Zen and the Art of Welding

The real fun of doing a project like this is getting back to using your hands and building stuff.  One of the things I wanted to get back into was welding, which I hadn't done since high school. I needed to weld up a nice bracket for mounting my HVAC and electrical system on the tongue of the trailer.  I hadn't realized how much welding technology has changed in recent years and there's no reason that you can't be welding your own projects yourself quickly and inexpensively.  

You can learn everything you need to know from Youtube.  I am amazed every day what is on Youtube, and short of brain surgery, you can learn anything.  The best welding information site IMHO is "Welding Tips and Tricks".  Jody Collier is a professional welder and he deserves some kind of award for putting out a very good video every week for 10 years or so.  He covers all types of welding and even educates you on metallurgy from a layman's perspective.  Another site I like with more of a "this is how you fabricate stuff" approach is ChuckE2009.

Look on Craigslist for a used MIG welder for $300-$500.  Do yourself a favor and get a name brand like Lincoln, Miller, or Hobart. You can do everything you need to with a 140 amp MIG welder that can plug into your 115 V household current.

Here's my setup I used to build the tongue mounted frame.  The Millermatic 211 MVP is a beautiful welder - highly recommended.  Warning though - after you use a really high quality welder like a Miller or Lincoln, you won't be able to tolerate the cheap junk ones.