Suggestions for a HS Graduate Going into Welding School

A friend of my wife has a son who just graduated HS.  His dad died a few years ago, and I made the suggestion he should look into welding (even offered to show him some armature Mig welding).  I just heard he is planning on attending a welding training school!  I think it will be a great path for him.  He does not seem to be the college type.

He will be graduating next month, so I would like to get him something to encourage him.  I would love some more experienced suggestions on things I should suggest to him as well as maybe a book that might be encouragement.  

I would also like to here some suggestions / tip / encouragements I might give him from those with actual experience.  I think this has been covered before, but I would love to hear suggestions.  E.g. encourage him to get as good at Tig as possible, get into stainless, get certifications etc.  I just don't know enough to make real educated suggestions.

Also, if you have any knowledge about what schools to attend, or what to look for, that is likely useful.  I don't know what school he is looking at, but he is in Los Angeles so likely something local.

THANKS!

So I will offer this to share with the young man; I have a friend who as a welder is an absolute artist. He writes his own ticket, he manged to buy a house and pay it off in ten years. For the last 15 years he's had the privilege of only working on things that interest him.

While it sounds obvious learning to be better than everyone else means you can dictate who you work for and with. My friend spent his first 10 years as a welder doing just this. 

Yes, thank you for that.  I was going to suggest to get a much practice as you can, get as good as you can, and put your time in.

One thing I was going to mention to him is that being a welder means you can work almost anywhere if you really want to.  Obviously different welding opportunities in different areas, but it seems like it's pretty generally needed, be it high end aerospace work in the big city, or a stick welder on the back of a truck in the farmlands.

Welding is a bit like golf.  The more you do, the better you are.  If you know the yardage of every club in the bag, you are better.  

Show him the YouTube ICWeld channel.

weldingtipsandtricks.com

Is he close to San Diego? If so have him get into the apprenticeship program at Subbase Point Loma or 32nd St.

He's probably a good 2 hours from there.  What is 32nd St?

What is needed to get into an apprenticeship at Point Loma?  Basic certifications?  I could see that could be a great place to get into.

I'm a mediocre welder, but I've hired and managed a bunch of them.  Here's what my thoughts are:

-Choice of school is very important. Some trade schools are full of guys whose only reason for being there is that their mom/girlfriend is going to throw them out if they don't get something going. Bad attitudes can rub off. The local JC may be great. But if it isn't, it may be worth paying or traveling for something better. Just bear in mind that some of the expensive schools aren't any better than the public school down the road. 

-He should start thinking of what part of the industry he's interested in. There's nice union jobs to be had around structural and pressure vessels, but that work can be mind-numbingly boring, not to mention hard on the body.  If he's a smart kid, I'd point him towards stainless steel work for the laboratories, custom fab, kitchens, motorsports and the like. If he's near San Diego, I'd expect a bunch of specialty fabricators catering to the defense industry.

-Speaking of which, he'll have a more interesting, diverse career if he also gains fabrication skills, which include a wide variety of related skills, including but not limited to blueprint reading, press-brake setup, lathe and milling machine operation, et cetera. The field is as wide as he wants it to be. But "Bead-runners", i.e. guys who can only weld  are a lot easier to find than genuine fabricators, so guess who has more power in the job market? 

Tig, TIg, TIG. It is way cleaner, pays better, easier on your lungs, etc. 

I've been a weldor most of my adult life (note: 10 years out of High School when I started. Now I'm arthritic, have a bad back, and my vision is deteriorating. I'm 52. Make hay while the sun's shining. Remember, welding fumes are harmful, grinder dust at least as much so. One thing I learned along my path through all walks of life: go high end. Weather it is dining, welding, whatever. Aerospace weldors get paid bank and treated well, stick weldors less so.

Also, no need to spell weldor correctly. Nobody cares.

OK, thanks, that was kind of my concept also.  The higher end, higher skill, the better.

Any suggestion as how to figure out what a good school is?  Do you need to go to a school to get into an apprenticeship (e.g. have some sort of certification)?

Maybe a good way is to figure out where the interest is, and call someone in that field and ask them.  I don't think he has enough info to know where he wants to go yet and just needs some exposure.  So maybe not commit to anything long term at this point.

For example, I suspect there are a lot of hotrod shops in LA (I keep seeing them on the TV), maybe he should stop by a few and see what they think is a good school.  Assuming they do good work of course.

Beware hot rod shops. They have only slightly better longevity than restaurants or building contractors. A lot of crooks and liars there.

aircooled said:

Maybe a good way is to figure out where the interest is, and call someone in that field and ask them.  I don't think he has enough info to know where he wants to go yet and just needs some exposure.  So maybe not commit to anything long term at this point.

