Skills USA......

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Since I'm taking classes at ACC..... I was asked if I would be interested in doing Skills USA......It goes like this.......1) school level welding competitions to pick the 15 best to go to "state"..... 2) compete against the best from those in the whole state......3) then the best from that go to "national"..... To compete with the best from there.......Sounds fun....... Don't know if it will work or not with job and family...... Seems like it's a single guys kind of thing..... But I think I can learn to weld better so I'm in....... To go as far as I can anyway.......Will keep you posted as it goes.......Precision TIG 185 and MP 210Bobcat 225NTCutmaster 42O/A tanks.... 2 Argon tanks...... 2 C25 TanksFacebook...... F2 Metal WorksETSY....... https://www.etsy.com/shop/F2MetalWorksF2MetalWorks.com....... http://www.f2metalworks.com/
Reply:Did they change the rules?  Or did I misread?  When I competed we were allowed 3 students from each school to compete at the state level.  Only the winner at state would go to the national contest.  I believe some of the larger states had regional or district contests thrown in there somewhere to cut down the pool a bit.State and national level prizes are good.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Never did it myself but had a coworker a few years ago who had done it, And DAMN they got some good prizes! MAC roll cart when he won state.... Pretty cool programMillermatic 30aMillermatic 210Miller thunderbolt 225 ac/dc/ccMiller HF15-1-wg tigLincoln ranger 10(honda powered)Cebora 175 mig Too damn many tools but oddly not enough......
Reply:Originally Posted by FexalSounds fun....... Don't know if it will work or not with job and family......
Reply:Please keep us updated as to when and where the contest will be. I have taken some welding classes at ACC many years ago and would like watch the local contest if it's somewhere in Central Texas.Millermatic 185, Lincoln AC/DC 225, Victor torch set, Hypertherm Powermax30 XP, Chicago Electric 90 amp flux core welder, Milwaukee Chopsaw, Wilton Drillpress, lots of hand tools and a nice small shop with a 4' X 8' welding table.
Reply:Kudos Fexal, go for it!Buy American, or don't whine when you end up on the bread line.
Reply:I thought it was only for high school, it was VICA when I was a kid.....lolI took gold, but there was no national competition for metal fabrication, the machines were to big.Disclaimer; "I am just an a$$hole welder, don't take it personally ."
Reply:I also thought this was a High School aged competition. If your 18 or so, good luck, if your grown with kids and work in the trade, you really ought to leave it alone. My son did it in High School but I don't know if there are other age classes. Myself, I would feel funny going against HS kids. Kind of like Kramer on Seinfeld dominating the martial arts class that was all kids.  Then again, some of those kids might weld circles around me, They can see, LOL."Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum"Lincoln Idealarc 250 AC/DCMillermatic 251   Syncrowave 300   30A spoolgunLincoln MP210Hypertherm 45(2) LN 25(2) Lincoln Weldanpower 225 CV(4) SA200   1 short hood    SA250    SAM 400
Reply:Checked out their website and it says it's for high school and college students. I would guess different age/class groups.http://www.skillsusa.org/about/factsheet.shtmlMillermatic 200Hobart Handler 120Victor O/A & Ramco BandsawLincoln 225 ACSnapOn AD HoodMiller XMT304/22AHypertherm Powermax 1650 G3Lincoln Idealarc DC600 w/Extreme 12 VSMiller Digital Elite "Joker"
Reply:I think I did in fact used to be called VICA......... But now skills USA...... Been going on for about 5 years.....They have three man teams...... Individuals teams.... And a few different categories....... I think that the 15 that go to state are across the various disciplines that the welding program offers...... Like sculpture for example........I'm 37...... And while will be one of the oldest playing this game...... Won't be the oldest........ I'll be having fun alongside at least one retired Army welder......... And then a bunch of 20 something's........ All dudes sadly........They do some other things too like resume writing and interview skills........ First school competition starts sometime this month....... Will keep you posted on progress and status of fun being had.......Precision TIG 185 and MP 210Bobcat 225NTCutmaster 42O/A tanks.... 2 Argon tanks...... 2 C25 TanksFacebook...... F2 Metal WorksETSY....... https://www.etsy.com/shop/F2MetalWorksF2MetalWorks.com....... http://www.f2metalworks.com/
Reply:If that's the case, go for it, My son won some good prizes as stated above. Probably in area of 500 or more over the 2 years he competed."Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum"Lincoln Idealarc 250 AC/DCMillermatic 251   Syncrowave 300   30A spoolgunLincoln MP210Hypertherm 45(2) LN 25(2) Lincoln Weldanpower 225 CV(4) SA200   1 short hood    SA250    SAM 400
Reply:Waaaay down at the bottom.  The fab and sculpture contests didn't exist when I competed.  If I remember right, 1999 was the year they announced the transition from VICA to SkillsUSA/VICA.  It later became just SkillsUSA. http://www.skillsusa.org/compete/contests.shtmlI know I've posted these before, but I'm gonna do it again anyway.  These are state medals.  Gold, Silver, Gold, Gold, Gold. Attached ImagesMy name's not Jim....
Reply:I took first in state in 95 in precision machining. My part time welder took first in state last year for welding.Lincolin Power Wave 450, Lincoln Powermig 255, Lincoln Pro Mig 140, Lincoln Squarewave Tig 275, Miller Big 40 G(with Hobart Hefty suitcase), Thermal Arc 95S and Esab PCM875 in an already full machine shop.
Reply:Thats awesome Fex. Good luckSafety 3rdGump
Reply:Originally Posted by BoostinjdmWaaaay down at the bottom.  The fab and sculpture contests didn't exist when I competed.  If I remember right, 1999 was the year they announced the transition from VICA to SkillsUSA/VICA.  It later became just SkillsUSA. http://www.skillsusa.org/compete/contests.shtmlI know I've posted these before, but I'm gonna do it again anyway.  These are state medals.  Gold, Silver, Gold, Gold, Gold.
Reply:I was middle of the pack mostly.  Good enough for me.  I've only got the scoring results from one year.  I don't know what happened to the other ones.  As far as I know, I've competed in more national contests than anybody else.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Skill USA is a lot of fun. I was the state gold medalist this year for New Mexico. I got to compete in Kansas City. Unfortunately I only took 15th out of 32 states. A classmate of mine took the Silver medal at nationals for welding sculpture. I'm considering competing next year again. I got about $800 dollars worth in prizes from the local welding supplies.