# Practical to teach myself to use a welder? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 16, 2018, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/practical-to-teach-myself-to-use-a-welder/814284 "2018-05-16T13:43:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![senoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@senoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/senoy)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/practical-to-teach-myself-to-use-a-welder/814284/21 "2018-05-22T02:01:46Z")
It is practical to teach yourself non-structural welding. If you want to make an end table or a piece of art or a minnow trap or anything where failure of a weld is only annoying, but not dangerous, then go for it. If you want to weld an axle or a roll frame or anything where failure means serious injury or death, don’t teach yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/practical-to-teach-myself-to-use-a-welder/814284/22 "2018-05-22T02:07:18Z")
> [@senoy](#): > > It is practical to teach yourself non-structural welding. If you want to make an end table or a piece of art or a minnow trap or anything where failure of a weld is only annoying, but not dangerous, then go for it. If you want to weld an axle or a roll frame or anything where failure means serious injury or death, don’t teach yourself. If it helps, my first project is going to weld up a base to turn an old cast iron manhole cover into a coffee table. I know I can’t weld directly to the cast iron but that shouldn’t stop me from making a stand upon which the cover can rest. It should be a pretty good little toe stubber when I’m done. (I hope) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/practical-to-teach-myself-to-use-a-welder/814284.md?page=1)