Reflect and Recap

Its been said idle hands are the devils tools, hmm.
Ya can not let your self settle back into your comfort zone after your Victory!
You take the time you need to submit your invoice, enter expenses, and do the analysis thing.
In other words, after the shop party is over, how well did it actually go compared to your expectations or worst fears?
I know I said a little prayer before an overhead weld, on my back under my own tacks and a stick welder! The moment of truth is revealed only after the slag is chipped!
Did you have the tools you needed for the job?
I could have had 2 - 1/2" 16tpi X 2.5 bolts on hand had I planned better, hmm. make note to self.
Looking back at Day 2, I really could have saved time by better preparation the week end before, hmm.. the poser? Football....or the cold shed, hmm.. maybe the sun will shine tomorrow, football wins!
Come on, Football!
Oh, let's not forget the consultation, make sure YOU read the tape! ha ha ha.
Over all I guessed 16.5 hours to complete the project. The actual time spent was 22.5hours after the paperwork was processed that Friday evening. Some of that time was closing out my 2009 year in my office, also not planned for dog gonit!
If that was the worst of the job its a lesson learned.
I can make improvements, thats what life is about! Growing.
I was called in for another consultation just today, I heard more acolades of how well its working! whew! Ya can't beat hearin that!
So whats new at the home of the Hillbilly Handyman hang out? hmm...more table modification, move a ladder on a platform, and build a Single post motor platform for the exhaust system on the "New" K Mec machine to be installed next month!
I have yet to show ya the airboard cart proto-type, I'll have the cart finished this week.

Phoenix day 3, Mission accomplished!

Note the tabs were some nice laser cut left overs from some other job in my past.

They were drilled, and then counter sunk with a 9/16 " drill bit and then I bolted the nuts in place prior to welding them.

By doing this you are assured nothing is going to warp or move off of center in the hole.

Note the top plates extensions are now only 1/8 " from the frame . No way can a 5/8" board get in under the arm of the springloaded top plate now!r>< span>r>


Meanwhile on the other end of the phoenix the virtacle support needed to be offset.

A horizontal cut at 3/16 " all the way around the top to remove the inserted tube cap leaves me at the same hight as the origional height.

The same procedure was used for the 1/2" 16 tpi nuts on the 2 X 3.5 canteleeverd cap.




Unfortunately the grey touch up paint did not exactly match but that was considered to be insignificant as the customer was extrememly happy with the final product.

The feed back so far is all accolades for a job well done.

March will bring a new challenge when they install a new all in one Sheeter from K-Mec located in Spain.

I have already placed a bid on another project for the trim cutter platform.

While this may have been one of my more complicated projects at first glace, you can see how I broke it down to basic processes and steps to keep it simple.

My best advice is to double check every thing twice and tack once! here's wishin ya good reviews on your projects and ya'll come back now, y'hear?

I've recently added a facebook link widget to my blog if you should like to offer me a poser of a question or just suggest a subject you are interested in concerning my passion for Welding.

Wow! What IF?

what if...
- April 15th paints the truth about the economy in big bold numbers that no spin can hide?
- the CBO was muzzled again?
- the spending of this administration is secretly funding the NEW WORLD ORDER?

in reference to: THE EXECUTIVE ORDER (view on Google Sidewiki)

Pheonix project Day 2

I'm not sure how this post is gonna look till all is done, as I did not collect process specific pictures for this project. You see I offered to email pictures of before and after for submission as proof of work completed with the invoice for my services to be forwarded to corporate HQ. You know, I think of this as one of those services that can bring a bit of credibility to your business image.

Unfortunately the idea to further document my job creation was an after thought. If I had thought it through beforehand, I would have snapped a few more pictures of the clamps, for a little where to clamp and why. I hope you have a vivid imagination when you picture what I will describe to you later in this article.



Before I submitted my job estimate, I checked my inventory of steel stock to be sure I actually had the materials I would need for the job. Lucky thing I did, its a big savings in that I didn't have to purchase anything but the consumebles, eg.. the welding rod and gas for the generator/welder that the company rented for me to use.

The core of this project is to extend the frame of this machine by roughly 13/16 ". this is going to explain why the machine is split the way it was. Underneath the bottom of the pheonix is a 1/2" plate welded 3" - 5" center weld pattern around the baseplate.

On the backside of the same bottom tube is another plate tapped for anchor mounts. That one is thicker by 1/4", and overlapped the bottom plate by 3". I chose to split the bottom tube 1st by cutting through the tube but not all the way across the baseplate. In the after pictures you can see the baseplate was approximatrly 6" wide and protrudes 3" in front of the base tube.

The 2" tubes above were then flush cut leaving 5 - 10 thousandths or so of the tube for easy relocation when I scribe my marks that I will use to make sure everything realiegns prior to tackin it in place.

