Brandon Welds a Napkin Holder

I have been teaching Brandon [my grandson] to weld and he loves working in the shop and making special projects. Brandon is 15 and has Autism.  He has been using my hood, gloves and apron and I thought it was time he had his own gear, so here he is working on a napkin holder with his new gear on. We'll go through the steps of making the napkin holder...

Step 1: Final Product - Welded Napkin Holder

Here is what the finished product looks like after being welded and painted....Now let's go through the various steps of how to get to this point...

Comments

[cammers]

Well done. Beaut Instructable.
And a nice example of the tremendous value of grandparents in our lives.

[Robot Lover]

This is really cool! Although, I am 15 and I weld but I don't use all of the leather protection. Brandon should take it off (if that is okay with you and him). It's kinda cool because when his friends ask him how he got only sunburns on his arms and those weird burn spots, he can say that got them from welding.

[woodsmart]

Safety is the number one product in grandpa’s shop. Brandon got introduced to eye and ear protection when he was about ten years old and helping build birdhouses and plant holders. Wearing the safety gear is just a normal thing for him now while he’s in the shop. Its always good practice to wear all the protection you can while welding to protect from sparks or hot metal. Its amazing how one of those little hot sparks can find its way inside your shoe or down the back of your neck.

[Robot Lover]

I respect that. The first thing you will notice when a spark gets in your shoe is how good you can dance!

[TeslaFreakshow]

Ive welded shirtless once, bad idea.

[Kiteman]

Oh, no.

I've had welding sunburn before - it is really not fun.

[Jayefuu]

It was fun. For us :p

But +1. While the right pro might not be "cool", it's definitely necessary.

[Kiteman]

Huh, my arms lost so much skin, I practically snowed when I removed a shirt!

[Jayefuu]

Brittliv wasn't told either :p

[kcli]

Brandon looks like one happy guy with a very special grandad. Beautiful work!

[ChrysN]

Nice work!

[Kiteman]

Excellent job!

(At 15, Brandon can have his own account as well, you know. It's a safe site to practise independence and interacting with others.)