny portion in respect to the entire population..1.2% infact...So the rest of 98.8% of the population are just ""coasting along"" without the need for ""?efficiency "".. There are over 2.8 billion people with less than 10,000 dollars..1.8 billion people with 10000-100000 dollars.. I can go on and on..So being rich means nothing when accounting for ""efficiency "" because they are far far in the minority...
Lube when you punch holes - the punch tool will last longer and not stick. £600 a day - piffle, should be making a bag of sand because you will have off days and nothing to do - except make video's.....
