Thanks, guys. Full disclosure, those were my best welds, not my average welds. Still having trouble with tie in on the four sides of the tube.
These were made while pushing a looping movement I found that the a straight drag left a much taller weld bead no matter if I went normal speed or sped up. Even these seem to need a fair amount of grinding. I still wonder if I'm going to slow, but I am encouraged by your responses. We'll see if I got good penetration when I put the loaded tool box into the frame!
Also, what is the brown stuff? It looks like a liquid right when I finish the weld, but then it solidifies quickly in the weld. Won't come off with the brush.
Thanks, guys.
Also, what is the brown stuff? It looks like a liquid right when I finish the weld, but then it solidifies quickly in the weld. Won't come off with the brush.
That is silicon,, it is in the weld wire to make your weld better,,
"Silicon (Si) – Silicon is the most commonly employed deoxidizing element in wires used for mig welding. Generally, wires contain 0.40% to 1.00% Si, depending on their intended use. In this percentage range, silicon exhibits very good deoxidizing ability."
So,, it is kinda like melted beach sand,, a little tough to get off some times.
Also, what is the brown stuff? It looks like a liquid right when I finish the weld, but then it solidifies quickly in the weld. Won't come off with the brush.
Hmmmmmmmmm,,,,,,,, is this the excuse to buy the cabinet sand blaster that you always wanted??
The sand blaster will remove the brown stuff,, RIGHT NOW!!
There were some good welds and some bad welds on that one. Every new position brings lot of learning. One more cradle to go, and then I'll work on my carpentry skills for the top.
so that's what a clean shop floor is supposed to look like...
The bench is coming along really nice, for a beginer welder your welds look good. The more you weld the better your welds improve.
Time for an update. Got a HF Vulcan helmet and a 1.5 cheater lens, and all I can say is why did I take so long. It's like seeing things for the first time.
Here's the bench in its current state.
I have tacked that piece of angle to tie the two cradles together as well as give a place to screw the top onto, but before I weld it, I would like to hear your thoughts on bolting instead of welding the top on. The cradles are for two HF 44" roller boxes, and the top is gonna be two sheets of 3/4 plywood and a 12 ga cap. It's just over 12' long and prolly gonna be in 600-800 lbs range (empty boxes) when done. Bolting would make it possible to disassemble if I ever needed o move it.
So, bolt or weld? If bolt, 3/8" 16 grade 5 enough? Bigger, fine thread, grade 8? There would be eight, one per vertical leg, washer, lock washer, nut, and blue lock tite. The bench would be used for assembly, cleaning, cutting stock, maybe some medium duty pounding on a vise, maybe some vibration from a bench grinder.
boy ??? are you welding on that purdy floor ??? nice shop
Lol, it does look good, but man is it a pain to sweep! And I can't see anything, like small screws or metal chips. I'm worried one of my girls is gonna walk in here barefoot and walk out with some nasty splinters.
I think I'd make the whole thing KD. You may want move it some day, or change the configuration as your needs change.
It looks like it's going to be mostly the weight of the thing that holds it together. 1/4 coarse bolts would probably be ok. It cuts down the drilling effort too.
Unless you intend to put side to side stress on the table top,, bolts should be fine. The bulk of the weight is held by the angle that will support the rollaway cabinets. Rollaways are fairly rigid, so I don't see them sucking the cradle down, and bowing the lower angle runners. The chest, itself, will transfer the weight to the corners. Remember, a rollaway is generally supported by casters...........so they're rigid over the width crosswise.
Wish i'd listened to you on the 1/4" bolts. I thought the 3/8" heads and washers looked better size-wise, but man I paid for it in drilling time.
Also, what about paint prep? I bought a bunch of these from Lehigh Valley - RD20NW-MED Are they the same as red Scotchbrite pads? And does all the mill scale need to come off before self-etching primer, or will a scuffed surface be enough?
Wish i'd listened to you on the 1/4" bolts. I thought the 3/8" heads and washers looked better size-wise, but man I paid for it in drilling time.
Also, what about paint prep? I bought a bunch of these from Lehigh Valley - RD20NW-MED Are they the same as red Scotchbrite pads? And does all the mill scale need to come off before self-etching primer, or will a scuffed surface be enough?
Sorry, that was sorta dumb.........................."KD" means knock down.......or capable of disassembly. My bad
Paint prep on steel that new is strictly limited to cleaning the steel with mineral spirits to remove the grease/oil/dirt.
Playtex rubber gloves, like you use to do dishes, and a cheap natural bristle chip brush to paint the thinner on the metal. Wipe off with paper towels, and let it air out. All of this is best done outside.
If you have spatter on the steel, it generally comes off when using a cup brush on a grinder. I, personally, see no need for an abrasive disc. Leave the welds untouched..........no reason to grind them.
Last edited by farmersammm; 04-05-2021 at 05:14 PM.
Lol, it does look good, but man is it a pain to sweep! And I can't see anything, like small screws or metal chips. I'm worried one of my girls is gonna walk in here barefoot and walk out with some nasty splinters.
A buddy had his garage floor epoxy coated almost like yours, except when the worker wanted to know what color flakes to use, my friend told him NO flakes. He wanted to be able to find little things when he dropped them.
Tool cabinets fit! I know I shouldn't be this excited, but man this has been a long time coming. Basically just need to paint the frame and reassemble. Then waiting on 12 ga top. This is by far the biggest thing I've done to date. Been a great learning experience, esp finishing/paint as I see lots of mistakes, but still excited about seeing it come together. Might need to start thinking about next project.
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Originally Posted by tiggen
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