Downhill Pipe Welding or High Frequency??

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I start my 2nd to last phase of welding school next week and have been given the option of learning downhill pipe welding, or high frequency welding.  What should I do? The instructors at my school tell us to pick which ever process we think that well work in after school, but I have no idea where I am going to work after school.  Which is more beneficial and used more?  Thanks for the input.Read my welding blog:http://weldeveryday.wordpress.com/
Reply:Tough choice you have.If you become sucessfull at downhill pipe welding, you have a serious skill there and potential to make big $$ with that skill in the future. That woule be my choice.High frequency welding would be a nice skill to do aluminum repair/fabrication.I still prefer lift start for tig welding steel/stainless steel.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:I vote for downhill, I never thought I would need to know how to do that. But I has allowed me to do a few pipe jobs that required it when work was slow.Lincoln 300 Vantage 2008300 Commander 1999SA250 1999SA200 1968Miller Syncrowave 200XMT350MPA/S-52E/xr-15Xtreme 12vs Millermatic 251 w/30A  Millermatic 251 Dialarc 250 Hypertherm 1250 GEKA & Bantom Ironwokers
Reply:Im still a little confused about down hill pipe welding. When I went to welding school, it was all up hill and they taught us that down hill was just a cheat and was not acceptable. What rods do you weld the down hill pipe with? 7018 or is like 8014 or something? Is the down hill pipe welding considered harder then uphill. I have only welded pipe uphill.Im practicing for some UA tests that that are all up hill. One is 6010 root 7018 fill and cap. The other is carbon steel pipe with TIg 309 root fill and cap. I want to tey the down hill.Personally I would say take the pipe. There is a huge demand for qualified pipe welders these days. They are hard to find. If you are not opposed to being in the Union contact the UA, there is an open call for provisional journeymen and apprentices. It might help influence your decision. You can, (which is my goal) Set up a welding rig, get a number of UA pipe qualifications then become a UA signatory, and then you can make 100k-150k per year. You might have to relocate though. Search UA plumbers and pipe fitters union. Once you get your own welding machine you can teach yourself how to weld aluminum.Welding everything, from the crack of dawn to a broken heart.
Reply:Downhill welding is usually 6010(5p),7010(hippie),8010(70+)    Pipelines for the most part are usually downhill and some plants and compressor stations are downhill jobs. The job I'm on at this moment is a 6010 root and hot pass and 8010(70+) the rest of the way out. It is beneficial to learn uphill welding and downhill as well. To the op I'd say learn downhill. Its good $
Reply:if you're a good pipe welder you will be able to weld just about anything.
Reply:Is down hill pipe welding harder or easier? I can imagine the 6010 root being tough. You wouldn't do it with 7018, right? Ill have to try it.Welding everything, from the crack of dawn to a broken heart.
Reply:Most down hill pipe is done with 6010, 7010 and 8010 rod, as stated already.Downhill welding is a bit faster rate of metal deposition and a bit less penetration than up hill pipe welding. Uphill is a bit slower and has a bit more penetration than downhill.Most in plant pipe welding job are up hill where alot of cross country pipe welding jobs are downhill. You will not see 7018 rod on downhill pipe welding jobs.JasonLincoln Idealarc 250 stick/tigThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52Miller Bobcat 250Torchmate CNC tableThermal Arc Hefty 2Ironworkers Local 720
Reply:If you are going to start out in a shop, learn high freak, if you want to travel allot, learn downhill. In the end you'll learn both, so its really just how you start out. If you have a family,  or gf you just can't leave, that may play in to the position you take.Last edited by Davidbrown; 01-22-2012 at 12:12 PM.
Reply:Definately take the downhill pipe. It is pretty tough and will condition you for all the other processes you will encounter.I had to do a year of SMAW,  was well worth what I got out of it. There's always time for the others.Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:i agree,enough said.Last edited by exwldr; 01-24-2012 at 05:15 PM.
Reply:If you can already tig weld, then there is really nothing to learn with Hi Freq. Do the downhill pipe.BillUA Local 598