Please generally opinionize my welding table plans

[keith204]

I'm planning on quickly putting together some metal legs and a base on my welding table so that I can house the welder & gas tank, as well as pretty much all of my other welding tools.

I'm getting the angle iron for the legs tomorrow, and drew this up tonight to figure out how tall I should cut those legs.

Here's the rough, general layout.

I would love your opinions.

 

[xela456]

the angle on the legs is pretty wimpy. If your gonna weld/cut/grind on it, and its probably eventually gonna have some serious weight on it I'd go with 2x2x1/4". Unless you plan on bench pressing this table you won't notice the extra weight but it will make for a much sturdier table.
By the way I like the rest of it.

 

[keith204]

That was one of the things I was wondering about. Thanks for the tip.

If I go with 2x2x1/4 angle on the legs, can I pretty much avoid using braces to compensate for lateral force? 2" seems like a lot of steel.

 

[sk farmer]

very similar to mine only i used 3 inch tube. my top is thicker and i drilled holes on a 6 inch square pattern across the whole so i can bolt down most anything i want. i also mounted an old metal printer cabinet under it. it stores extra wheels, grinders and my welder extension cord. they stay clean and it prevents them from getting burned.

 

[jeepinerdeep]

You are building a cube on wheels, so that is helpful. You may not notice but if you ever want to park it solid, or get too flimsy on the bottom shelf, it will flex wrack and wiggle.

It may seem surprising, but even 2x3/16 angle is pretty flexible. So is that unsupported sheet on the bottom.

I think you need some triangles, But you gotta know what you want to do with it.

 

[xela456]

That was one of the things I was wondering about. Thanks for the tip.

If I go with 2x2x1/4 angle on the legs, can I pretty much avoid using braces to compensate for lateral force? 2" seems like a lot of steel.

An old time once told me as a rule of thumb, Under normal load if you take a material's dimension and double it in feet then thats about what its good for under normal load conditions without bracing.
So in this situation your 2" angle should be pretty solid up to about 4 feet.

I don't think theres any science to back this up, its just a general way to stay safe and kindof requires the use of some common sense. But if you've got alot of experience using these types of materials (i've got a fair amount, but def. not expert) you can picture these things. I'm thinking going much farther than 2 feet with 1/8 inch anything is kindof chinsey. Now 4 feet of 2x2x1/4 is still going to be pretty stiff.
Long story short, I think you'll be fine with no bracing unless your gonna put tons of weight on it. Additionally the good thing about metal is that its pretty easy to add whatever your want to.

 

[keith204]

Thanks for the tips. I wish I had gone bigger on the square tube, as I learned a lesson just now. The top was completely flat before I welded it, and the square tubing was straight. But, the whole thing is warped (the center is lower). I guess this would make sense, since the welding causes heat, and heat causes things to bend, and I didn't have it supported well in the middle. So, I may have to clamp it straight and run something else along side that 1.25 square tubing. If you have ideas on this, let me know. I can post pictures if that would help.

As for the base, yeah I definitely haven't thought much about the supports for that; my focus is layout for now. But maybe, angle iron with some sort of mesh. I'm open to ideas.

 

[AndeiH]

you might already know this, but try to weld short segments and then move to another spot to allow the first one to cool. i usually run 1 inch beads, this will help with warping.

i've been doing this since i read it on another forum and it seems to work for me. i'm just a hobbyist so others might have better advice.

 

[keith204]

you might already know this, but try to weld short segments and then move to another spot to allow the first one to cool. i usually run 1 inch beads, this will help with warping.

i've been doing this since i read it on another forum and it seems to work for me. i'm just a hobbyist so others might have better advice.

I did not know this. Thanks for the tip.

 

[AndeiH]

I did not know this. Thanks for the tip.

video from kevin caron on how to keep warping at bay, hope it helps

 

[BukitCase]

Good suggestions so far -

I realize you may be strapped for space, but I would NEVER NEVER NEVER put a welder (or bottle, for that matter) UNDER a table I used for cutting, grinding, filing, etc - UNLESS I was looking for an excuse to buy a bigger/better welder...

Virtually ALL welders have a cooling fan, and most newer than maybe 30 years old have ELECTRONICS inside -

Guess how well ELECTRONICS and (CONDUCTIVE) metal shavings/powders get along - and the finer the metal particles, the LONGER they stay AIRBORNE, and the more likely they will get SUCKED INTO your welder...

This is ALSO why the shortest torch I use on my MM252 and MM211 is 15 feet, and I ONLY move the welder as close to the work as it HAS to be to reach comfortably.

Another thing that makes this even WORSE - Miller (and by association, probably Hobart) has this NASTY habit of making the FRONT of the welder the air INTAKE (never DID understand THAT brain fart) - so they're even MORE likely to **** **** into the WRONG places - there are times when I'll even lean a piece of scrap plywood up against the front of the welder (NOT so it'll block air, just DEFLECT particles) to minimize **** INTAKE -

All the emphasis is INTENTIONAL - It's YOUR welder, I'm just tryin' to help you KEEP it... Steve

 

[bonacker]

Just one thought from me. A fire extinguisher should not be mounted to where the fire might happen. It must be accessible but away from machinery, welders, tools, etc. If your project were hanging over the end on the bench or welding cables draped over it, you might not be able to reach the fire extinguisher. Also, it may become damaged (the valve or gauge especially) when swinging steel pieces up on or off the table. I'm a retired firefighter and try to think ahead before a fire happens.

 

[crewchief888]

my thoughts echo a previous poster, i wouldnt want my welder and/or gas bottle under the table where i'm welding grinding or beating on something...


just my $0.02

 

[anndel]

You should leave the braces in your plans. From Structural Engineering and Dynamics, I see large moment arms without the side braces and any large weight or force by pushing (couple) will collapse the table to one side.