The old timer who told me my welding beads were too pretty

I was working a boiler retube at a paper mill in Baton Rouge about 2 years ago. This guy Dave, been a boilermaker since the 70s, watched me lay down a bead and said it looked like art, not a weld. He told me I was spending too much time making it look good and not enough making it hold under pressure. Been thinking about that ever since. Any of you ever get told your work is too clean and had to rethink your approach?

2 comments

2 Comments

fionarodriguez3d ago

I had a foreman in Pascagoula tell me my beads looked like a sewing machine ran over the plate. Told me to "rough it up a bit" because nobody wants to pay for a weld that looks like you were braiding their daughter's hair. I mean, I get it now but at the time I wanted to throw my hood at him.

barbararamirez3d ago

Hair braiding pays better than welding though...