 

Seems that a good start to make sure he likes it is a short course at the community college.   And a quick google search found a tech school in CA that does welding.  (I was looking to see if Lincoln Electric had a branch there)

In terms of modern welding- ships are welded, many buildings are welded, rockets are welded.   Seems that there are a ton of things he can get into.  Especially in aerospace laden California.  

And I'd totally go to aerospace over any hot rod shop.  The required skill level would be compensated correctly.  BTW, a lot of modern 3D printing and welding is automated, but as far as I know, they take highly skilled welders to run them.

He could probably get free training in the military. And it could be really high end training, ie, nuclear, submarines, aircraft aluminum, etc.

I have a buddy that is certified to weld at nuclear facilities. He freelances at all kinds of facilities around the country at $250/hr plus expenses and could work everyday if he wanted too.

I have no idea what the best schools are, but I would think if you could somehow find a shop manager at a place like Space X, preferably a guy who has a say in the hiring process, I expect they'd have a pretty strong and well-informed opinion on the best path to get there.  

I have a friend who used to work at Space X, she still knows tons of people that work there, I can find out if she knows any of the shop folks.  

He needs to apprentice in a fabrication shop that does a lot of variety. Some companies just need bodies to run beads and those kids get burned out quick. The best part of welding is design and creation. Its surprisingly left brain but if he gets the wrong job to start he will think the whole job is just welding bungs on barrels or something like that.

In reply to aircooled :

Look at Tulsa welding school. 

Suggestions for a HS Graduate Going into Welding School:    When the Instructor does a demonstration on how a Plasma Cutter works, do not stand with your hand on the steel welding table and on the Plasma Cutter. Quite a few of us in the welding class watch a fellow student twitch kind of funny while he was cutting. We all had a good laugh when he told us all what happened.

Look into becoming a certified weld inspector.  Better working conditions, and better pay.  A buddy of mine is one.  He can't weld very great, but he is good at critiquing others.  Comes home clean, with a better paycheck.

NorseDave said:

.....I have a friend who used to work at Space X, she still knows tons of people that work there, I can find out if she knows any of the shop folks.  

That would be great if you can provide any info / contacts.

This is a great topic/question!

Many moons ago I wanted to take the welding class offered in  HS. Momma told me that my college prep grades weren't high enuf.  I shoulda gone around her, but....I didn't.

Anyway, my perception is that he wants to interview several CC's and trade schools, and ask them: "What welding shops do you have work/study/internships with?" If that is effective, then interview one or two of the shops and try to figure out what you can learn while you are swapping gas bottles/sweeping the floor/etc.

Once a person learns how to clean/fixture/setup a weld joint, they will quickly segue into fabrication planning.

Good luck! And have FUN!

Rog

I would definitely steer him towards the Air Force or Navy...

https://www.airforce.com/careers/maintenance-and-repair/aircraft-metals-technology

https://www.navy.com/careers/steelworker

He can even go reserve if he isn't interested in active duty.

In reply to wheelsmithy (Joe-with-an-L) :

I've been in the s/s braided metal hose industry and I know production welding is hard on guys.  All our older guys had special chairs and bad backs.   Almost sitting at a desk x 40 hours but your hunched over all day.  

aircooled said:

NorseDave said:

.....I have a friend who used to work at Space X, she still knows tons of people that work there, I can find out if she knows any of the shop folks.  

That would be great if you can provide any info / contacts.

Working on it.

My friend posted on a sort of group chat with current / former SpaceX folks (not strictly trades/hardware folk tho) and got a few responses.  They were not dissimilar to what others have said, but I'll summarize:

- Go to trade school, find an apprenticeship within desired industry, work your *ss off.

- Unless that's what you really want to work on, avoid automotive shops since all you'll likely be doing is exhausts and maybe turbo.  Think more structural work.

- Look at underwater welding - much better pay, can work anywhere in the world, not stuck baking in shop. 

And the most helpful one  - you just gotta be able to weld.

So, not exactly blinding insight here, but hopefully helpful?  If any more responses trickle in I'll update.

aircooled said:

He's probably a good 2 hours from there.  What is 32nd St?

What is needed to get into an apprenticeship at Point Loma?  Basic certifications?  I could see that could be a great place to get into.

32nd St. is the big surface ship base at the end of the 15. Point Loma is across the river/bay on the point. usajobs.gov is the place to look and apply.

Apprenticeship teaches you all, but if he had certs and experience he could get a direct hire for better pay.