Hey Dave;
I know I'm not the Todd you're asking about, but I decided to break my silence with a welder recommendation.
I had a very hi end Miller AC/DC TIG welder at my disposal for years as a loaner from work, but then the first time someone other myself borrowed it, it was stolen and the company decided not to replace it, so I had to finally buy my own TIG machine. I nearly bought this one,
and I think it would be suitable for your needs. I didn't buy it because of our falling dollar and unrealistic shipping fees nearly doubled the price which brought it up to the same price as a better machine available locally. But I think for your needs it is likely a good fit and you can try it out and return if you don't like it.
Now as to your lack of confidence in your ability to ever learn welding, I feel compelled to point out that you are a surgeon, a trade that surely requires a great deal of intelligence, confidence, and hand-eye coordination. No offence to any trade welders out there... but written on the bathroom wall here at work "what do you say to a guy with an IQ of 40??.... Nice Weld. Also in one of the stalls above the toilet paper roll it says "Welding tickets, take one" Yeah welders get a hard time here at work :-)
Point is I'm certain that if you've mastered surgery then you've likely got the skill set required to become a decent hobby welder. Lots of info on Google/YouTube and practice, practice, practice.
Now if you've got some structural integrity but your welds still look like crap then get a supply of these disks.
with these you can clean up almost the ugliest welds. Much better that a grinding disc or regular sanding disc.
Even if your welds do look good these discs are great. I've got 3 grinders and one always has one of these discs on it while an other is always equipped with a Zip-Cut blade. These are probably the most used tools in my shop.
Todd
C-FSTB
13BRV9