what joint next?

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Well, I'm finally able to run a decent bead on flat steel.  I am going to take an introductory welding class starting next month.  I have spoken to the instructor.  He is my kids shop teacher.  He told me the first part of the class is torch welding, which I'm real excited about.  I really want to learn about this for some reason.  Anyway.  I tried to weld some joints.  Hahaha!  About the best I could get was a blob weld!  Next weekend my brother in law is coming over to help me out.  I am planning on buying a 4x8 foot sheet of either 10g or 3/16 inch steel.  I'm going to cut it up into 2 inch by 4 inch peaces to use for practicing joints.  Unless that's to small and I would be better off making them larger.  What joint would be best for a beginner to start practicing first?  Any advice or recommendations would be much appreciated.
Reply:The tech school I deal with starts everyone off with basic beads on flat plate. From there they move on to lap joints, then T joint, then outside corners and finally but joints, before moving on to the next position.2"x4" pieces are ok. I'd make the 4" side a bit longer myself. The one comment I've heard from several guys who hire out of the tech school is that students can't run long beads because they are used to only working on short pieces. We usually use 3x6" 1/8" material at the school for OA, mig and tig. The school gets it in 3" flat bar stock, and then runs it thru the shear most times to cut it to 6" lengths. Unless you have a shear, I'd go with bar stock. It's possible to cut a full sheet into strips with a circular saw and straight edge, but good blades are pricy. OA and plasma can be used, but the edge finish you get if you aren't skilled will make welding a real PITA and lots of time the material is either useless or will need a lot of grinding for prep. It's possible to order the sheet sheared into 2 or 3" strips as well, and you can cut them down from there with a chop saw, shear, ironworker etc.With a bit of thought you can stretch your material. For laps we usually recommend students stack the pieces like steps. Be sure to tack both sides before welding or the back side will open up and be hard to weld. T joints can be"stacked" like H's and just keep adding as needed, and outside corners can be done like a continuous "Z" to maximize material. We also often recut the pieces for reuse, and thinking ahead to this will allow you to get the most out of each piece. As mentioned above, recut pieces can be a PITA, however they are useful for the bottom of "T" joints where edges don't matter as much..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:as already mentioned, buy flat stock, and save yourself some cutting.Last edited by Groo; 09-16-2012 at 08:31 AM.