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WARNING: This is not an inexpensive or fast way to get a serviceable commuter bike - atmo. Self-Framebuilding seems to be one place where the Magic Triangle of Speed-Quality-Cost breaks down. My first one will have taken 6 months to make including practice, will probably be un-ride-able and cost me >$1000 for a frame (no fork). You may do better - I'm slow. By my calculations, a used touring bike (Surly or Trek 520) is a much faster (ie you'll be riding it sooner), cheaper alternative.

My Experience:
I've learned a ton from the three boards that I know of and a local builder who has been in business for decades. He allows me in the back to talk with the frame guy and has given me tons of guidance and stories. It's amazing how friendly and helpful the folks who practice this craft are. I have been on this journey for about 4-5 months now and have been given or offered practice tubes/lugs/flux/filler and tons of advice, guidance and a few 'oh crap, you burned the hell outta that!'. I've burned more tubes and flux than I care to admit.

I think I've done about 30-40 practice joints, torn apart a '90's Bianchi to replace the downtube and add some braze-ons and built some fixtures for my real frame - learning all the way. I finally feel like I'm ready to try putting together something that will be 'ride-able'. I'm pretty sure I won't be able to ride it in a straight line with no hands but, I'm hoping to be able to ride it to the grocery store without crashing. My 2nd frame will be better and for #10 , I'll aim for good enough to use on regular group rides. I'm a slow learner.

Assuming you're starting from zero, your first joints will likely be blobs of black junk. You will think they are near perfect - I did. Find someone local who knows about brazing thin walled tubes. Take them some samples (and beer) and it's likely they'll give you some sound advice. Better yet, they'll do a demo for you. Listen, watch and try to absorb as much as possible. Posting pictures on the boards can be effective and can give you some insights and directional guidance. Buy flux and filler from bike suppliers (Nova, Cycle Design, Gasflux, Henry James, etc.) not your local welding supply store. Don't worry about Silver or stainless steel at this point. There's a good thread on www.Velocipedesalon.com about torches - they can be expensive ($300+ including 2 medium sized tanks of OxyAcetelyne from a local supply house)

All of the above is the fun part. The dangerous part is that this is an addictive pursuit. You'll find yourself at your computer at 2am scouring through frame building supply sites dreaming about your next (or first) build and how you can make a living off of this (see posts on these boards re: this)!

Patience and luck to you my friend!
Duane