In the economy how is the welding field?

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In the current economy how is welding doing as far as careers? For the guys out in the field or in the shops, is there a rush of new welders in the work place or is it slow? What seems to be the best/most indemand/best paying type of welding? I will be graduating school the end of April and based on my current calculations need to be making 15$an hour + to survive. I am willing to travel and go where the money is. Just looking for input and opinions. Thanks,Tyler.
Reply:Welcome. What type experience do you have?Arcon Workhorse 300MSPowcon 400SMTPowcon SM400 x 2Powcon SM3001968 SA200 Redface1978 SA250 DieselMiller Super 32P FeederPre 1927 American 14" High Duty LatheK&T Milwaukee 2H Horizontal MillBryan
Reply:In highschool I did a combo class. That involved Brazing, Mig and stick. An entry level basics of the process'. My senior year in highschool I took another brazing and mig/fluxcore course. More advanced with both process'.My father owned his own CCTV and security business, I did fabrication work, custom camera brackets, custom housings. Basically anything we needed. I am currently enrolled in Tulsa welding school in Tulsa. I will be entertaining phase 6/10 next Monday the 13th. My  test tomorrow is on 5G 6" Schedule80 carbon steel pipe,6010 root and 3/32 7018 hot pass,fill,and cap. I begin my tig training next phase and am really looking forward to that. We will be doing some 2" pipe in various positions along with some other variations of pipe. I will also be working with high frequency. I hope to get good with aluminum and tig itself.
Reply:Around here, most shops are just a revolving door, and the welders move from one shop to the other, around in a little circle.  There are some shops that seem to retain workers, but the issue here I think is burn-out.  Many shops work 6 days a week, and have done that for YEARS.  If you can't do it, you are out when business slows for a couple weeks.  I think pay for work here ranges from about $10 (a few places) to$12-14 (lots) to $15 (occasional) to $18 (rarely).  Once you are in, I don't know where it goes from there.  I've worked in 2 shops, but not just as a welder.  At one shop, I ended up making about $22/hr + overtime.  Current shop, our average pay is probably closer to $16-18/hr, depending on experience and how much you've moved around. I don't think anybody is at or over $20.Miller Dynasty 200 DXMiller CP-300 with 30A feederHypertherm Powermax 900Oxy-fuel w/Harris torchesScotchman Glide-in bandsawMonarch 10EE latheEmi-Mec Autoturn latheDeckel FP2NC milling machinePro-Tools 105 Bender
Reply:There is no shortage of welding jobs. You will have to relocate, most likely, to find one you want. Being willing to travel and being able to travel are two different things as well. You're young, so I assume you have a decent support system (like parents) who can assist you with the cost of moving, etc. If you are able, STAY ALL DAY at Tulsa. They let you do that (or they did in Jacksonville).. so take advantage of it. I was in the AM class, and I would stay from 7:30AM to around 8-9PM every day. Once the 5 hour class is done I went back in and basically redid all of the things for that phase. If you have decent instructors, you can find someone to help you practice the stuff for the next phase. I was doing tig in Phase 4 in the afternoon and nights. Practice these as much as possible:5" pipe, tig root/hot pass, 7018 fill/cap2" pipe, tig outThey are basically the tests you have in the next 3 phases anyway. Practice stick on 2" pipe too. If you get good at that, you can stick weld anything. Practice welding with your weak hand until you're good with it. Especially tig. I can weld a fart to a rainbow in the middle of a tornado with either hand. Also, work on flux core and structural stick. You may have to take a structural job first to gain experience in the field. Most of the tests will be 6" V groove with ceramic tape backing, but you can use a backing strip for practice. Usually a 2-4 bead cap. 2 for vertical and overhead, up to 4 or even 6 for horizontal, but keep your cap under 1" wide. For stick, it's a 4 bead cap for all 3 positions. If you guys have CO2 shielding gas available, use it. The shipyards don't use argon for flux core. Learn how to set your wire feeder by sound and feel. Don't ignore voltages, but don't rely on them. You will encounter geriatric machines, and some machines without numbers on it! And if you can't set up your machine on your own you can kiss that job goodbye. Same for stick and tig too but not as much. In phase 9, if you are taking the high frequency course, stay after and work on downhill if they let you. You can do it on 5" pipe instead of the 8 or 12" they normally use if they won't let you use the big coupons. It's not really necessary but it's good to have some practice in case you decide to go that route. I sort of deviated from your question but keep these tips in mind. Don't just expect to run through the school and be able to call yourself a welder.Also, you don't need to sign your life away at a crappy first job. 6 months to a year of a **** welding job will give you valuable experience and make your resume more impressive. I did a year at my first job welding dumpsters and pulleys and other random, dirty pieces of work. My current job is a pipe welder for Ingalls. I won't be here longer than a year. Then I'm going to work for a contractor and attempt to get into power plants or something similar. Unless the UA calls me up first. You should expect 12-15$ hourly for your first job. Remember the better you do, the more you'll get paid. Even if they job is advertising $13 an hour. If you impress the guy testing you, he may recommend a higher rate. Once you get to work and perform well, you'll go up. Most of the time.
