WELDING CLASSES

Exploring Welding
Entry-level
If you're not sure what type of welding you'd like to learn, this is the class for you. You will learn about —and have the chance to try—the four types of welding taught at The Crucible: oxyacetylene, arc ("stick"), metal inert gas (MIG) and tungsten inert gas (TIG). This class will inspire you and guide you to the type of welding most appropriate to the project you want to complete or the direction you want to follow.

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Introduction to Welded Sculpture
Entry-level
In this great beginners' class, you'll learn to join pieces of metal using arc (or "stick") welding. You'll also slice through ferrous metals with the oxygen jet of an oxyacetylene cutting torch and use power and hand tools to finish your work. You'll make a small sculpture to take home.

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Also check out this class in our Youth Department and as part of a Family Fun Classes!

Women's Welding
Entry-level
This special workshop, taught by women for women, covers the same material as Introduction to Welded Sculpture. It's a great introduction to metalworking in a supportive environment. Absolutely no experience is needed.

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Continuing Techniques in Welded Sculpture
Prerequisites: Introduction to Welded Sculpture, Women's Welding
Take your sculptural techniques to the next level! Create a gallery and sale ready piece or just a quality gift for family or a friend. In this class you will learn to weld and incorporate new common metals including stainless steel and cast iron as well as develop advanced welding techniques and receive instruction on new fabrication tools. We will also introduce the possibility of incorporating prefabricated elements to enhance your piece and expand on different finishing techniques and patinas to give your sculpture a more polished, professional appearance.

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Oxyacetylene Welding
Entry-level
Learn to weld using a torch that burns a mixture of oxygen and acetylene gases—the hottest flame available, and the least expensive way to weld. You'll learn about cutting, joining and shaping sheet metal to make a geometric candleholder, along with another small project of your choice. This class also covers oxyacetylene and plasma cutting, and introduces metal-joining by brazing.

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Burn Barrel
Entry-level

Coming Spring 2012...

Introduction to MIG Welding
Entry-level
Metal inert gas (MIG) welding, also known as wire-feed welding, falls between arc and TIG in the welding spectrum. Quieter and cleaner (and some say easier) than arc welding, MIG welding is typically used in production fabrication such as furniture making, light construction and auto restoration. You'll learn the basics of MIG welding, as well as plasma cutting and other fabrication processes. Knowledge of arc welding is handy but not essential.

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Also check out this class in our Youth Department.

Resolve to Create: Exploring MIG Welding Tools
Entry-level
We're turning up the heat with high voltage in our welding shop. We're going to dress you in a leather jacket and show you how to harness your inner bad-ass with a torch. This 5-hour introduction to the MIG welder teaches you the fundamental skills needed to work safely in The Crucible MIG shop. You'll learn how to set your amperage and wire speed to liquefy and join separate pieces of metal together. Once you have finished this class you will have 5 weeks of access to our MIG area to fabricate furniture, sculpture or any object of your own creativity.

We know how difficult and expensive it is to set up your own workshop with all the equipment you need to do the projects that interest you. During your 5 weeks of access, you will have the opportunity to continue creating in MIG welding.

Shop Access – How it works:
● The shop can be accessed Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 10 PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM when there isn't a MIG Welding class being taught. There is no Friday access. Blackout dates may apply. See access calendar.
● Your access will be for 5 consecutive weeks.
● There will be no monitors or instruction; your Resolve to Create class is all you need to be able to work independently in our shop.
● Safety gear will be provided.
● You are responsible for your own materials (resources provided in class) and clean up. Studio rules must be followed at all times.
● Once you have completed your class, call us to schedule your shop access! 510-444-0919 x."0".

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Resolve to Create: MIG & Plasma – $550
Entry-level
This 6-hour entry-level workshop is the perfect opportunity to create your dream sculpture or allow the creative image in your head to come to fruition. With an introduction to the MIG welder and Plasma Cutter, this workshop was designed for the DIYer and enthusiast in mind. We will teach you the fundamental skills you will need to work safely in The Crucible MIG shop. You'll also learn the necessary metal prep and finishing techniques for projects you plan to create on your own in our shop. Beyond MIG and Plasma cutting skills, this class will cover the appropriate use of: a 4" grinder, the horizontal band saw, the stationary wheel grinder and the chop saw. Once you have completed this workshop and passed the checkout, you will have 5 weeks of access to our MIG area, plasma cutting and prep/finish shops to fabricate projects of your own design. Watch sparks fly as your imagination is set free to create your greatest works of art in metal!

We know how difficult and expensive it is to set up your own workshop with all the equipment you need to do the projects that interest you. During your 5 weeks of access, you will have the opportunity to continue creating in MIG welding.

Shop Access – How it works:
● The shop can be accessed Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 10 PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM when there isn't a MIG Welding class being taught. There is no Friday access. Blackout dates may apply. See access calendar.
● Your access will be for 5 consecutive weeks.
● There will be no monitors or instruction; your Resolve to Create class is all you need to be able to work independently in our shop.
● Safety gear will be provided.
● You are responsible for your own materials (resources provided in class) and clean up. Studio rules must be followed at all times.
● Once you have completed your class, call us to schedule your shop access! 510-444-0919 x."0".

Sign Up Now!

Resolve to Create: Expanded Shop Skills
Prerequisites: Resolve to Create: Exploring MIG Welding Tools
This class is perfect to round off your Resolve to Create shop access. This class is designed to introduce you to the measurement and cutting tools you will need to prepare your materials for working on your own. You'll also learn finishing techniques for projects you plan to create in our shop. This class will show you the proper use of: 4 " grinder, the horizontal band saw, stationary wheel grinder, chop saws and much, much more.

