About MetalWelds

My name is Walter Velez and as most welders, I start my welding career by "Stick" welding regular steel, a SMAW (shield metal-arc weld) process, in technical terms. My ambition for welding in the early 80's was to build parabolic antennas, which in the early days of satellite TV where huge disks. My model had the best resolution in the region with 21 feet in diameter and weighting over a ton. I begun hand cutting, bending metal in a tree trunk and comparing the curvature in a wooden table, which served as a mold. As remote as it sounds, I did many tricks on the tree branches, until I perfected my technique. Successive projects were motorcycle trailers, vehicle hitches, motorcycle modifications, iron fences, gates, ornamental works, small buildings and occasional industrial repairs. As part of such metal works, I had learned to cut and brace with Acetylene-Oxygen torches.

In the late 80's, I worked for Turbine Casings, a division of Vought Aircraft. It was there that I learned how to clean surfaces of contaminants, identify cracks, grinding parts for specific weld penetration, usage of the plasma cutter and the world of rivets. Also, I was introduced to the TIG process, a GTAW (gas tungsten arc weld) technically speaking. This process is very slow, very expensive and difficult to apply, but it is the most precise and versatile. Most metals, including aluminum, stainless steel, magnesium, titanium, copper and many subsequent alloys can be welded using the TIG torch.

In the last 15 years I have opted for the MIG process, GMAW (gas metal arc weld), as known by the American Welders Society. This process is more adequate for sheet metal or light gage materials. It has a great advantage over the other processes; it is the fastest, easiest and economical, although it is somewhat restricted to indoor. The final product is fairly clean and as strong as any other process, if applied correctly. Since the beginning of 2000, have done many automotive repairs salvaging cars by cutting body parts, aligning and joining, for collectors only (Alpha Romeo's and Porsche's).

Also, I have done many iron fences, trailer modifications, industrial repairs and odd jobs at the customers' premises. Some small projects had required a high degree of confidentiality, such as attaching safe boxes into the building foundation or internal doors to guard industrial trade secrets. The most challenging has been constructing a safe room within a closet and the lightest has been reconditioning an aluminum canoe for the Texas Water Safari.