Dr_Clyde's Shop Projects

[dr_clyde]

beautiful welds. i am new to welding. just curious, did you stagger your starts and stops so they aren't all in the same area? or does it matter?

Yes I did. It’s good practice to stagger your re-starts so you minimize potential weak areas.


In theory if done properly it shouldn’t matter, but a re-start is the area where a flaw is most likely to occur, so it’s a good idea not to have them all in one place.

 

[Opa]

thanks for the info about staggering. one more question if you don't mind. could you have done this job using FCAW-G? if so, why did you opt for solid? when would you consider using FCAW-G vs. solid wire? i am still learning. thanks.

 

[dr_clyde]

thanks for the info about staggering. one more question if you don't mind. could you have done this job using FCAW-G? if so, why did you opt for solid? when would you consider using FCAW-G vs. solid wire? i am still learning. thanks.

Customer asked for hard wire on this job, although FCAW-G would have been perfectly acceptable.

If I’m in the flat position and I don’t need the added deposition rate, hard wire is cheaper to run, no slag to deal with, and not near as much smoke.

If I’m doing a position weld uphill or on mill scale, or if I really need to lay down some metal in a hurry, FCAW-G would be a better choice.

I mostly don’t want to have to deal with the smoke and slag indoors, my shop is air conditioned and my fume extractor hasn’t been delivered yet. Having the doors open means hot and sweaty haha.

 

[Opa]

thanks again. very helpful info.

 

[sberry]

How long it take?

 

[dr_clyde]

How long it take?

It was a full day’s work. We had to clock and tack the flanges, weld and grind the groove welds, flip the parts over, set up the positioner and weld out the fillets.

 

[Strouty]

How much wire do you think you used?

 

[dr_clyde]

How much wire do you think you used?

Maybe 20 pounds? I used up a partial spool and got into a fresh one. Didn’t weigh it though.

 

[Strouty]

I figured it was quite a bit, deceiving when it is all stuffed into one area.

 

[dr_clyde]

Got the machine grey on the table this weekend. Used Benjamin Moore Corotech acrylic urethane. Really nice, high performance paint. I had bought a gallon of it for a customer project a while back and was really impressed, so I decided to use it on this, seeing as how I had half a gallon leftover.

Next up is the shelves for the base, the trays under the top, and to paint the highlights. I am going to do a blue stripe around the top to match my plate table, and I want to highlight the lettering. Should I go with white on the letters? Or should I paint those blue as well?

 

[zmotorsports]

Table turned out great, I'm kinda partial to machinery grey also.

 

[Strouty]

I like blue, it won’t get as dirty and should stand out better on the gray too.

 

[4 FN 27]

Looks awesome Doc!!!

 

[royce]

Dr Clyde
That is a great work platform.
It is hard to stress enough, the importance of level, flat and rigid, when it comes to fast,accurate and efficient fabrication.
Well done

Royce

 

[tarbellb]

Drool worthy.

Blue stripe, white letters, classy af.

 

[ez-duzit]

Drool worthy.

Blue stripe, white letters, classy af.

This. Blue letters have not enough contrast on gray.

 

[Strouty]

I have it figured out.

Paint the blue all around the section that is recessed, where the words are, then paint the letters white, that will pop and offer a nice contrast.

 

[Pressingonward]

Just found your thread and read through it. Very nice work, thank you for sharing! I've learned quite a few things from your posts as well as Tom Lipton's blog which you referenced.

 

[lilscorpion]

This. Blue letters have not enough contrast on gray.

I dunno, sometimes subtle crushes. The letters are embossed and already have a shadow look. I’d probably emphasize them just a little more by going dark grey...or tinting the grey you used to paint the table, with a dark blue.

It’s a highlight or a detail. The table itself is the focal point, the awesome.

 

[Jayman17]

Dr_Clyde, I really look forward to your updates, some really interesting, high quality work done on this thread. Your table looks fantastic.
Keep it coming!