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Lamps by Patricia Chavez

Metal Fabrication Tools: Square
Prerequisites: Introduction to MIG Welding
The focus of this class is making things square as well as brushing up on your welding skills. This class is designed to teach you specialized skills used in the metal fabrication industry, which can be applied to either practical or creatively inspired projects. You will learn how to use the horizontal band saw, the shear, the notcher and the brake, as well as how to bevel joints. You'll also learn professional finishing techniques, how to use the drill press to place rivets and, of course, squaring techniques.

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Metal Fabrication Tools: Round
Prerequisites: Introduction to MIG Welding
You will learn techniques that are commonly used in the metal fabrication industry, but the work will have more than four corners, and you will be introduced to new tools. You will gain experience with the sheet roller, the circle cutter, the hydraulic pipe bender, basic Hossfeld bending techniques, the hole punch and the pipe roller. You will learn how to find odd angles, cut them and fit them together; how to miter a pipe on both ends and create coping to fit it to another pipe and how to use a die grinder.

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Stool by Brian Enright

The Art of Metal: Design & Furniture Fabrication
Prerequisites: Any welding class
If you want to fabricate one-of-a-kind metal furniture for your home, this class is for you. Going beyond basic MIG welding, this ten-week class focuses on designing and fabricating functional and aesthetically interesting benches, coffee tables, flower stands, cabinets, wheeled furniture, shelves, coat racks and just about any other piece of furniture you'd like to fabricate. Be prepared to weld and cut on the first day as a review.

Note: Choosing larger projects will incur extra material costs.

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Wood + Metal
Entry-level
Wood + Metal is for those who want to learn and apply the fundamental properties of these two titans of materials. During this class, you'll create a coffee table that incorporates both materials and highlights the ways each complements the other.

Skills covered will be MIG welding, cutting, grinding, bending and finishing metal as well as wood milling, gluing, joinery, sanding and finish work. You will work closely with the core woodshop tools: table saw, jointer, planer, band saw and router.

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BYOB - Build Your Own BBQ
(Twice a Year)
Prerequisites: MIG and OXY/Acetylene cutting or plasma cutting.
Love to 'BQ? Here's a chance to show off your welding skills and have fun building your own monster barbecue. This class teaches how to build your own BBQ from a tank or container and scrap metal. Interesting creature designs are encouraged. See the Scorpion BBQ in front of The Crucible for an idea of what's possible. This class focuses on reuse of materials. We'll fire up a BBQ or two on the last day of class to celebrate.

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Beginning TIG
Entry-level
Tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding is a precise method that makes clean, focused welds on everything from super thin to very thick materials. Using the TIG process, you can weld any metal you desire (including steel, stainless steel, bronze, copper, aluminum, or titanium) and can even join dissimilar metals. For the beginning class, you will use steel to develop a series of welding techniques. The class will culminate in a small project to show off your newly acquired skills.

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Also check out this class in our Youth Department.

Continuing Techniques in TIG
Prerequisite: Beginning TIG
This class is for those who have completed Beginning TIG, have a basic idea of stainless steel and are ready to move on to working with different types of metals. Emphasizing aluminum, brass and copper, this course teaches the ins and outs of TIG welding, tricks of the trade and reasons why some metals cannot be joined.

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Sculpting with TIG
Prerequisites: TIG experience
This class deepens your knowledge of TIG welding and gives you the practice you need to hone your skills. You'll learn to hand-feed wire to fill gaps, and to create new forms in a variety of metals. Challenging exercises will allow you to gain the confidence to consider yourself a competent TIG welder. This class focuses on precise welding, including minimizing grinding and finishing. This is an advanced class, so bring ideas for projects that are feasible given the time and equipment available.

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TIG and Titanium
(Yearly)
Prerequisites: Beginning TIG
Want to learn to weld titanium? This one-day class teaches the basics of titanium TIG welding with standard shop equipment. You'll learn the properties of titanium and why it's tricky to weld. We'll cover techniques to avoid cracking and contamination of this sensitive metal, such as appropriate use of gas lenses and back-purging welds with argon to bring them down to a lower temperature. You'll see demonstrations and practice basic and some advanced welds in class. You should have experience with TIG welding. Please bring your gloves and wear suitable clothing.

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The Metal Sculptor's Tool Box: Cold Metal Fabrication
Entry-level
Learn many of the techniques required for metal art and sculpture as a complement to existing welding courses. For the person who may know how to weld, this course will cover the allied skills necessary to do light metal fabrication, sculpture, etc. The course will cover safety, metals and materials, layout, metals prep and finishing, but will concentrate mostly on the effective use of tools, including measuring tools, hand tools, hand power tools, and basic machine tools including sheet metal tools. It will include torch techniques such as plasma cutting and silver brazing. It will not include welding or machine tools like milling machines and lathes. The emphasis will be on hands-on practice and learning-by-doing projects.

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Art of the One-Speed: Building a Bicycle Frame
(Yearly)
Prerequisites: Beginning TIG, The Mother Machines
Have you ever wanted to make your own bicycle frame? Here is your chance. In this class, you will make a one-speed, chrome-moly steel mountain bike frame using proven geometric principles. Learn about TIG welding, brazing, machining of tubes, bicycle geometry, materials, construction techniques, fixtures and jigs. You'll leave this class with your own one-of-a-kind bicycle frame.

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