Talking to an old fitter made me question my whole weld test prep
Ngl, I always thought the way to pass a boiler weld test was just reps. Grind, weld, repeat. That's what I did for years and it worked fine. But last Tuesday I was killing time before a job in Toledo and this retired fitter, 68 years old, starts chatting me up at the supply house. He asked to see my test coupon and just shook his head. Said I was burning too hot on the cap pass and that's why I kept getting those tiny little pinholes near the end. I told him I'd been doing it this way for 7 years, he said 'yeah, and you probably got lucky on your last 3 tests.' That hit different because he was right. I had failed my last 2 6G tests before that job. So I tried his trick, lower the amps by 15 and let the puddle sit an extra second before moving. Passed my recert this morning first try. Anyone else ever get a tip from an old timer that made you rethink what you thought you knew?