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Some people might find it odd to find welding equipment listed on a survival site. I think it depends on how you look at it. If you’re talking about the complete downfall of humanity, no traces remaining, living in the woods type of survival, then sure, no need for knowing how to weld.
Back in the real world, no matter how bad it gets, there’s always going to be some type of metal available to work with. With that being said, you need to have the ability to form said materials. There’s what I consider basically four methods of forming stuff from metal.
- Foundry work: It doesn’t get more basic than this. Using high heat, you turn the metal into a liquid that you pour into molds (usually a sand mold that is in the shape of what you’re trying to make, or cast from metal), let cool, and polish/grind down to the level of finish you need. Great way to make parts that you can’t buy or create by welding
- Blacksmithing: Basically beating the metal into shape with a hammer. ‘Nuff said.
- Machining: Under most circumstances, outside the realm of a survival situation. That being said, if you look into the Gingery Metalworking shop from scrap series at Lindsay Books, you could probably easily come up with a way to power the equipment with human or natural methods, like wind or water.
- Welding: This is what this page is going to be about. Welding is taking bits of metal and using some type of fusion method to mechanically bond the bits together.
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