I want to be a Welder . Help!

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Hope everyone is doing well. I am currently a Plumber and I have been for the past 6 years, but honestly I hate it and I want to change careers. Ever since I was on a job site and worked with a welder for two months . I would run the pipe and he would weld. So, it's about time I make a change for the better. Now there are a couple vo-tech schools near by and they offer a couple courses . I am having trouble deciding on what direction I wanna go and don't have a clue where to start. I am looking to make decent money and enjoy myself. Now I don't know if there are different kind of welders like there are Plumbers . I am a new construction plumber, but there are obviously other types of Plumbers, such a service Plumbers and maintence plumbers. So are there different kind of welders and if so what pays good? Below I am going to list the courses on what I can take and if someone can tell me what courses are a must. Now that I have a lot of experience with pipes will I be able to get a job as a pipe welder?  Also when I complete theses courses what certifications am I gonna need? After the courses are done should I just call local welding companies and ask if they need help?  All help would be greatly appreciated P.s. Don't wanna be a pain, but I just wanna do this the right way and there's no better way than talking to people that actually know what there talking about. I will be back to ask more questions as they come Happy Holidays Course 1 Shielded Metal Arc 1Course 2 Shielded Metal Arc Welding 2 Course 3 Gas Metal Arc Welding 1 (M.I.G.)Course 4 Gas Tungsten Arc Welding 1 (T.I.G.)Course 5 Welding Certification Workshop They offer the opportunity to take certification tests such as S.M.A.W. --G.M.A.W-- G.T.A.W--- and F.C.A.WThanks again for your time !
Reply:if you have a local community college go talk to the instructor, he can give you lots of good info and advise, you can check out what they have to offer
Reply:The nearest community college offers a welding program, but not at that campus . I would have to go to to the main campus and that's an hour and 10minutes away from me  . So, I only have the vo tech options . I could call the vo tech instructors though . Any other info would be great Thanks
Reply:Do you think instructors will be straight up with me? They may tell me I need something but in all reality I won't . As long as there teaching they have a job, right?
Reply:Unless you go into a very specialized field, the more you know about all types of welding, the better.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Originally Posted by BryGuyDo you think instructors will be straight up with me? They may tell me I need something but in all reality I won't . As long as there teaching they have a job, right?
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWDepends greatly on the instructor and program. Where I went originally you had to take stick before any other process. That's just the way they ran that program. They covered all the safety and OA cutting in the stick program, so it was the basis for all the other classes. You can pretty much figure you will probably need to know stick at a bare minimum if you want to do pipe work, and there's a good chance you will need to know tig as well for some jobs.Understand round surfaces like pipe are probably the most difficult to learn. You must continually adjust your position as you go around pipe, and many pipe positions require you change from say overhead to vertical to flat as you go. Most students at the votech school I help out at would need several semesters at a minimum to get to a point they could do most basic pipe positions with stick. If they needed to do tig roots, they would need even longer. I forget exactly how long a friend of mine took to get thru a basic pipe welding going to school FT. Something makes me think 18 months off the top of my head and he still didn't cover everything.If you are serious about this you better also start thinking about getting a machine of your own to practice with if you want to go the votech route and try to get thru as fast as possible. I'd hold off on a machine at least at the start until you know exactly what you will need to learn.
Reply:as far as pipe goes smaw and tig  mostly for field work and  S.M.A.W. --G.M.A.W-- G.T.A.W--- and F.C.A.W for fabrication shops from my experiencethe more you know the better !!!
Reply:Get the basics and see how you like it. SMAW, GMAW and GTAW are the 3 big ones. Perfect those types of welding in the materials they offer and other types of welding and metal will come easy. Stick and Tig will cover 99% of pipe welding processes. Stick is still widely used in new construction as well as FCAW. Chances are the construction jobs will pay more money but there is no guarantee of steady work. Shop welding is lower pay most of the time but steady, easier and not out in the weather. Good luck and I hope you like your new classes.CERTIFICATIONS:7018M- H.V.O10718M- H.V.O11018M- H.V.O9N10- H.V.O71T-1-HYM- H.O.V100S1 PULSE ARC 0,035- H.O.V100S1 PULSE ARC 0.045- H.O.VER70S-3 PULSE ARC 0.035 H.O.VER70S-3 PULSE ARC 0.045 H.O.VER5554- H.O.V
Reply:Originally Posted by NHMattGet the basics and see how you like it. SMAW, GMAW and GTAW are the 3 big ones. Perfect those types of welding in the materials they offer and other types of welding and metal will come easy. Stick and Tig will cover 99% of pipe welding processes. Stick is still widely used in new construction as well as FCAW. Chances are the construction jobs will pay more money but there is no guarantee of steady work. Shop welding is lower pay most of the time but steady, easier and not out in the weather. Good luck and I hope you like your new classes.
Reply:I want to be a Welder . Help!Me too!!!!6 Miller Big Blue 600 Air Paks2 Miller 400D6 Lincoln LN-25's4 Miller Xtreme 12VS2 Miller Dimension 812 4 Climax BW-3000Z bore welders Hypertherm 65 and 85Bug-O Track BugPair of Welpers
Reply:Me too, but I dont think you can learn it all in one lifetime. I would suggest spending your time on stick welding. I believe if you get that down pat then you already have the basics for all the rest.  Harold
Reply:Originally Posted by BryGuyDo you think instructors will be straight up with me? They may tell me I need something but in all reality I won't . As long as there teaching they have a job, right?
Reply:Originally Posted by EarlyBroncoI guess the type you describe is out there, but I haven't met a welding instructor who would string you along to collect more course fees.  My experience has been that most are consumate professionals who take a lot of pride in what they do and want to teach their craft to others.  Where are you located?  Members here may be able to give you some specific recommendations of the school options you are considering.
Reply:Originally Posted by ExpatWelderI want to be a Welder . Help!Me too!!!!