I have just come across the LINCOLN ARC WELDING FOUNDATION web site
They have a great number of resources at very good prices,
Books are lower than anywhere including Amazon and ebay.
But the kicker is for $4.50 (when you order 10 or more) they ship a set of metal pieces for learning and practicing with.
I bought 5 for myself to use.
http://www.jflf.org/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=METAL
It would be great if we added this metal sample kit to the welding class for each student.
raise the class fee by $5 if we need to.
I am even willing to order and stock the sample kits a DMS to help.