Welding as a Profession
Tue, 31 Aug 2021 16:55:14 GMT
okay... i am learning how to weld (teaching myself for now[class next semester]. Learning MANY tips, tricks, & ideas from WW) and am curious to know how welding as a profession is. from the short time that i've had my welder (1-2 months), I absolutely LOVE it. i can't get enough welding and when i don't get in at least an hour of hands-on per day, i start to day-dream and get a major case of "slack-***". my main concern is making a living at it. i am currently going to school for mechanical engineering and i know that the sky is the limit for potential income for someone with a degree in engineering. however, weldor's salaries are a bit of a mystery. i know it's a personal question and it's not very appropriate to talk about (trust me... it's uncomfortable for me to even be asking), but how much can i expect to make as a weldor out of school? i know there are some recent grads out there that are starting to make some cash. i don't want to know exact figures about how much an individual makes, i'm just looking for a rough, general, average estimate of how much a weldor usually makes. i know a lot of it depends on skill and where exactly you are working, etc., but i am just wondering about the average income.if anyone can give me some input, it would be greatly appreciated.thanks!Later,Andy
Reply:http://www.ferris.edu/cot/accounts/w...g-Salaries.pdfAs of right now the average starting pay out of Ferris State is 57K. Thats not a bad living. --Gol'
Reply:Originally Posted by Go1lumhttp://www.ferris.edu/cot/accounts/w...g-Salaries.pdfAs of right now the average starting pay out of Ferris State is 57K. Thats not a bad living.
Reply:quote: engineers don't really have a max, but the average for a top-level one is around 200-500K, once again, based upon dicipline and location.Well, I'll give you perspective from the engineering side of things. I'm an EE, been in the industry for nearly 20 years. To get 200 to 500k you are going to have to be at a pretty seriously high level in management. I'm right around the 100k point which is much, much more typical than 200 to 500. As for welding as a career, do you think it would have the same appeal if you are doing it 8 hours per day, every day? I'm not saying this as a knock on weldors *at all*, as I admire many of the blue collar jobs more than the white ones - it is just something to consider, will you enjoy it like you do now. As a person with many hobbies, the thought sometimes pops up "Hey I could do this for a living", but then after consideration I decide that it wouldn't be a fun hobby anymore if I were doing it to put food on the table.Personally I whored myself out for the engineer salary and relatively cushyness of the job. Of course if you have any business aptitude, starting as a welder and then starting up your own operation could be far more lucrative than the mech E. route. So who knows !- John
Reply:Thanks John. i appreciate your insight. i didn't really think of it like that (career vs. hobbie aspect).i do think i would enjoy working in a fab shop more than a pipeline. from what i understand, pipeliners get more $, but its' just too repetetive for me. i used to work with pipeline guys (working for Northern Natural Gas), and they are GREAT guys, as most of the other weldors are. i am also remember the days of working in an office job (Northern Natural Gas) and how much i hated the lack of movement. my daily excersize routine was getting the paper from the printer/copier, or taking the stairs to the 4th floor. i say i'd like fab shop more because (once again, i am just going off of what i hear) you never know what project will be thrown at you next.as far as teh eningeering income, i understand that the 100k mark is far more typical than 200-500K, however it is POSSIBLE for an engineer to earn that living, if they are in the right location and have the opportunity to do so. my dad is a construction estimatior for a civil engineering firm (a small one that does HUGE business), and he says most of the people in his office are making in excess of 200K. those guyshave been there for over 20 years (like you), but they are doing civil, mechanical and architectural engineering, rather than electrical. i salute you sir, for i have neither the patience, ambition, nor the knowledge required for anything electrical (except very basic stuff). when it comes to electrical controllers and programing, i just give up.thanks again for your input. i appreciate it.later,Andy
Reply:I'm a welding Engineer, have an MS in metallurgy, try to stay with mostly hands on work, enjoy my work, definitely not managment, and after 20+ years I make $105K. If I was a real go getter, I'm sure that number could go up substantially, and I could be wrong, but I don't think welding engineers are making $200K too often.Things change you know, I started at $25K, with a BS in welding engineering.Last edited by pulser; 10-30-2007 at 05:05 PM.
Reply:Originally Posted by pulserIf I was a real go getter, I'm sure that number could go up substantially, .....
