I was recent blessed with the opportunity to teach a short introductory course for welding. The class was intended to introduce students to 3 different processes.
Here is a picture of some GTAW welds made on the 2nd night of class. None of these students had ever welded with GTAW(Tig).
Understand that this is just pushing a puddle without adding filler metal but it does give to an idea of what can occur with students motivated to learn.
The process of learning to weld is much more involved than a few hours of training and some YouTube videos. However ANY form of training can add to the learning experience.
When I teach a class, I learn something. When I test a welder, I learn something. It’s an ongoing process.
Some people decide to step off the learning train at the very first stop. Other ride the train to the end of the line and back again.
Everyone wants a “standard” level of skills and abilities however in the real world, this is hard to define.
As you decide on what you want to learn about welding, realize it’s as deep and lng as you want it to be.