New TIG welder--WOW!

[Kevin Ray]

After 12 years of bolting, riviting, screwing and adhering aluminum together with chewing gum, we just put our new tig welder on line last week. We have a guy who has been welding for 35 years teaching the students (and mentors). Everyone walks away with the biggest silly grin on their face after trying it for the first time.
I can't believe how easy it is to get a good weld on aluminum! I've welded before, but never with tig. We actually have to refrain from wanting to weld everything! The best part is, we were able to get about 20 people to try a hand at it so far. Some of the kids really have a knack for it and will probably end up doing most of the necessary welding on the robot this year.

This was made possible when our school district realized that one year's robotics graduates brought in more than 10x the scholarship money than all sports scholarships COMBINED! The school board now realizes the importance of investing in the team's development.