You’ve got the bug to start welding and have purchased your first welder. Now you’re ready to dig in. But where do you start? A great place would be with some small welding projects from scrap.
Using scrap metal will let you experiment without investing in expensive materials. Many items you may already have or you can easily find scrap metal at your local rummage sale or scrap yard.
Although some welding projects are hard work, these projects are fun to put together. It’s rewarding to combine pieces of scrap metal to form an interesting craft, decor item, or gift.
These welding projects will bring new life to old and discarded items. Below are some project ideas for inspiration and guidance.
Over 25 Ideas to Create Small Welding Projects from Scrap
Key Rings
The perfect project to get started with is this keyring. Once you master the technique, you can form items into many shapes and sizes. Besides key rings, these are also the perfect size for Christmas ornaments.
Barbie the Welder gives you the instructions you need to complete the project. And if you like this, you should check out her book about creating art from scrap.
Cross
I love this design, which creates a cross within the cross design using old spikes. It looks great painted black, which shows off the design details.
Signs
Create any combination of words with a variety of junk metal parts. With the enormous amount of junk metal available, the look that you create will be all your own. Make a word or a phrase to create signs for your home, barn, or workplace.
Dutch Oven Lid Lifter
For the outdoor chef, this dutch oven lid lifter is a great tool for cooking outdoors. Bruce from DIY Homestead Projects takes you through creating one with this video.
Trivet
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To go along with your lid lifter is an outdoor trivet for your dutch oven to sit on. After you complete both projects, you’ll be all set to do some outdoor cooking. Here is the video to create this useful project.
Hummingbird
Use forks and other utensils to make the cutest hummingbirds for a garden or indoor planter. Use them by themselves or create a flower to attach them to.
Butterfly
Grab some shoes and assemble a few other scrap metal items and put together a unique butterfly. Leave it rustic and finish with a topcoat or have fun painting it in brilliant colors.
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Hay Hooks
A handy tool that’s not complicated to make is the hay hook. Besides working well as a hay hook, this basic design is useful for a variety of tasks as a general utility hook. See the video to get the complete instructions for this project here.
Star
This classic star design looks great as a rustic barn decor piece or as a holiday decor item at Christmas time. Add a piece of leather or ribbon to give some character to the piece and then hang it in a favorite place.
Snail
Wouldn’t this snail look great in a rustic garden? By combining bicycle chains with other scrap metal items, you can create this cute welded garden decor item.
Valve Handle Flowers
A great design for indoor or outdoor garden enthusiasts is the valve handle flower. Attach it to some scrap metal, add some leaves from various junk metal items, and you have a winning design. Paint the valves in various colors to make the design pop.
Coat Hooks
This simple design has many uses at home, in your shop, and at the barn. Create distinct looks with these hooks by attaching any number of them to the wall or a piece of wood.
MIG Cable Hanger
Here’s a handy gadget that makes every welder’s life easier. A simple project, and one that will help keep you organized while welding. Follow the instructions found here to assemble this project.
Crow
We’ve all seen a variety of birds made of scrap metal, but how do you get started creating one? This video will go over some basics of how to assemble a junk metal crow. Once you get the basics down, you’ll be able to create a variety of similar projects.
Dragonfly
Dragonflies symbolize change and transformation, which is exactly what this project represents. Here you’ll find instructions to turn old scrap metal into a new dragonfly.
Owl
Junk metal owls are a popular scrap metal welding project. They can hang on a wall, be free-standing or like this owl, perch on a garden stake ready to display in your garden. These are popular gifts and to make for welding items to sell.
Flower with Base
Gather some railroad spikes along with some other junk metal and create this awesome piece of welded rustic garden decor. This straightforward project is a sure winner. Charles takes you through the steps to create this simple yet substantial piece of junk metal art.
Jewelry Tree
Customize this jewelry tree to hold a variety of jewelry items. It makes a wonderful gift to organize and display someone’s favorite jewelry pieces. Looks great with a top coat applied to it or paint it gold, bronze, or silver for a more elegant look.
Dog
Here’s one of my all-time favorite scrap metal projects. Many options are available to show off your scrap metal dog from out front at your house to a rustic garden accent piece.
Welded Plant Stand
Such a versatile project for either indoors or outside in the garden for your favorite plant or flowers. Here you’ll get the step-by-step instruction to complete this project in an afternoon.
String of Hearts
This awesome wall display is easy to make by tack welding a bicycle chain together into this string of hearts design. It would look nice on a wall by itself or mounted onto a piece of old barn wood. Leave it natural with a topcoat or paint in various shades of red and pink. Makes an ideal gift for your true love.
Butterflies
Old items from the kitchen can combine to create beautiful scrap metal butterflies. Use them to decorate your garden or plant them in your indoor plants.
Moose
The possibilities to create scrap metal animals from used auto parts are limitless. These make great gifts for the animal lovers in your life or to display in your home. This cute moose is an example of how creative you can get with scrap metal pieces.
Heart and Arrow
Show someone how love-struck you are by creating this design for them. Weld a metal cupid’s arrow between 2 hearts to achieve the look. Then mount it and apply some paint to complete the project.
Flowers
Get creative and design your own flower bouquets with old auto parts. These flowers are sure to outlast the real thing. They look great displayed indoors or outdoors in a garden.
Starburst
A cool welded project is this starburst design. Use one or a set of three to create rustic decor for your wall or doorway. It would also make a great wreath design, and it would be easy to add some decorative items to it.
Caterpillar
Old rakes are easy to find and make cute rustic decor items like this caterpillar design. Once completed, display it with pride in your garden.
Flowers
Endless possibilities exist to create a variety of flowers with old and discarded flatware. With the large variety of patterns available, no 2 flowers will look the same. Plant these flowers throughout your garden or make a bouquet for indoor use.
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Final Notes
Hopefully, you have been inspired by this article and now have a new hobby in mind. Creating small welding projects from scrap is a great way to learn how to weld. If you’re looking for more inspiration check out our welding projects page.
If you’re looking for a welder so you can get started welding your projects, check out a review of the best welders for hobbyists and DIY metalworkers here.
New to welding? Looking for some guidance to get you started? A great place to start is with a good how-to weld book or reference guide. Here you’ll find a list of top books for hobbyists and DIY metalworkers.
