Did some welding today...

You are going to have alot of grinding when you go to remove those braces. It should be plenty stout though. I noticed you marked the passenger seat.

As I'm just finishing my 6-year long project, I can tell you this much: it's worth it. I've been involved with project cars since my freshman year in high school in '76 and yet with every car, there comes a point where you wonder if it's worth it, when time and money are short and you get sick of the whole thing. But persistance pays off every time, so keep taking pictures and do whatever's needed to stay motivated. Go to car shows, look through magazines, buy instructional videos but stay focused and try to do something, no matter how small, every day. It'll be done before you know it.

if that is a flux welder, dump it. those welds look terrible if you are using a flux welder, dump it and get a mig. trust me

Although welding with Argon does make it easier to make nicer welds, flux-core wire can be used to make surprisingly good welds, regardless of what anyone thinks or says. Just like anything, setup is the key, if you can't weld without gas, you can't weld with it any better. Although I'm primarily a machinist, one of my duties is to do balancing as well. I was called out of the shop to balance a 1000hp electric motor a while back, and when it came time to weld the balance weights on the motor's cooling fan, I had to use the 110v, flux core welder they had at the location. It was a Lincoln and looked exactly like yours. After a couple practice beads on some scrap, I was amazed at how well it worked. The thing made nice, solid, spatter-free welds that couldn't have been done any better had I been using a sheiding gas. If I was to give you some advice, I'd say crank up the amps a bit and move slower. Good welds on sheetmetal should be on the verge of blowing through. Your kinda look like they're sitting on top. But then again, you are welding temporary bracing in an old Mustang not welding the solid rocket booster tanks on the space shuttle. Function is more important than beauty.

Hey, that's exactly how you learn! If it's too lumpy, either your wire speed is too high, or your amperage is too low. The problem with just starting out is you likely have never seen it done right, so you have no frame of reference. There's one tip I got many years ago that seems to work if I get my settings all screwed up, regardless of welder type or brand. When you're welding and all is well, it should sound like frying eggs. I know that sounds goofy, but it works for me. I just keep fiddling with the settings until it makes a nice, steady "frying sound" with no interruptions. Another thing that helps a LOT with welding is to get the metal as clean and as free of paint as you possible can. That means for the ground cable, too. Bad ground equals bad welds. Once you're done welding, look to see how much wire is sticking out of the tip. If more than about 1/2" to 3/4" is sticking out, you have your wire speed too high. You'll learn all this as you go, but the trick is to keep trying different setups and how each knob affects your style.