Welding Table

Posted by 141drew Jun 16, 2009 at 1:45 AM and filed under Reviews & Features

Updated on May 28, 2021 at 11:37 AM

I’ve always wanted one of those bad *** welding tables you see in super high-end fabrication shops. I figured they were… well, fabricated by the folks that use them. Apparently, that’s not always the case. The above is Strong Hand Tool’s BuildPro Welding table. It features a top of ground-steel 5/8â€³-thick plates that feature CNC-machined 5/8â€³ through-holes spaced in a grid every 2â€³ apart. The table is flat to within 0.004â€ per foot and the hole spacing is accurate to ±0.0015â€³. The whole damn thing weighs close to 600 pounds and will set ya back over $2000.

Ouch.

Max out your credit card here.

See Comments on the forum.

View thread (25 replies)

35mastr

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

That is only a welding table of my dreams. I wish I could afford one of those.

Looks like you could clamp just about anything to it to jig up,.

1320stang

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

Man, I think you'd have to run a tap down those threaded (they are threaded, aren't they?) holes a lot. Plus knocking off all the dingleberrys on the surface, I don't know.

A_Pmech

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

These are considered the cats meow of welding tables:

http://www.acorniron.com/products/platen.html

They don't use threaded connections to the table, instead relying on cast-in square holes and clamp brackets. They work very well.

35mastr

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

Last time I looked at one. They wanted 10k for it used but in like new condition.

A_Pmech

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

35mastr said:
Last time I looked at one. They wanted 10k for it used but in like new condition.

That must have been a pretty big one, or it came well tooled.

You can get a 5x5 platen with stand new from Acorn for about $4,200 to your door. The 5x5 platen is right at a ton, so bring friends or a forklift.

But the clamps are $50 to $100 EACH, so it does add up fast! :shocking:

ralfs56

Active member

Jun 16, 2009

We built a table that looks similar. No holes though, and it sure isn't flat to 0.004".
However it is handy as hell. I think we've got about 300.00 in ours.

krehmkej

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

I built a table with a 1/4 sheet steel top then found a number of 1/2" thick steel plates 6x16 inches at the scrap yard. I set these on top of the table with lengths of 1-1/2" square tubing beneath them. Easy to slide around to arrange. Usually I just clamp the work to the plates. I also drill a few 3/8" holes as needed for additional clamping. Works for me and was CHEAP.

Nortonscustom

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

A few years ago I did some side work at a fab shop that had eight Bluco tables. The owner said the larger table ran about 30 grand fully tooled. But those things were out of this world nice! http://www.bluco.com/welding/applications/index.html

Norton

alex71

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

Here's one I picked up from a machine shop closing down for $800. about 3 feet by 6 feet, almost 7 inches thick precision ground cast iron. Just need to get my hands on a mag drill so I can dill a bunch of 1/2" holes for clamping.

Ryan

Administrator

Staff member

Jun 16, 2009

Wow... I bet that thing is HEAVY.

765kVFlash

Member

Jun 16, 2009

Not counting the weight of the stand, I'm swagging 4700 lbm (2 3/8 tons)!

This does not include the weight of the various attachments...

Sweet. Beats my 16" x 24" x 3/4" table(ette).

:lol_hitti

alex71

Well-known member

Jun 16, 2009

If you're referring to mine, I don't think its quite that heavy. The bottom of it is lightened (a webbing pattern is cast underneath, with the perimiter and the edges, as well as the sides of the table machined. I think its about 2" thick at its thinnest point.

BTW a few months ago there was a 5x5 acorn table with stand for sale around here for $1,500... I had to pass, because I didn't have room for it, plus a guy can go broke buying all the clamps. Those things are crazy expensive.

Just recently I saw a craigslist ad with an 8x8 acorn (or acorn style, anyway) table for sale for $3,000. They claimed it weighed 4 tons.... That would be perfect for chassis fabrication.

