Welding table build

CDN Farm Boy · Feb 9, 2014

Thanks Will S
Nice table bdog, I'm glad you got the incentive to build your own.

I got the legs and shelf supports tacked together this aft but my FD pager went off and didn't get any pics taken. Hopefully I get home tomorrow with enough daylight to get a bit more done and some more pics.

My main frame is attaching to the side of the legs for reasons you will see as the project continues.

ishiboo · Feb 9, 2014

bdog said:
Your thread got me motivated and I was needing a project to test my new Powerarc 300 on.

I went to the steel yard Tuesday and bought a 4x10 sheet of 1/2" plate and 80' of 2.5" x 3/16 square tube. I laid the plate on the shop floor and built the frame on it upside down then flipped it over. Aside from the the metal I bought I added some 2" x 3/16" angle and a piece of pipe in the middle for support. Probably it is overkill but I wanted it sturdy and no flex. Weight of it is about 1400 lbs. I did not add any levelers on the feet or wheels but it sits good and level with no wobble. The thing is nice I don't think you could budge it if you wanted to. I am sure looking forward to being able to work on it and not on the floor anymore. My knees are killing me from this build.

Would you mind breaking down the costs on the top and tubing? I'm looking at buying a top from a surplus place. 5' x 11'8" x 1/2" sheet for $700
or a 4' x 8' x 5/8" sheet for $500.

bdog · Feb 9, 2014

Sure. I searched all over town for used or scrap plate with no luck so I had to buy new. The 4x10x 1/2 plate was $400.77 and the 80' of 2.5" x 3/16" tube was $284.53.

CDN Farm Boy · Feb 10, 2014

My 4' x 5' x 1/2" was a bit under $300 plus taxes. I also looked for used or surplus but found nothing suitable. My whole order was a grand with plan to have a few chunks left over.

CDN Farm Boy · Feb 11, 2014

The legs are inplace and about to spark up the old Lincoln and burn a few rods. Work is slow at the moment so it looks like I've got some time the next 2 days to work on it and hopefully get it wrapped up.

bdog · Feb 11, 2014

Looking good!

The hard part looks to be done you should be able to wrap it up in no time. You will love having the table. I have only had mine done a few days and everything is so much easier to do on the table vs rolling around on the floor.

ovrszd · Feb 12, 2014

Glad to see your progress. Thanks for posting the pics. Anxious to see the end result and "borrow" some ideas!!!

Mark @ Everlast · Feb 12, 2014

Just be sure not to overweld the top from the backside or you'll have little depressions or bows all over the table. Just scattered light tacking is all that you'll need.

OutbackL130 · Feb 13, 2014

Wow that was some great info in the previous pages about heat shrinking.

The plates I used to build my tables all had a slight bow in them too, but after I finished the tables were perfectly flat with a 6' straight edge laid on top. 4' x 6' tables I used 3/16" plate with 2" x 1/8" square tube for the frames. 1/2" plate might be more difficult to do this with but if you have strong c clamps it shouldnt matter. To remove the bow, once the frame for the table is built I'd lay the plate on it with the bow down. Then clamp the perimeter of the plate to your frame. If you have cross members in your ladder shape frame it should pull the bow out of the plate and with using 2 1/2" x 3/16" tubing I dont see there being a problem with the frame holding the plate straight after you tack it in. I highly doubt the pressure would distort your frame.

CDN Farm Boy · Feb 13, 2014

A couple hrs yesterday and a couple more this morning and I've got it ready to flip over. Once I got the slag chipped off, my stick weld beads look better than I expected. The plate was stitch welded about 1 1/2" bead on an approx 14 x 24 grid and alternated sides of the tubes to hopefully keep warping to a minimum.

Picked up a new attachment for the air hammer for chipping the slag. Anyone that hasn't tried a needle scaler needs to. Makes the job much easier