army welders

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i was looking into joining the army and according to their site they have metal worker/welder jobs. just wondering if anyone is an army welder or knows someone who is?
Reply:I was looking at that path for a while. One thing to remember is that you can only get MOS91 if it is open at the time you go to MEPS. I have decided to go into the Navy to dive school. Hoping to ship off to basic in May. Going to be an underwater welder. --Gol'
Reply:I have spent 14 years as a 44B (or 91whatthe****ever they call it now) in the army guard. What do you want to know?
Reply:Originally Posted by larpheadI have spent 14 years as a 44B (or 91whatthe****ever they call it now) in the army guard. What do you want to know?
Reply:Joining the military is a huge decision especially in this day and age. What with Iraq, Afghanistan, possibly Korea, and all the other little ****spots all over the world. My best advise for you is to decide FIRST what type of army experience fits your lifestyle. Active Duty, National Guard (thats what I am) or Army Reserves. And then talk to a recruiter, ASK AS MANY QUESTIONS AS YOU CAN THINK OF!!!! of them before you sign up. Remember a Guard recruiter will know more about Guard than Active duty. My advise is talk to all 3 before you make your decision. IMO   If you are young and don't have much family (or not very close to them) Active duty may be the way to go. Its not for everyone. You are surrounded by Military 24/7.The Guard and Reserves is a slightly different animal than active duty. You do ALL the same entry training as active duty. But after Basic and AIT you Drill once a month at your Unit and do "Summer camp" 2-3 weeks once a year usually at an active duty base or Regional Training unit. Myself I have been to Fort Irwin Calif. Germany, Panama, Iowa, Virginia, Missouri (basic), Maryland(ait) The rest of the time you live your civilian life. work, go to college whatever. As for deployment: For Active duty you can be on a plane going anywhere within 24 hours. The Army pretty much decides where and when they want you.Guard you can only be deployed with a Guard unit in your state. However there is also state duty for national disasters that you may be called out on. Reserves i dont know alot about. I think are a regional type thing. You can be pulled to deploy with other units (including active duty) outside of your state. and i think you are exempt from the state duty thing.Now keep in mind that i have always been a weekend warrior, my only active duty time has been basic, AIT, and 14 months of deployment to Iraq in 2004. I only know what i do about active duty stateside from what i have seen during 2-3 week annual trainings and talking to other guard members who came from active duty. As for the welding side, I went in before they combined 44B (welder) and 44E (machinist) my understanding is now you learn both skills during AIT. IMO this is just another dumbass thing the Army has done. I dont see how you can become anywhere near proficient at either skill within a decent amount of time of AIT. But i will tell you what I done at AIT. basic day was, Up in the morning for PT about 0500, shower/clean barracks, go to school, back to the company area for lunch, back to school until 1700, final formation at company area. free time until lights out at 2200.  You learn all welding process. Oxy/Fuel. Stick, Mig, Tig, Stick, and fiberglass autobody repair. My AIT was 22 weeks and if i remember right you spent 2-3 weeks on each process. sorry this got a bit long winded but,Bottom line(s) is this. In any Branch you are a soldier first and a welder second. This means you learn and maintain your soldier skills as priority #1. Do not expect to get any certs from AIT or go right into a welding job after getting home. In 14 years I have seen and done quite a bit, some I enjoyed some I did not. I don't regret any of it.
Reply:Thanks for the info. You answered alot that i've wanted to know. the main reason i'm looking into the army is because i've exhausted some of my other opportunities (i.e. - being young and stupid i missed too many days the past two quarters at my local tech school where i was taking welding courses). so you see i am also looking to get some self discipline as well as learn more of my trade.
Reply:I got another quick question, while you were deployed to Iraq, what exactly where you doing over there? Were you doing your job as a welder or an infantryman?again thanks for the info.
Reply:If I was considering joining the military, the Army would be last on my list.  I would take a good look at what the other branches had to offer.
Reply:Originally Posted by dbalesI got another quick question, while you were deployed to Iraq, what exactly where you doing over there? Were you doing your job as a welder or an infantryman?again thanks for the info.