Reply:Originally Posted by runchmanAnd no, that doesn't mean become a porn star
Reply:I make pretty decent $$$$$Can't give figures..web has eyes..But I combind Machining also..Best of both worlds..If you can machine and weld..There is nothing you can't fix..(within reason)There is nothing you cant make..(within reason)Thats my reason.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Originally Posted by zapsterIf you can machine and weld..There is nothing you can't fix..(within reason)There is nothing you cant make..(within reason)
Reply:Well in welding as in anything else you won't start at the top, and you have to pay your dues. The top schools are Lincoln, The Tulsa School of Welding and the 798 Union's training program. If you can graduate from any of those then you know your stuff. Most others will get you a helpers job in a fab shop. It doesn't matter where you go you will still have to prove yourself, and there is a whole lot more to it than running a bead. I've pipelined, worked construction, run a mobile rig, worked in fab shops pretty much everything except manufacturing. I'm not too hot on repetitive work so manufacturing is out and I hated pipelining. Same thing over and over and over for weeks on end. I don't know any pipeliner who actually cleared as much as I did in construction. All I supplied was my hood and basic hand tools (crescent, square, couple of levels) and grossed 70,000+ working 50 hours a week. No truck, no machine, torch, beveling machines, etc., much less maintenance and insurance. I know 3 guys who are millionaires off of welding. All in the same town, all with their own shops, and none with college degrees. A two year apprenticeship will normally get you turned loose in the shop, a couple more years will probably get you turned loose in the field. Two years of college will get you the same helpers job in those shops. All the school proves is you were able to do it under ideal conditions. My dad was turning 60 - 70,000 a year with a one truck operation back when a welder and rig went for 25 an hour. He will also tell you he was incredibly lucky. If you enjoy building things it is a great occupation. The great thing about what I do now is that I am the engineer. I design it, build it and back it up.I started the company a year ago and am not getting rich, but all of my equipment has been bought with cash, and I don't miss any meals. The bills all get paid and everyone has a nice xmas. I don't do any job I don't want to, nor do I have to work for anyone I can't stand. In other words there is a lot more to life than money. I might add I have an associates and a bachelors in radically different areas, neither in welding or engineering.The difference between art and craft is the quality of the workmanship. I am an artist.
Reply:Originally Posted by Jolly Roger.... I don't do any job I don't want to, nor do I have to work for anyone I can't stand. In other words there is a lot more to life than money.
Reply:http://www.salary.com/ any job, any where.
Reply:Originally Posted by aczeller and he says most of the people in his office are making in excess of 200K. those guyshave been there for over 20 years (like you), but they are doing civil, mechanical and architectural engineering, rather than electrical.
Reply:Originally Posted by wannabe_welderIt's a very, very rare firm that would pay that well for any of those engineering disciplines, unless the firm is very specialized. My father is a PE (mechanical) working for a fortune 500 company and doesn't match the 200k mark, nor do any of the other engineers with similar background. Management is the only area that makes that money.
Reply:Originally Posted by aczellersince my dad's office has less than 10 guy sin it, and they are doing huge projects (he just estimated a job at over 7 Million, and they are expected to be awarded the job soon), they are raking in huge cash.
