Welding Table

[GregWeld]

Check out the tables and the accessories for them...

This is just ONE page of the catalog posted as an easy link.

http://www.bluco.com/welding/catalogd16/tables.html

[rwhite692]

Here is a video w/the Bluco table.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uN9h4...layer_embedded

[GregWeld]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Yep Rob!!

The only difference between "our" tables and his -- is about 10 GRAND...

[Roadbuster]

Lots of good info here!
Mine on paper is 30 inches by 60 inches. Was planning on having holes around the frame under the top to bolt things to and a vice mounted. I was thinking of a 1/8 inch thick top shimmed level and bolted to the top but from everyone's posts that seems too thin. I was also planning on having the front open so I could roll things under it when not in use. Looks like I have to go to back to the drawing table and work on table mkII.

30 inches is the max width because I have to get through a door that is 31 inches wide.

Jon

[Garage Dog 65]

Hi Jon,

The Miller ArcStation above is also 30 x 60. Looks like I'll go with 36 x 36 or a 36 x 48 with a 3 or 4 inch overhang back to where the top support connects to the top for a clamp edge - while I'll also add a 1/2 x 13 grid of threaded holes inside the support so I can clamp Enco machine clamps as hold-downs in the grid.

1/4 top is to thin IMO. I'm going minumum 1/2.

Nothing wrong with redesign since you're still in the paper stage. That's the best time to make a change and is the reason I started looking for ideas before I chopped up a bunch of steel.

Jim

[Garage Dog 65]

Here is a top leveler design from the guys at offroadfab site that looks interesting if you need to have a very flat surface over time.

"The 1/2" plate top had five pieces of 1/2" x 1 3/4" bar stock welded to the underside of it, perpendicular to its length. So because of this the plate had a substantial bow to it. I needed to have a way to pull the middle of the plate back down (flat) so I welded three all-thread studs to each of the stringers making for a total of 15 studs. The studs are welded on the stringers at 16" centers giving me a left a right and a middle. On the frame that I built for the table I made five crossmembers with three tabs each to correspond with the all-thread, the all-thread studs pass through the tabs with a nut top and bottom each tab. Having a nut top and bottom lets me either pull the plate down (with the bottom nut) or jack the plate up (with the top nut). The plate only rests on the frame at the four corners (the 2 x 4 tube is welded 1/4" down from the top of the corner legs) so that if there was any bow in the frame upwards (which there wasn't) I would be able to still pull the plate to flat. Then it was just a matter of pulling or jacking with the nuts on the all-thread studs and the use of a straight edge to get the plate flat. It seemed to work well and if I did it again I would do it the same way."

Jim

[Garage Dog 65]

More interesting accessories.

Pull out tray with grid for torch/plasma cutting.

Installed grid with pull out stainless dump pan under top.

Dual round tube welded (or bolted) to leg with opening in middle to bend sheet/thin plate - 2 different sizes installed. (can store rod inside of tubes too)

A simple hangar bar

And one has tube openings in mid-leg to insert brackets to hold steel and tooling mounts. (some at the table height too work the same) I also saw one table designed with a telescopic table top end on the left side that had smaller dia tubes sliding the full length out of the upper top mount tubes (think expandable dining room table top). That allowed him to expand the table several feet bigger when needed. I'll see if I can find that again.

Jim

[Garage Dog 65]

Levelers and retractable caster ideas.

Jim

[GregWeld]

So here's the COMMON theme amongst most all of them:

They're HEAVILY built - with big heavy tops - heavy legs - and they're sturdy.

I don't want to see any more METAL working tables with particle board tops - that's just WRONG!

SO get busy building already!! You're over thinking it.

By the way - the 4' X 8' X 1/2" sheet I started with - weighs NINE HUNDRED POUNDS -- so be prepared to lift (somehow) some very heavy stuff! When they loaded the sheet in my PU -- I had them put some "dunnage" (I brought with me) UNDER the back end... I then welded D rings on all 4 corners... Hooked it to my hoist - and slowly pulled forward. I built mine upside-down and then tilted it on its side and then once more til upright - using my lift.

I found that if I put the cheapy car dollys under each leg at one end - I can lift the other with my floor jack and move it wherever I want to.

[Garage Dog 65]

Neat lock down system. Ball lock. Check link for desc.


http://www.brownmachinerysupply.com/...1A3C3B28535541