Jay

 

[dr_clyde]

Here's the table after the blue stripe. It really makes for a nice contrast, while keeping my shop's "color scheme".

I also put new hardware on the corners, I didn't like the old painted bolts. 1"-8 grade 5 HHCS. They aren't even needed, they just hold the base on if you lifted up by the top and give me a place to bolt on ground strips.

I think I did a decent job matching my old table.

Now I need to cut some plywood and make the bottom shelves, bend up some debris trays and I still haven't made up my mind on the letters. I really like the idea of highlighting them with white, but I also am cool with just leaving them alone.

I'll make up my mind at some point.

 

[matt_i]

Really nice touches there, I like the additional copper strapping for ground!

I think either black or white accents for the raised lettering would stand out well on the grey, just need a paint pen/paint marker and a little time to work on it.

 

[Strouty]

It does look really good, if you paint the letters white and decide it isn’t what you want, it is easier to paint over with a darker color than it is the other way around.

 

[tarbellb]

That blue stripe is also a hip saver, a focal point to make sure you dont bash into it.

 

[don long]

Just read through your thread, learning lotz from your posts. I like your work and shop set ups as you moved around. I have a lathe , mill and big band saw
But I haven't got them set up to use much so I'm watching as you work your machines

Thanks

Don

 

[UT Man]

Good job...great ideas

 

[dr_clyde]

Finally got some real tooling for my Acorn table.

Strong Hand tools sells these clamps at a fraction of the cost of the Weldsale equivalent.

They are approximately $70 each, but the Weldsale ones are over double that!! Their cheapest drop in clamp is $165.00 for a 9" clamp!

Here they are next to the little brother clamps for the Strong Hand Build Pro. The Acorn clamps are much much heavier duty!

I bought a set of 4 each of the 12" and 16" varieties, that way I can clamp up a frame, 2 clamps on each side with some variability in height.

We have some work that will give them a workout in the next couple weeks!

 

[Strouty]

Those look awesome, now I want me an acorn table!

Will be interested in seeing what you are facing up using the new clamps.

 

[tarbellb]

$500+ in clamps, damn. Look good'n beefy tho.

 

[dr_clyde]

Hey guys,

We're having an open house and pig roast at my shop tomorrow. If you're in the West Michigan area and feel like a sammich and a beer, please swing by.

 

[Craptain]

If only I could make it. But Michigan is just a little bit far from Florida.
Have a great day.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

 

[thejimmy]

If only I could make it. But Michigan is just a little bit far from Florida.
Have a great day.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

I'll second that, hope everyone enjoys the eats and drinks, take some photo's and post them

 

[Strouty]

McMaster’s legal team will be dropping by for a bit.

 

[MadMechMaster]

That cover is a classic.

We're at our place in South Haven this weekend. If we make it up to Holland, I'll stop in. The wife wants to see some apple orchards though.

 

[rmack898]

McMaster’s legal team will be dropping by for a bit.

I don't think McMaster is a strict as Harley Davidson.

 

[Craptain]

How did the open house go?
I thought about you as I sat in my shop with a beer and pretzels.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

 

[dr_clyde]

How did the open house go?
I thought about you as I sat in my shop with a beer and pretzels.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

It went great! We had a great turnout. Had a couple members stop by. I was very busy hosting so I didn’t get a good opportunity to take any pictures.

We ate most of the 100# pig we roasted, and had a full house most of the afternoon.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by.

 

[dr_clyde]

Saw this on Oxtool's youtube channel the other day and I immediatly had to do it to my lathe.

Simple 1/2-20 threaded ball knobs off McMaster installed on the centering screw. Makes handling these CA toolblocks so much easier and ergonomic.

If you have an Aloris style post on your lathe, I highly recommend this cheap and easy upgrade!

 

[Strouty]

Very cool, a lot less clumsy I bet.

 

[dr_clyde]

Very cool, a lot less clumsy I bet.

The biggest benefit I've found is removing the tool from the rack. I don't have to get my fingers in between the tools to get a grip.