Metal artist Mike Beaudoin specializes in custom-made creations
It’s not your typical showroom; nonethe-less, Tinker’s Welding, located at 633 – 13th Ave. NE, has a fine display of Mike Beaudoin’s creative metal artwork for sale. He has been with Tinker’s Welding for the past year and is happy to be there. “The way the economy is these days, there was nothing much going on,” says Beaudoin, “so Tinker’s Welding has made this worthwhile. “Everyone here is very creative and invents things; that’s our expertise. It’s just the people at Tinker’s; they are so brilliant!” With over 40 years of experience as a metal artist, Beaudoin can do it all, when it comes to creating exactly what the customer wants, made of steel & stainless or aluminum. Whether it’s a ranch sign, a scene, a pieces of metal artwork or whatever, he can do it to spec. Some of Beaudoin’s signs have even extended to 66’ long. “Everything I do has a story behind it,” he says. “It is all specially created for the people.” He hand-draws and cuts everything from bison to ranch scenes, dragons to hummingbirds, and everything in-between. The hand-crafted work is designed to withstand the elements and will last for decades. How does he do it? He says he prefers to work outside and uses a hand-controlled plasma cutter, not computerized. Each cut is intrinsically set into the design exactly where he wants it, creating one-of-a-kind masterpieces. Beaudoin not only creates for local customers, he had been commissioned to do pieces for communities throughout the province and country. You can see one of his masterpieces outside the high school in Estevan. Recently, Beaudoin has discovered that farming metal discs are a great canvas to create beautiful artwork and each one is unique in it’s character and design. Shop Supervisor at Tinker’s Welding, Lance Mielke is one of the current owners of the business for the last two years and says he is proud of the work they do there. “We do specialty metal work here; we’re small and looking to grow but it has been a steady two years,” he says. “We have a wide range of skills here and we try and utilize our employees to their strong points. Tinkers Welding “specializes in excellence” and can do: steel & stainless/ aluminum/fabrication/mobile welding/design build/industrial design services/CAD and probably anything else metal-related you require. You are welcome to drop by their location at 633-13th Ave. NE during office hours or call for more information at 306.692.0994/c306.537.8492. Mike Beaudoin is usually on site creating a new masterpiece and would be more than happy to speak to you when it comes to your custom metal work needs.