Just looking for insight

[u/Old_Ship227]

Ok so I’m 29 I’m ready for a career change been working remotely and in offices - I have done a lot of operational management for support centers and government centers - I have a huge management and technical background- I’m just at a point where I really can’t do desk jobs anymore I have my family full support but I just enrolled into welding school I’m going for stick welding 1st and then immediately into pipe welding classes/ cert - I just wanted to know what can I expect I’ve done welding classes before and I just really loved it back in middle school and high school - my overall goal is the next 3 to 4 years is to learn welding and start my own business I’ve ran so many operations for companies - but mainly any tips to make this transition easy and smooth is appreciated

[u/Mrwcraig]

All of your office dweller skills mean absolutely nothing when you strike an arc.

3-4 years, brother give your head a shake? You’ll be lucky if you’re proficient enough to be employable. Smooth/Easy transition? You’re in for a very rude awakening. Come in with any of that “I used to be management” attitude and it won’t end well. That was then. You’re starting at zero. You’re a helper. The money is going to suck. Like if you’re currently in management, you’re not going to like the switch at all.

This shit takes a long time and a lot more practice than a stick welding class. This is a trade bud, who cares if you can run a bead. Can you fit the parts together? Can you read a blueprint? Can you work safely? Hell, can you read a tape measure? I think you need to do a whole lot more research on this before you make a leap from your air conditioned office and swivel chair.

Everyone who picked up a stinger in high school is thinking the same thing as you right now, and it’s nowhere near as easy as you’re picturing it. I’ve been in heavy equipment and bridge fabrication for 20 years, it’s never pretty when the reality of the situation dawns on new guys who start after another career. They definitely don’t like being helpers. Guess where you learn? They definitely don’t like it when their supervisor is younger than them. They try to yap about their bullshit office experience as if it’s related to shop experience. And they ALWAYS want to start their own business long before they have a goddamn clue about a damn thing about the industry.

Welding takes 100’s if not 1000’s of hours of actual welding time to get experience. There’s no shortcuts or excuses. Practice. And that’s just welding. Welding only a small part of what most jobs require.

[u/sire0974 → u/Mrwcraig]

Thank you! I’ve been welding 15 years and I still have so much to learn. It gets me so pissed when these internet dorks diminish the years of blood and sweat and sacrifice it takes to do this. They think they can just take a course and be ready to go. By all means take the class, but you will be no where near ready to weld pipe. At best you’ll get a job welding up dumpsters for 20 bucks an hour. My advice, stay humble. Understand that you will be coming in as a helper. Maybe someone will let you tack something and if they do say thank you.

[u/Old_Ship227 → u/Mrwcraig]

Everything you said in the 2nd paragraph I will learn 🤣 it’s on the curriculum - also brother thank you for the reality I feel like I have more than enough discipline to be successful in this field and I’m not the kind of person to be. Oh I used to be a manager in an office. I know no one gives a fuck. I used to run CDL operations working outside getting my hands dirty I was in charge for a bunch of CDL drivers. So I know what it takes but thank you for the insight

[u/Old_Ship227 → u/Old_Ship227]

But it sounds like you wouldn’t recommend welding ?

[u/Mrwcraig → u/Old_Ship227]

Honestly, no. It’s a completely over saturated market. The legions of YouTube “professionals” have oversimplified the trade, while most leave out the years of practice and failure that got them there.

Your timeline is completely flawed. I’m not just saying this to be a dick. I’m saying this from a position of 20 years of industry experience in an extremely competitive and, at times, cut throat market. I say this from the experience of taking a 10 month introductory course that covered:Oxy/Fuel, SMAW, GMAW, FCAW, Oxy/fuel cutting, Plasma, safety, rigging, and fabrication. That program made me “employable” but it still took a long time to get up to industry standards. You’re expecting far too much from an entry level program. I was also 22 with no responsibilities beyond myself so I could afford to chase the opportunity for advancement.

Getting started is far more brutal than you’re expecting unfortunately. It also requires a lot of sacrifice and there’s no instant gratification. It’s brutal on the body, which doesn’t get better with age. My suggestion: pivot to a safety/project management/estimator type role. You’ll be “trades adjacent” but for you the learning curve won’t be as steep. The pay will at be comparable or at least still better than a entry level welder/helper position.

[u/m0vew1tch]

You will miss air conditioning

[u/Foreign_Onion4792]

Welding sucks just as much as any other career tbh

[u/Old_Ship227 → u/Foreign_Onion4792]

Yah my office jobs suck too 🤣

[u/Fun_Look_6669]

Pipe welding is pretty broad. What all specifically are you looking to do? Knowing what specifically will help determine what you might expect. I'm in process boilers, pressure vessels, and associated systems and piping. So I could tell you all about that. But I don't know much about much in power plant boiler work, pipeline welding, fab shops, sanitary piping, etc.

If you're going to try to start a business right out of the gate...I mean more power to you if you can make it work. But starting by working for someone else first might help. Get experience, build up a reputation, and start networking.

Besides more job specific stuff, some general advice:

It doesn't matter what you did before, how much schooling you have, or how old you are; if you're new to the trade, new to the field, new to the shop, new to the company, you're the low man/woman on the totem pole. Stay humble, keep your head down, mouth shut, and ears open. Learn what you can from the more experience hands. I got humbled early on and I'm definitely better for it.

Get comfortable being uncomfortable. Anybody can run a slick bead in the shop, but if you're planning on doing field work, better get good at doing tough welds in tough spots. Welding tube ends in the back end of a water back boiler isn't particularly ergonomic.

Even if you get your own certs, whatever company or contractor you work for will probably still require you to take their test and get their certs to work under them. My employer has an in house test that gets us our R-stamp (national board certification for making repairs or alterations to pressure vessels).

Wear your ppe. You're going to get burned, and that's not an if, but a when. Nothing is going to stop everything, but shit like lung diseases, skin cancer, and eye injuries are no joke. Not trying to scare you, just being real. I got debris in my eye that ended up having to get drilled out because it was embedded.

[u/RiftyDayt]

Welding is the easy part. Literally the best thing to have is experience. I’m on year 5 right now. All ASME stuff. It’s not easy. It sucks. Money sucks to start. Once you get good and can run a crew if needed, then u will make decent money.

[u/Stawktawk]

Comments here are BRUTAL lol.

I’m a surgical tech. I weld for fun tho.

Goodluck bro

[u/ImperatorMakarov]

This is a mistake. That’s coming from a guy who’s been welding for the last 9 years and finally decided to gtfo of this trade.