Welding fixture tables Nearing Completion

This was a huge undertaking and I wanted to thank everyone that helped. @TBJK @nugen @rlisbona @MTLmanglr and a few others I might have missed.

It all started with two sheets of plate that Randy and I bought off of Facebook marketplace back in the fall of last year.

The metal shop kindly purchased a magnetic drill press and an annular cutter for the hole drilling process. This took a few weeks in January of this year.

Next we had to acquire the materials for the base to hold the table top level and flat. Holes were drilled in the edge pieces to match the patterns on the top.

The bottom was then assembled and welded


Then adjustment tabs were added and the legs were cut and drilled by @nugen. Randy and I welded and mounted the legs and casters.

The table was then flipped over using the gantry. @FriendlyTitan helped me with that.

Since the piece was rusty, I used a soft wire brush to remove the rust without harming the steel.

At @TBJK put the final touches on it using a chamfer tool to chamfer the holes.

It is amazing what we can accomplish with some of these group projects. I look forwards to working with folks on other big projects in the future. If you would like to help with any of these bigger projects and learn a bit more about metalwork, please reach out to the folks on this list and/or attend the metal shop and machine shop committee meetings. We plan on building another one of these tables, it’s already mostly there but it needs assembly.

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Just an update. They are done. The holes on the sides need to be chamfered but they are good to use.



Thanks @troyolivieri for helping finish chamfering and helping purchase the clamps.

If someone wants to help build a clamp wall/pegboard let us know.

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I can help with the clamp wall/pegboard. It will finally be a place to store all those lose extension chords and air lines

That’s an incredible resource for the facility. Thanks for your efforts! What’s the process to prevent them from rusting up again (and again and again) – just keep them wiped down with a light coat of oil?

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The rust isn’t as much of a concern as people grinding into them and welding to them. No one should be using them to grind. We have other tables for that. Also no one should be trying to “surface” them with flap discs. People don’t seem to realize that flap discs remove a lot of material.

One of the biggest problems we have at DMS is people who “think” they know what they are doing. These people damage our equipment frequently.

True, except that if they get rusty (a) it can make grounding to the table less effective, which is one big bonus of any welding table, and then (b) it makes people think they should flap wheel the table thus damaging the surface. So if we can limit the rust, we might have a chance at limiting the damage.

On a related note, that magnetic drill is so cool. :grinning:

We should be encouraging grounding to your work not the table.

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I agree with Tim. But i did want to show that they sell these:

They plug into the fixture holes. You can literally ground in any hole in those tables. Idk what the whole obsession is with using table edges.

On that note. I think our welding instructors should start teaching an intermediate course on how to actually fixture, cut, fit, and weld steel frames. Actual Fab work

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I think a course would be cool and well attended.

If anybody wants hands-on experience in the meantime, come to the motorsports Thursday meetups. We normally have at least one metal fab project going on at a time, right now with the drift trikes it’s pretty much all we’re doing. Come by and say hi, we don’t bite.

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Motorsports doesn’t bite but they do suck :slight_smile: :smile:

@Mrholthaus @rlisbona You know what those fixture tables need…… a 2000w handheld laser rust remover. We could also do laser skin peels with it too :smile:

IMG_3123

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I have that surface conditioning tool that makes really short work of rust.

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Tim, I have the same tool, but only the abrasive drums.
How do you like the wire wheel?
Best,
Jim

I’ve used one. But they are insanely dangerous for eyesight. Like you will go blind without the correct eye protection. Not really a safe fit for DMS though they are awesome

Ah, understood.
Best,
Jim