Reply:things must be pretty good out there for welders. i see lots of jobs posted on cl here and in fla although we've had several unfilled openings where i work for a year or so but that could be cause of the cbi and drug screen requirement and very bad working environment.i.u.o.e. # 15queens, ny and sunny fla
Reply:I've actually been really thinking about ingals, they hire straight out of our school. What type of jobs are there? What types of work is there? Is it very tedious and military oriented or more relaxed?
Reply:Originally Posted by Trc5.0In the current economy how is welding doing as far as careers? For the guys out in the field or in the shops, is there a rush of new welders in the work place or is it slow? What seems to be the best/most indemand/best paying type of welding? I will be graduating school the end of April and based on my current calculations need to be making 15$an hour + to survive. I am willing to travel and go where the money is. Just looking for input and opinions. Thanks,Tyler.
Reply:Keep in mind in many areas it's still an employers market. Most places can ask for and get guys with 5 years + of experience, and get them to work for fairly low wages since there are a ton of guys out of work. The comments above on pay are roughly what they are seeing kids get exiting the tech school. Maybe 40% that graduate are finding work welding. Of those the vast majority are in the $10-11 range doing production mig in revolving door shops. A few who either have in's with companies or family may find work in the $13-15 range and on occasion some of the best students get offered jobs in the $15-18 range, mostly doing tig. Don't even bother thinking of going Union around here. None of them are taking any applicants, and the few they do take are all family or friends of Union guys and have an "in" before they apply.About the only light I've seen in the market place is with the local public gas company. They are looking for welders, but I'm not sure if they are hiring off the street or not. Last night class at the tech school about 1/2 the class were service guys from the gas company. However they were already union, and apparently it's not all that hard for them to move laterally into the unions welding program if they can show they have some prior knowledge of how to weld. From talking to them, it doesn't sound like you can just join up and start welding. You'd still have to get your foot in the door and go thru the apprentice program even if you can prove you can weld and already have certs..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:to a kid with half a brain i would recommend getting a college education. welding for the most part is a dirty job with lots of heavy lifting thrown in. all in all the trade's been real good to me but i would tell a younger person there has to be an easier way to make a buck.i.u.o.e. # 15queens, ny and sunny fla
Reply:Unfortunately, just being a top notch welder today won't command top wages unless you get really lucky and land work in a shop that is covered up with specialty work and you offer those same specialty skills....and even then those specialty skills can become obsolete in an instant when the shop ****s to robotics or new welding tech is discovered.I would say to hone your total welding skills to the max and then work on learning how to provide your employer with additional skills that include overall plant maintenance and repair.
Reply:Here You go:http://www.indeed.com/q-Welder-l-Houston,-TX-jobs.html
Reply:I would say to hone your total welding skills to the max and then work on learning how to provide your employer with additional skills that include overall plant maintenance and repair.
Reply:Originally Posted by docwelderto a kid with half a brain i would recommend getting a college education. welding for the most part is a dirty job with lots of heavy lifting thrown in. all in all the trade's been real good to me but i would tell a younger person there has to be an easier way to make a buck.
Reply:Screw a college education, unless you're getting a valuable degree, that will teach you a skill. I always recommend Engineering or something similar if anyone is insistent on going to college. As for Ingalls, the two main and most obvious jobs are Structural Welder and Pipe Welder. Right out of TWS they will hire you as a Structural Welder. You'll go through 6 weeks at the Training School where they will certify you in 2, 3, and 4G stick and flux core. These welds must pass x-ray. After you get your 6 certifications, you have to pass a break test for a vertical down fillet weld, flux core. Then you start your "activities" where you're pretty much welding random things you would encounter in the yard.New hires from TWS get to test for the pipe program... which is a little tougher. To be 100% honest, I would avoid shipyards like the plague. But it is a good spot for a first job.
Reply:Originally Posted by farmallMachining and welding also complement each other nicely. Never stop learning.