Last edited: Jun 16, 2009

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woodbox

Active member

Jun 19, 2009

I agree with the comments about having to tap out the threads and remove dingleberrys from the surface. I painted mine and this provides enough of a barrier to just let the weld spatter bounce off onto the floor.
My bench weighs about 2.5ton, is made from 8" I beam frame with crossmembers and a 1" plate on top, milled flat with a datum line down the middle and 4 big caster wheels to move it around the shop. Originally made for a Ford assembly plant locally, I picked it up from a scrap metal dealer for $500.00......what a steal.....I would probably give up one of my kids before my bench!

Nortonscustom

Well-known member

Jun 19, 2009

Not sure about the table pictured but on the high-end tables the holes are not threaded. When you turn the lock screw on the tooling, balls push out the bottom and lock it in from underneath. They also have blank plugs to pop in the open holes once you're setup. The different shops I've worked at have always had spray cans of anti-splater, spray down your platen and fixtures before starting and you're good to go. Stuff works great.

Norton

alex71

Well-known member

Jun 19, 2009

I've done a bit of welding one mine. The table is normally coated with wd40 (midwest humidity+bare cast iron=rust). I clamp the parts to it and spray a bit of anti-spatter spray on the weld joint. Weld spatter does not stick to to the table at all, and not just in the spot where a bit of the anti-spatter spray hit it.

bmwpower

Super Moderator

Staff member

Jun 19, 2009

Ohhh someone please find me the pict of that racing shop with the red tables.....can't find it.

alex71

Well-known member

Jun 19, 2009

the one with the wall of snap-on boxes? it was on some desert race forum. I must have read the thread over 10 times

when I first saw it.

sorry, no link

bmwpower

Super Moderator

Staff member

Jun 19, 2009

alex71 said:
the one with the wall of snap-on boxes? it was on some desert race forum. I must have read the thread over 10 times when I first saw it.

sorry, no link

Yea, that's it. Everything was red...for the team colors or something.

Gosh darnit I wish I could find it.

Vinko

Well-known member

Jun 20, 2009

the edge of my platen. No threading. Let's see if I can find a better pic.

Here, we go: represent :rocker:

Last edited: Jun 20, 2009

184SC

New member

Mar 13, 2013

DOes anyone know what size holes are in the bluco tables. Im thinking about building my own. I don't feel like paying 30K for a table when i have all the materials in my shop. So I figure I build my table and use their clamps and so forth.

sberry

Banned

Mar 13, 2013

I would sell it if it was given to me. Mine are crude but there was one here that was about the best and wich I could find it, had a drawer or 2. In a general shop I want a common flat plate table.

lzenglish

Well-known member

Mar 13, 2013

I love my old, Linotype "Turtle Table", which is built like a sherman tank.

Wayne

sberry

Banned

Mar 13, 2013

That machine shop deal for 800 was a bargain, I dont care for holes, maybe if I had to and even by hand can punch one in a few minutes but my benches are work benches for other things besides welding and dont want **** falling thru every time I set it down. Even dirt.

If its cheap, if I really had a special use its ok but after working on more than a few benches doing general fab and repair wouldnt spend the money on anything terrible special. Organized around your bench very important, bench itself not so much but like a shelf under half way up. Solid top with lip for clamping 1/4 thru 1/2, easy to cut or drill a hole thru even fix.

Mine are super crude but I kind of designed the general nature of it, 2 benches, one with vise and one without bolted to floor. The thing worked so good despite being cobbled that I never built anything fancy.

toomanytoyzz

Well-known member

Mar 14, 2013

I'm with sberry. Those type of tables definitely have a purpose in the wonderful world of fabrication, but for the normal guy who does occasional welding in his garage they are a little overkill. Like others have mentioned they allow stuff to fall through which can be a real PITA especially if you are unleashing the BFH on an object mounted to it. :evil:

If you are building custom frames or restore vintage roadsters etc. They are invaluable in getting the chassis square and within specs.

Here's a link to a mammoth in NJ. http://southjersey.craigslist.org/tls/3641809383.html It weighs in at 3 tons so I don't think it can go First Class at the post office :lol_hitti

. It's been on CL for quite some time now. I'm sure he would be willing to deal, but moving something like that into your large garage or pole barn would take some thinking and heavy machinery.

Here's mine below. It' a simple crude design, but gets the job done. What I like about it is the 1 1/2" top which is basically like a large anvil on wheels.