Hey everyone,
I’m in the process of making a sign for my office. So far I’ve cut the front plate on the plasma cutter, and now I need to figure out a way to space it away from the wall. I’m considering welding some bolts to the back, but am unsure what type of bolt to use. I know galvanized metal is a NO-NO, and it seems like all the other options are stainless steel. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Thank you!
Threaded rod? But honestly think I would weld a hook or slotted sheetmetal onto the back and have the “male” part of the bracket in the wall or frame you’re using.
Just be careful as welding will discolor and/or warp that pretty fast. There are adhesives you can use. Or if it needs to be more sturdy, drill holes and use bolts or pop rivets (I like the look of rivets).
Every time I’ve made a sign like that, I figure out where I want to put the mounts, drill a hole then use threaded rod.
Weld from the front, grind then either powder coat or clear coat.
Doing that will allow you to remove the discoloration from the front and if you weld with a series of small tacs at a slightly lower heat, it will help prevent warping.
Another couple of quick pieces of advice I just thought about…
When you grind on the welds on the front, start with an 80 grit flap disc then move to 120. And also use that same flap disc to remove all of the mill scale when you grind your welds down or they will show through on your powder coat and definitely on just a straight clear coat.
As for galvanized threaded rod, cut the rod to the length you want (I usually go about a .25 inch over to have room to clean up the ends, etc), then find a bowl with a lid.
Drop your cut threaded Rod pieces into the bowl, cover with vinegar, put the lid on and let it sit for a couple of days and that should remove the galvanizing.
You can always go the muriatic acid route, which is a lot faster but…
That wouldn’t really work.
It would have to be more of a U bracket, and even after you got it attached to the sign, you’re going to have to figure out how to attach it to the baseboard which is going to be a bit more difficult then it would seem at first thought.
Holy crap…that guy totally looks like he is about to hurt his finger!!
Ask a 100 people & you will get 100 different answers.
110, probably… the ten percent rule…
Thanks everyone for your feedback. I think I’m going to go with some metal standoffs I bought online. I started to mess with degalvanizing some screws, but think the standoffs that screw into the wall will be easier. Now I just need to make sure I can match the color of stainless to the finished mild steel. I hope to Mount LED lights behind it and will post a picture once it is complete.
UPDATE: I just secured a piece of aluminum for a good price, and want to try machining it on the plasma cutter. Is there anything I should be aware of before doing this? If I input the correct material and thickness, will the machine be able to cut it properly?
