I bet you cannot imagine a world without welding and welders. Without the proper use of metals, there is no civilization. And for that reason, many contests take place in different parts of the world to recognize and reward the best-performing welders in the world. Do you know who are the 3 best welders in the world? No? Well, you’re about to find out.
You will always hear about the top two welders of the universe in every blog and welding forum. The most accredited welders in the world are Anton Kamenskikh from Russia and Chandler Vincent from the United States. However, Justin Friend of Texas is also one of the bests, with a yearly salary of $140,000, which is many times more than the average.
In this article, I have listed the three most famous welders and have detailed the struggles they made to earn glory. If you are passionate about welding, you will find this article interesting. Knowing about the practices of the best welders of the world can inspire you in your job if you are a welder yourself or looking to become one in the future.
3 Of The Best Welders in the World
Here I have listed the three most famous welders of the world. The first two of them are professional welders who have won many welding competitions to justify their position as the best of the bests. The third best welder on my list is famous for his dedication to the profession and a fat salary of $140,000 per annum.
Anton Kamenskikh
The Russian welder Anton Kamenskikh is undoubtedly one of the best welders in the world of today. He was born in a village called Smolenskoye in the Tver region of Russia on March 17, 1990. After completing his secondary education in Moscow, Anton joined a vocational school at the age of 16. After that, Anton studied in a community college for two years.
The world came to know about Anton Kamenskikh for the first time in 2015. Anton contested in the International Welding Competition and achieved the third position in that year. By profession, He has had a very successful electric and gas arc welder career in Gazprom Transgaz Tchaikovsky for the last 15 years. Anton’s workplace supplies all the pipes to the gas fields of East Russia.
Anton’s duties in Gazprom Transgaz Tchaikovsky include fault diagnosis, maintenance, and repair of all the welding machines and welders. He also oversees the quality control phase of the company. A member of the Russian Federation’s Solidarity Fund for Trade Unions, Anton won the 2019 championship of ACIWC, held in China.
Chandler Vincent
A young welder from Utah, Chandler Vincent is already a big star of the welding world. How the high school dropout Vincent became one of the best welders in the world is a curious story. His journey is dramatic. After dropping out of high school, Chandler Vincent took welding classes at Uintah Basin Applied Technology College. His mother was his inspiration to choose welding as a career.
After completing just one semester of the welding course, Chandler began competing in different competitions in North America and earned fame as a great welder. He was awarded the Best of Nation title after winning numerous trophies. As a result, he attracted attention from the whole USA. Chandler took part in the WorldSkills Competition of Abu Dhabi to make his country the best in that international competition.
Vincent Chandler worked for 15 to 16 hours per day during his training phase for the competition in Abu Dhabi. The training period was the most challenging part of his career when he did not earn any salary for two years. He was so obsessed with welding that he often forgot to eat, and for once, his colleagues hospitalized him when he got sick from working too much.
Justin Friend
Many people thought it was a mad decision for Justin Friend to attend a welding course at Texas State Technical College after graduating from high school. They speculated so because both parents of Justin worked as university teachers with doctoral degrees. Justin must be thanking God for not listening to people since his yearly income as a welder is more than $1,40,000.
I consider Justin Friend one of the best welders not only for his payment. His dedication to the profession is noteworthy. Justin works 72 hours each week. On average, he manages to work 12 hours each day. He does so by missing weekends and doing overtime shifts. His dedication brought him a great job with a $401,000 retirement plan and paid vacations.
What led Justin to quit his dreams of university degrees and go for welding is interesting. It proves the foresightedness of the young chap. He analyzed the total national loan for studies, which is $1.3 trillion. He decided that there is a mismatch between the expense of university degrees and the job opportunities they can create.
What Gives Some Welders The Title “Best”?
The biggest welding competition is the Arc Cup International Welding Competition- ACIWC. All the finest welders of the world prepare themselves for this event to prove the superiority of their craftsmanship. The organizers have kept the event open to all the welders who have completed a welding apprenticeship.
The most prestigious welding competition in North America takes place each November. You will find the names of some welders who consistently do well to prove their supremacy if you analyze the winners of the past few years of those competitions. We have picked 2 of the top names from the competition to determine the best welders in the world.
However, you can also find some of the finest welders in the regions where there is a good demand for quality welders, and they can earn handsome salaries. Offshore rigs or Bakken oil fields always need great welders to maintain their oil pipes. Moreover, the oil businesses of North Dakota and the aerospace and energy industries of West Virginia also praise skilled welders.
Some Common Qualities of the Best Welders
If you analyze the lifestyle of all of the three best welders, you will find some common factors in each of them. They are hard work, dedication, proper training, and creativity.
Hard Work
All the best welders know welding requires a lot of hard work. One must focus on his work for hours, wearing those heavy gears. Besides, you do not get to sit or stand appropriately while welding. It makes the job even more challenging.
Dedication
Anton Kamenskikh, Chandler Vincent, and Justin Friend- all the best welders possess a complete devotion to the profession. They made it to the top by proving their dedication to each step towards glory.
Proper Training
All the finest welders realized the importance of training to become good welders at the beginning of their careers. They received formal training from reputed training institutions to become the best.
Creativity
Hard work, devotion, and training have played crucial roles to take the best welders in front of the door of success. However, the key to the door is creativity. If you fail to blend in creativity with all other qualities, you will fail to achieve the supreme position in the welding profession.
Final Words
If you are new to the welding profession or want a breakthrough, you should learn from the 3 best welders in the world. You should learn from their lives and works to see your name beside the best welders.
The first thing you should try to copy is their devotion to the profession. The rest of the qualities will automatically follow.
