Frank from manchester

[JAZZCNC]

Welcome Frank, it seems the way forward here is to produce a drawing, most people use Sketchup, then present it to the forum for comment. I trust you saw the vertical machine JAZZCNC made ?

I didn't make a Vertical machine.??? . . . I made a Horizontal machine and tipped it on it's End.!!. . . Works great. . Lol

[EddyCurrent]

I didn't make a Vertical machine.??? . . . I made a Horizontal machine and tipped it on it's End.!!. . . Works great. . Lol

Maybe chip clearance due to gravity would work better with a ceiling mounted machine

[JAZZCNC]

Maybe chip clearance due to gravity would work better with a ceiling mounted machine

Thought about that but would be bugger on bad back looking up changing tools.! .

[frankkilleen]

Thanks for the warm welcome people! I will try and do a drawing over the weekend to try and start making this a reality. Jazzcnc's Wall mounted machine is something that has inspired me and with my space limitations I feel that this is the only option.

I may think about buying a welder and making a steel frame, I cant see it being that difficult to do with a little practice.......hmmmmmm another tool purchase is always good! Any advice on what welder I should buy? Dont want to spend the earth!

cheers

Frank

[CraftyGeek]

I may think about buying a welder and making a steel frame, I cant see it being that difficult to do with a little practice.......hmmmmmm another tool purchase is always good! Any advice on what welder I should buy? Dont want to spend the earth!
Frank

I started building mine recently - still working on the frame. I had no experience of working with steel or welding before I started...its not hard to get going. Just make sure you get a few extra bits of steel to practice on.
I got a 160A Ferm welder - I spotted a seller on ebay selling them new as an auction rather than just buy it now & managed to win it for £60 inc postage (normally £80). I think you want one rated at 160A rather than 100A - I can't imagine that brand really makes much difference.

Also keep in mind that you'll need to get a decent mask/helmet & gloves etc I got an auto switching helmet on ebay for ~£35 & gloves are cheap.
Its also best to buy a decent chipping hammer & wire brush than use the piece of rubbish that came with the welder.

Jazz will warn about using cheap welding rods - I came to the conclusion that if I bought them from my local steel yard i'd be ok as they do fabrication as well, so if they're good enough for them, they must be ok for me. The type of rods that were recommended were 3.2mm 6013 & they seem to be working well for me.

Watch as many welding videos as you can...here are a couple of the most useful that I found:
Welding institute - old, but good
Arc welding lessons
Stick welding troubleshooting