Reply:i'm sorry for having different perceptions than you on things. i jsut think it was a big project for the size of the company.anyway, can we get back onto the subject of welding? i hate switching topics in a thread.my choices:Mechanical Engineering vs. Welder (self-employed eventually)I enjoy both of them, welding seems to be more of a hands-on job, mechanical engineering has Air conditoning and comfortable chair. they both obviously have good income potential. if you guys were in my shoes, what would you look at? i'm sure that i'm not the only guy in this situation. from the guys that have been welding for a while now (5+ years), if you could go back and do something different than welding, would you? i ahve made a few choices in my life that i woudl go back and change in a heartbeat if i could, jsut like many other guys here. i jsut don't want to make a mistake by getting a welding job, and hating it. what are the worst and best parts of your job? obviously, safety is a concern, but if all the proper precausions are followed, you should stay safe. how are the hours? if you work for yourself, it's pretty much when ever you want. at the company i work at now, the welders are at work 6:30-4:30, 1/2 hour lunch, and only work tuesday thru friday. saturday and Monday are open for extra hours. is this pretty typical?thanks!Later,Andy
Reply:Originally Posted by aczelleri'm sorry for having different perceptions than you on things. i jsut think it was a big project for the size of the company.anyway, can we get back onto the subject of welding? i hate switching topics in a thread.my choices:Mechanical Engineering vs. Welder (self-employed eventually)I enjoy both of them, welding seems to be more of a hands-on job, mechanical engineering has Air conditoning and comfortable chair. they both obviously have good income potential. if you guys were in my shoes, what would you look at? i'm sure that i'm not the only guy in this situation. from the guys that have been welding for a while now (5+ years), if you could go back and do something different than welding, would you? i ahve made a few choices in my life that i woudl go back and change in a heartbeat if i could, jsut like many other guys here. i jsut don't want to make a mistake by getting a welding job, and hating it. what are the worst and best parts of your job? obviously, safety is a concern, but if all the proper precausions are followed, you should stay safe. how are the hours? if you work for yourself, it's pretty much when ever you want. at the company i work at now, the welders are at work 6:30-4:30, 1/2 hour lunch, and only work tuesday thru friday. saturday and Monday are open for extra hours. is this pretty typical?thanks!Later,Andy
Reply:Being cooped up in a office all day everyday would make me want to ....Being able to make metal cry at will is more fun.. ...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:If I were you I would get a job in a welding shop while I go to school. Then you will have the experiance to make your own decision based on real world experiance. I have welded for 15years and am going to school soon for engneering or something. It wil take a many years but I am ready and patient.Good luck with whatever you decide.
Reply:thanks guys... i think i will be looking into welding engineering. i never thought of that. i don't know if anything is available around me, but if it is, i will definately give it a shot.thanks again for all the input. i really appreciate it.later,Andy
Reply:I do it something different everyday. I make plenty of $$$, but have plenty in the bank for non paying **** birds. One week I make all the the $$$ the next I am sitting on my ***, but it evens out in the end. Work, and drive is what makes it. I could type a page but it is late. If you can get a good paying job at 75K a year plus your side jobs, you are doing ok in this country.Disclaimer; "I am just an a$$hole welder, don't take it personally ."
Reply:I've done a lot of things besides welding. Have done everything I could to try and get out of it, and always wind up back at it. I even joined the army at 26 to get away from it and trucks. It didn't work. The best job I ever had was my job in the army. It was one of those neither confirm nor deny jobs and I loved it. I will tell you that you are using things I either figured out how to make reliable or dreamed up, as you sit in front of that monitor. Uncle gives his geeks really cool and very expensive toys to play with. I didn't make a lot of money, but it was very satisfying. I participated in the end of the cold war, watched Russia fall apart and saw the reunification of Germany first hand. I lived about 3 minutes from the border. Unfortunately I got hurt and uncle doesn't want you if you can't shoot an m-16. In the private sector you go with your strengths and what you know. Welding is what I know. I went to school with several who became engineers and none of them have really made out much better than I have, and I don't have ulcers, nor my first heart attack before 40. So far my largest single job has been for about 13,000.00, but until a year ago I had never even owned a torch or welding machine and power tools amounted to a couple of drills, a scroll saw, some small bench grinders/buffers, palm sander and a tiny belt sander all used in jewelry/knife making and wood sculptures.I do enjoy making and fixing things. I really like taking a few measurements, a couple of line drawings and maybe a photo or two and then head back to the shop and have a customer that can't stop smiling because it's a perfect fit and even better than he imagined. I like designing for 100% functionality, virtually indestructible, and those "man that looks nice" comments when it is done. Welding is a great job for someone who likes doing that, and it's a lot harder to outsource overseas than my IT job was.I am currently working toward government contracts and eventually telling employees what to do, but that takes money and equipment I don't yet have.The difference between art and craft is the quality of the workmanship. I am an artist.
Reply:Originally Posted by Jolly Roger... I went to school with several who became engineers and none of them have really made out much better than I have, and I don't have ulcers, nor my first heart attack before 40.