A length of 3"x3" angle clamped to the baseplate ensures the least possible warpage when I weld the overhead weld from under the base first. I know I will get more pull up when I pour the heat on the top side 2nd because of the virticle element of the tube. I must return and clean out any excess to ensure a 1/16" root gap between the tube and insert. I then stick the tip of a screwdriver like a wedge in the top, and tack both ends of the gap on the inside of the tube.
Note Tack the sides as well. Now you can easily weld inside and out if you so chose as I did. It is part of that meet or exceed customers expectations thing, you know?

The base will now be the main support when I need to bring the two pieces back together. That length of 3x3 clamped accross the front face of the tube will ensure the basic aliegnment is maintained.
<>>Similar procees of clapms and angle to aliegn plus thed on the inside of the tube will add an extra burnoff of any paint on the outside.
I'm reminded of the little flame I snuffed from a spark in some oily corner on that frame. Be careful out there!
Too many times I have gone on twitter.com/#welders and read a story of a fire caused by welder sparks. If you are contracting, remember to ask if you need to forward your information for a hotwork Tag or some type of similar paper trail. <>


Now on to the story of day 2 on this project. Day 2 started out down in the shed sawing the tube inserts, the flat stock that see in the picture above. I know, they didn't show up too well so no I saw no need to forward this one, maybe next time I'll consider the background.
3/8" x 18 and 1/2"x 16 tpi nuts were welded in place on the 4 tabs and 2 push bar supports. I countersink the holes and bolted tightly to ensure center on hole and keeps the threads clean while I weld them with my 112vlt mig welder .030 ga wire, at home, prior to picking up the welder from the rental center before it closes at 5:00 PM.
The 2 tabs and 2 supports were welded before I brought the two halves back together. then I lifted the lighter halve to rest on the baseplate as describe earlier.
4 angles 5 ft long with 8 6" c-clamps holds the two square on both the upper and lower tubes. Remember diagonal measurements!
2 turns with the ratchet in the left front corner adjustment brings my scribe mark to the virticle just like new.
Tack the base tube, double check measurements, hmm.. tack top, double check again, snugged up tight by a 1/16th hmm.. one good thump with thor, my pet hammer, double check again, HA! perfect! retack to lock it up!
The majority of the frame was welded prior to the clamps and the jackstands being removed.
I confess I under estimated the time required for the ark welding process not thinking of slag chippin but I was satisfied having it finished in 8 hours, thats every thing,prep work, the measuring, clamping, the welding, cleaning, and touch up paint applied.
My goal is now to pack up for tonight, catch a nap and return the welder for an overnight charge instead of the 2 day or weekly rate I had estimated. Another savings I can pass on to my customer.
At the end of day 2 I have exceeded my estimated hours and calculated my estimated earnings fell 8 hours at this point when I include, the daily reporting, phone tag, and rental running.
It's ok, this project is gonna be finished tonight and I'm lookin forward to that "mission accomplished" message I'm gonna send when I get home.

4 Hours on the Phoenix, Day 1

I don't want this to read like a Chilton Manual because on this job I don't want to open any wiring if I don't have to, so I look for ways to achieve that goal.

Look at the before and after pictures in my last post as I describe why I disassembled it the way I did. Maybe you know what I mean, that state of shock begins to wear off as I realise none of the "fancy components" have been removed.

hmm... good thing I was a Boy Scout as a kid!

If I'm gonna keep my time line of three nights, better to just roll up your sleeves and get to work!

After circleing the machine several times it all fell into place. the plan is pretty basic.

Loose Plexiglas remove plexiglass shield from top assembly, to allow enough slack in cables from the motor to allow for the removal of the push-bar assembly.

Unbolt and remove the conveyor assembly, note the powerlines are free from all clips and restraints.

The final obsticle to choping this thing apart is to remove the hydrolic pump and lines to the mast. By turning the elbow fitting located at the bottom of the mast I gained enought slack to place the pump assembly at the left rear corner of the machine to allow for a fork truck to get under the frame and lift it for the clearence needed to cut 360% on the frame.

I used jack stands to stabilise the frame.

The fork frame is chained to the top of the mast capacity so it can not fall while cutting on the frame like a gueiloteen.

Little tricks like putting the bolts back in to the holes they came from helps to keep things organised.

The 2" X 2" tube were easily cut off the 1/2" pads on the center frame. The 3" X 3" bottom tube is cut near the center of its span for reason of the plates it was welded to. A simple Tri-square and marker were used to guide the hand cuts.
Man I love my Dewalt grinder with the flush cut Type 27, 7" X .065" cut off wheels. They allow for easy correction, where as an 1/8 " wheel just takes too much steel away for a job like this! Remember safety and wear those eye shields!

So far, on this job I have used

• a 1/2" ratchet w/ 3/4" 6 point deep socket
• Torx head wrenches 9" T - handle assorted<<>
• a 12" metric adjustable cressent wrench
• Oh, my Grinder, he he ( not an endorsement, just braggin)

Next time, I talk a little on the welding and reassembly of the frame.