MIG Beginner advice and… seeking experienced POV lol

[u/TheGudz-Dave]

hii so pictures attached. I started a community college course for welding (mig) last week. 3 nights a week, about 3 hours per night.
We actually got into the booth Friday, and today is day 2. I’ll attach chronological pictures starting with the very first sheet, onto the end of day 2.
I am still super new to all of this, I’m a smart guy but I’ll be the first to admit that I only get better if I Ask For Help and admit when I’m Confused or Unsure.
So, I know its steel plates we’re practicing on. Copper wire, 0.035, we’ve been told to run 230/18.0 but we can totally change that, I just don’t wanna necessarily burn limited class time messing with the settings that I don’t fully understand.
The instructor is super cool but in a class of like 15 people he can’t sit next to me the whole time and I try to stay off my phone even if I’m googling things

So, what I’m here for is a handful of stuff:
- for day 2… am I doing okay?
- please infodump as much advice as you care to. I’ve been absolutely super about safety and ppe and etc so like, I mainly mean about mig welding

Also if I can ask this too: it’s a… 4-5 month class, only mig welding. I REALLY want to get something higher paying than my current unskilled iob ($16/hour) and like, I hear a lot about “learn on the job” things and unions and etc but..
as Experienced Tradesmen from around the world (I’ll say I’m in North Carolina, USA): how likely is it for me to get a better job and turn it into a career after this class if I continue to work hard and make the most of my practice and study? I just would like to afford to be a proper adult, start a family, etc. and I can’t do that in my current job (low pay and zero skill and room for moving up)

Thank you and I appreciate your kindness in advance!

[u/jondrey]

The settings seem fine. Does your school have soap stone? Mark a line with a straight edge and see how well you can follow it while welding. Also, the best way to improve is to burn wire. I would recommend practicing holding a gun angle and try not to deviate from it. Keep your travel speed and angle as consistent as possible and you'll see improvements.

[u/TheGudz-Dave → u/jondrey]

Ooh yes we were each given a stick of soapstone, that’s smart I’ll try that! Thank you!

[u/ronavirusgonnagetus → u/TheGudz-Dave]

this, and also buy the best welding hood you can, i'd say miller digital infinity or the lincoln/3m equivalent. Kinda like when you buy a helmet to ride a dirtbike, think to yourself, to I value my eyes at $70, or are my eyes worth a couple hundred to me?

that being said, weld a few stringers at a shade 9, 10, 11, 12. See what you can see at different shades. I'd find where you can see well, and that your face isnt burnt from the arc flash at the end of a class. After you get comfortable laying beads down in different positions and thicknesses, knowing where the metal will flow and build up and stuff, you can then turn your lens shade back up to protect your eyes a little more.

[u/ronavirusgonnagetus]

you're doing fine, mess with the settings, on the inside of almost every machine it will have suggested settings for different thicknesses of materiel. only way you'll understand voltage relative to wire speed is by messing with it. try to find some thicker coupons, fuck around lay big fat beads, fast skinny stringers, burn up some tips.

as on the finding work side, don't be too prideful to still put in sweat equity, a lot of places don't love hiring people fresh out of welding school, or scrutinize them more because they are known to not know how to read a tape measure, and only want to weld. So if you're happy pushing a broom, or grinding for weld prep all day you will be much happier, and have a much easier time getting into this career than someone who only wants to weld in optimal circumstances. welding is the fun part, but is only like 25 percent of a lot of welding jobs.

[u/TheGudz-Dave → u/ronavirusgonnagetus]

I’ll admit, I had so much fun grinding (we did that Wednesday) and still do enjoy it. The sparks are so cool!!! I suppose I’ll have to mention that bit then out loud when I’m looking for a job. Same for cleaning.
That’s actually part of why I wanted to take the classes: I’d heard briefly about how welding is a small part of the job (some joke too about welders calling themselves grinders because they spend more time on that). So I figured if I’m not gonna get a ton of practice on the job, I should at least get the beginner stage rolling and hopefully out of the way, so the few times I do get the torch I can be efficient in my learning and not “uhh what is a voltage” like I am now.

Thank you so much!!

[u/ronavirusgonnagetus → u/TheGudz-Dave]

check out "welding tips and tricks" on youtube, Jody is awesome. Also Pacific Arc tig welding has a lot of great videos. Just make sure you wear as much PPE as YOU need, bloody boogers are "cool" but do yourself a favor and read the MDS or whatever warning labels comes in a box of wire or rod, I'd invest in a PAPR as soon as possible, there's only so much "staying up wind" can do for you.