Like many apprentices I learnt basic welding and have used this skill from time to time. But like a lot of skills they can get rusty without regular use. A few years ago I did a basic panel-beating course at Bracken Ridge TAFE and they accepted my previous training in lieu of the otherwise mandatory oxy acetylene-welding course prior to the panel-beating course.

A friend who is a JDCQ club member accepted a transfer to another state and offered me his oxy acetylene-welding outfit at a very reasonable price. I have since used it for numerous jobs, which primarily involved heating but had not got around to any serious welding.

During my last period of holidays I decided to remedy this by getting in some serious welding practice on bits of discarded Datsun 120 Y panels and the remains of a XJ 6 tank cover panel. Finally I felt confident enough to have a go at some rust repairs and skin cracks in one door of the MK 5 and I am happy with the results.

I recommend that persons who have never been involved in welding or panel beating check out the TAFE courses available, which appear to be published every semester. You need to be quick, as these courses are very popular and get filled up quickly.

Tools We had interesting results on my article on “tool snobbery”. One club member quite correctly endorsed the view that if you have to use them every day in business then only the best will do and I go along with that concept. At the same time I have had some club members tell me of visits to their local pawnbroker where they secured tools at very little cost.

This magazine is widely circulated and the readers will involve professionals and amateurs from all walks of life. It is not my role to tell people how to go about their business. The article was intended to alert club members to alternatives in sourcing tools and from feedback it appears to have achieved that result.