Reply:Originally Posted by akabadnewsScrew a college education, unless you're getting a valuable degree, that will teach you a skill. I always recommend Engineering or something similar if anyone is insistent on going to college. As for Ingalls, the two main and most obvious jobs are Structural Welder and Pipe Welder. Right out of TWS they will hire you as a Structural Welder. You'll go through 6 weeks at the Training School where they will certify you in 2, 3, and 4G stick and flux core. These welds must pass x-ray. After you get your 6 certifications, you have to pass a break test for a vertical down fillet weld, flux core. Then you start your "activities" where you're pretty much welding random things you would encounter in the yard.New hires from TWS get to test for the pipe program... which is a little tougher. To be 100% honest, I would avoid shipyards like the plague. But it is a good spot for a first job.
Reply:Welding alone will get you in the door, but it's how fast you can pick up on the fabrication side that will get yo the money (that is if your lucky enough to work in a shop that give merit based raises).  My aria starts about $13 an hour for a good wire pusher a fabricator someone who can take a pile of plate form, fit, and weld with an anal attention to detail will get $16 an hour and up.  I've been out of school for 4 years and am making $20 an hour (they gave me a $2 per hour raise this summer), be thirsty for knowledge and new skills in your field people will notice.
Reply:You can do college later. Continuing education is popular for good reason. Go make money for a while then when you are seasoned you can use school to add qualifications as you need them. The old model of going to school and never going back is silly so avoid it. I'm just curious as I'm gonna have to do something drastic to afford 2 years at CC
Reply:Yeah, I have to agree with farmall, though it doesn't have to be an enlistment with a career in the service in mind.  If you've got enough brains to do well on the aptitude tests given in the service and qualify to enlist for one of their excellent training gigs there's too much opportunity in the military to take lightly or reject out of hand.If you're not trying to see what employment will be like ten or more years from now you're headed for a deep rut with skills that won't necessarily be valued as highly then as they might be now.And if you hope to set up shop as a custom car or bike builder you'll need business skills a lot more than you'll need welding skill. Too many good people go belly up just because they set out with no idea how a business should be run to be profitable.MM210TA186TA95sLincoln AC/DC Tombstonegood old Smith torch setup 24v Readywelder mig w/spoolgunSB H 10 latheBridgeport mill6x12 K.O.Lee surface grinderK.O.Lee tool/cutter grinder
Reply:Good point!  A business course would be a good idea. Plenty of small businesses get slaughtered because while the owner is a good technician they don't know how to run the rest of the show.An educational place to lurk is the Practical Machinist forum to read the shop owner issue section.  Yikes.
Reply:Well, the way I see the "dream" coming true is one of two ways. I build custom motorcycles in my spare time in my garage. I take them to shows and somehow miraculously people love them. Then that progresses into orders. In that case if the demand was there I would enlist my father, had two successful businesses and is very electrical/mechanically inclined to help/partner. Or I someohow get involved with motorsport fabrication and get hired on by a John Kasse or a Nelson Racing type of shop. Neither of those a very likely.My unofficial plan is to work as a welder and try to survive till 21 from there two routes. State patrol, wherever I land at the given time or attend gunsmithing school to try and make a carreer out of that.
Reply:Originally Posted by docwelderto a kid with half a brain i would recommend getting a college education. welding for the most part is a dirty job with lots of heavy lifting thrown in. all in all the trade's been real good to me but i would tell a younger person there has to be an easier way to make a buck.
Reply:[QUOTE=DSW;3541941]Keep in mind in many areas it's still an employers market. Most places can ask for and get guys with 5 years + of experience, and get them to work for fairly low wages since there are a ton of guys out of work. The comments above on pay are roughly what they are seeing kids get exiting the tech school. Maybe 40% that graduate are finding work welding. Of those the vast majority are in the $10-11 range doing production mig in revolving door shops. A few who either have in's with companies or family may find work in the $13-15 range and on occasion some of the best students get offered jobs in the $15-18 range, mostly doing tig. Don't even bother thinking of going Union around here. None of them are taking any applicants, and the few they do take are all family or friends of Union guys and have an "in" before they apply.you are in the armpit of north america, there is  nothing happening in philly except ongoing infrastructure decay and no money to pay for anything new because the ones paying taxes are getting out (if they can).   next stop, chapter nine.   maybe not,  might be payback time for all those obama voterrs, not that they haven't been getting payback for generations.Last edited by injunctiverelief; 01-12-2014 at 11:52 AM.
Reply:So what areas of the nation seem to be booming?Originally Posted by Trc5.0So what areas of the nation seem to be booming?
Reply:Originally Posted by Trc5.0So what areas of the nation seem to be booming?