Welding table top: Use 2 1/4" plates?

[ScaldedDog]

I have the opportunity to pick up a welding table pretty cheap, but it only has a 1/4" top. Could I use another 1/4" plate to make it a 1/2" top? I'm thinking I could countersink screws into the top one to hold them together.

Good idea? Bad idea?

Mark

 

[mossyboy6]

bad idea.

 

[raddksn]

My table has 1/4" top beefed it up with 2x2x1/4 angle iron. I don't do real heavy stuff but it's still pretty stout.

 

[t100]

if the one you have now is not terribly warped, there's nothing wrong using 1/4" top.

 

[csp]

bad idea.

Care to elaborate why?

 

[t100]

these 2 plates are tacked together around the sides, what happens when the top plate got hot and the bottom didn't?

 

[A_Pmech]

Two 1/4" plates with minimal shear coupling between them will be twice as stiff as one 1/4" plate in the axis in question.

On the other hand, a single 1/2" plate will be EIGHT times stiffer than a single 1/4" plate as stiffness scales as the section cubed.

 

[bad_idea]

Get the table. Use the table. Search out a piece of half inch plate for cheap. Cut off 1/4" top. Weld on 1/2" top. In the mean time you can use the table w/ the 1/4" top. If you find you need the thicker top, get it. If you find you hate the table all together, build a new one to your likings using the one you have to build it on. I built my weld table in the garage on a pair of saw horses. It was a pita.

I used two pieces of channel for the top welded together. While trying to flip it over it got away from me (about 260 lbs of steel there).

 

[gorilla]

Why do you want a thicker table top? If the 1/4" plate top is well supported it should be strong enough for anything you will be able to lift onto it without a forklift. If your looking for flatness 1/4" plate won't help you.

 

[csp]

these 2 plates are tacked together around the sides, what happens when the top plate got hot and the bottom didn't?

How is the top plate going to get hot and the bottom isn't? You don't think there will be any heat transfer from one plate directly in contact with the other?

How much temperature difference would there have to be to make any measurable effect?

Are we assuming that the table is completely flat (I hope not with 1/4" plates)?

There are so many possibilities of different situations where it might matter and just as many, and probably more, where it wouldn't.

 

[waggie]

damn, I thought you were asking if it were ok to use a two-and-a-quarter inch thick top for a welding table. got me all excited for nothin'

that said, get the 1/4 plate anyway, as long as it's cheap, you can always use it for something else later.

 

[reznunt]

Why do you want a thicker table top? If the 1/4" plate top is well supported it should be strong enough for anything you will be able to lift onto it without a forklift. If your looking for flatness 1/4" plate won't help you.

i agree. my 1/4" top works great and it's not warped. i use it for everything. here are some pics of it:

more pics of it at thefabfoundry.com

 

[Vegaman_Dan]

I'd go with 1/4" myself. If you're concerned about the structure integrity of it, then add more support under it. Angle iron is far cheaper than another huge plate that you'll have all sorts of thermal expansion/contraction issues with. Need more support? Slap more on underneath. Cheap, simple, fast.

By all means get that extra piece of 1/4" if you can though. That stuff is fantastic for so many projects as a surface plate, mounting plate, and general materials usage. I try to snag every piece of steel I can for projects in the future.

 

[t100]

How is the top plate going to get hot and the bottom isn't? You don't think there will be any heat transfer from one plate directly in contact with the other?

How much temperature difference would there have to be to make any measurable effect?

Are we assuming that the table is completely flat (I hope not with 1/4" plates)?

There are so many possibilities of different situations where it might matter and just as many, and probably more, where it wouldn't.

my first hand experience was the very first welding/work table I made. not 1/4" but 2 pieces of 3/16" plates.

I made the table with a smaller piece first. then later on I got a bigger piece. I stitch welded the bigger one on top the smaller one. the problem is the air gap in between the plates making the 2 plates warp over time.

no, unless they are blanchard ground, they are not flat.

my current one at home is 1/4" and it works just fine. If I get a thicker top, I'd just lay it on, pin it not weld.

 

[reznunt]

I made the table with a smaller piece first. then later on I got a bigger piece. I stitch welded the bigger one on top the smaller one. the problem is the air gap in between the plates making the 2 plates warp over time.

did you weld the outside only? maybe you could have made multiple slots in the top plate and welded them up so that the plates were essentially one piece. similar to what my buddy did on the center portion of my lower control arms, though these slots were filled to weld in reinforcement plate but you get the idea:

 

[383 240z]

And what are those LCA's for??? Keith

 

[reznunt]

And what are those LCA's for??? Keith

my tundra... here's the build thread:

http://www.thefabfoundry.com/showthread.php?75-My-1st-gen-Tundra-build-thread&p=204#post204

 

[Jack Olsen]

You might be surprised by the 1/4" top serving you well for the rest of your welding life.

 

[ranger302]

My welding table is 2 1/8" (11guage) plates welded together around the edge. I have had no problems with this setup. Your idea is not a bad one, but Just use the single 1/4" plate like Jack said you might be suprised.

 

[ScaldedDog]

Thanks guys. I ended up getting the table. It turns out the top is only 3/16", and is not completely straight. I'm not even sure the underlying frame is perfectly straight, but working on it should improve my welding skills as much as building a table from scratch would have, and I'll have a table to use in the interim. I'll probably use the current top till I need something better. Lots of uses for 3/16" plate, when the time comes.

Mark

 

[Steroblan]

Mark, If the 3/16" top is too light for you. Get another 1/4" sheet and drill a few 3/8" holes in it before laying it on top of the 3/16" top then clamp them together and plug weld them together. It won't distort if you skip around until the plugs are filled then grind and finish them smooth.

Steve

 

[Voi]

Mark, If the 3/16" top is too light for you. Get another 1/4" sheet and drill a few 3/8" holes in it before laying it on top of the 3/16" top then clamp them together and plug weld them together. It won't distort if you skip around until the plugs are filled then grind and finish them smooth.

Steve

I was going to do that with my table but plug weld from the bottom. Is there a reason you suggest through the top? Thanks from a newbie.

 

[Steroblan]

I was going to do that with my table but plug weld from the bottom. Is there a reason you suggest through the top? Thanks from a newbie.

No real end difference, same principle other than having to crawl underneath to weld or flipping the table.