Reply:thanks everybody. i really appreciate all the comments. it's making me see things that i never did before (bringing work home with you... i know that feeling). wen i look at what i do and what i CAN do, i see that i like doing things that i'm not very good at... that's why i want to go to school to learn how. i went to UTI in phoenix for a few months. i found out that i may not be the best auto mechanic out there, but the few things i did learn, i know very well and can do them efficiently. my main problem is that i love working with my hands, but i'm not built for manual labor... i'm too short and slow... i'm built for comfort, not speed. hehehehehe . but in all reality, i'm good when it comes to brute force/dead weight. that's why i can see myself in either construction or metalworking. and from what i understand about my local income rates, metalworking is a better living. the hardest job, yet most fun job, that i've hever had was a garbage man... i know, people ask why is that fun? think about it... up in the morning, get home early, get paid to work out, out in the sun (usually), and very little supervision (plus it helped that my driver [ 31-year old, lesbian who loved cars and women jsut about as much as me] and i got along really well). at a desk job, like drafting, i don't get the luxury of going at my own pace. everything needed to be done yesterday . there is no deadline besides "NOW!!!" . i know welding can have that some problem, but so can any other job. desk jobs also have a boss breathing down your neck every time they get a cup of coffee . i don't like that. i like to have my employer, or client, know that they can trust me to get the job done, on time, they way it needs to be done, the first time. also, the computer screen takes a beating on your eyes... especially when you look at a piece of paper, then the screen, then the paper, then the screen, and so on. at the end of the day, my head is throbbing, and my eyes are killing me. i just think that it's time for a change into something that i can really see myself doing for a long time. my dad has been doing construction estimating all his working life. he makes a godd living, and he enjoys it, but i jsut can't see myself cooped up behind a desk for the rest of my life. thanks again everybody.Later,AndyThere are two kinds of people in this world. Go getters and non go getters. My aunt is business partners with Suzanne Somers and she has always said that if it wasn't for all of the late night confrance calls, late night projects that she wouldn't be making 500K a year as the Co-owner, President and CEO of www.suzanne.com. Hard work pays off. If you just want to be a production welder in a shop thats all you'll ever be most likely. You might make it up to supervisor. If your going to be a teacher then a teacher is all you'll ever be. Lifestyle isn't bad but there is much more money out there if you want to work for it. As Far as the welding Engineering Schools I only know of 3 in the country. Ferris State University, Ohio State, and i think there is one i Texas that offers that degree. --Gol'
Reply:This has been one of the most interesting threads I've read in a while. I'm sincerely interested in where this goes because I am pretty much in the same boat right now. Keep posting!! ***Stick welding like, woah.***
Reply:there is a real us Vs them mentality comeing through in welding/engineering these days.and a whole lot of this industry is getting to top heavy with young people being told that a diploma is the be all and end all and then have the indurstury bleet on about the shortage of skilled people on the shop floor.Go1lum. "If you just want to be a production welder in a shop thats all you'll ever be most likely. You might make it up to supervisor."well someone has to do it. the money may not be the same and people may have to get there hands dirty.hard work and long hours equates to a real go getter.in my world hard work and long hours equates to less time with my familly becouse of the lack of people on the shop floor.welders in mho do not get payed as much as they should! becouse if we do not keep the product flowing out the door then who will?? just my 2 centsLast edited by paretrooper; 11-01-2007 at 04:13 PM.the day you stop learning in this tradeis the day your in your grave
Reply:Brand new member here who has a little experiance with this subject. I retired once and got so bored I went back to work and retired again fourteen months ago. First Jolly Roger is telling you the truth but I woukd like to add a few things. Welding is a physically demanding job. Depending on the type of welding you choose it can be highly interesting or more boring than watching grass grow. It can be hot, cold, always dirty, wet, dangerous, safe, hard to get to, impossible to get to, and a lot more things. Having said that, if I had it to do over I would still be a welder. By the way, if it does't have Lincoln or Victor written on it leave it in the store. Not really, but you can't go wrong with either brand.
Reply:My father was and is a welder, though he is retired and says when he finishes the two carport projects he has lined up he is calling me to come load up all the welding gear and take it back to Louisiana with me, lol. Dad started out as a contractor to Mobil Oil. A one man outfit and he will tell you he just got lucky. He never really did any work for anyone else because they kept him so busy for when they really needed him for the high pressure stuff. After about 10 years they hired him out of his own business to start their company welder program and made him construction superintendent for the district. When he was playing super he drove a company car and dressed well, the rest of the time he did the welding. He said he never could have hacked it without the welding part. He retired at 55, but at 60 he went back to running a rig out of boredom. He is now 70 and says retirement is permanent this time. I take my work home with me almost everyday, but that is a part of owning the company. I never wanted to be the owner or even be an independent, but being over 40 and 60% disabled makes me for the most part unemployable.The difference between art and craft is the quality of the workmanship. I am an artist.
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