Welding Tips and Tricks

This was something I worked on before Christmas, a church show for the holidays. I don't know the name of the church or the show, but it was one of those shows that have the whole church and choir rockin' the entire time! I built the upper deck that held the choir. To get a sense of scale the entire upper deck is 32 feet across and 16 feet deep. It's supported in the middle by a piece of 6 inch aluminum I-beam and on the ends by some stud walls. I believe the deck is 8 feet 6 inches high to the bottom of the framing.

There are 8 deck pieces, each 16 foot long by 4 foot wide. Because the decks had to hold the weight of an entire choir, they had to be built strong. The outer framing is 9 inch by 1/4 inch aluminum 'C" channel cut at 45's and welded together. The inner joists on each deck were two pieces of 2 x 8 engineered plywood. 2 top pieces of 3/4 inch flameproof plywood were screwed down to the frame and joists. Once it was up in the air and resting where it was supposed to go, every deck was bolted together and then bolted down to the center I-beam. You can see a pipe sticking up out of the floor in the top picture, that works as the front support for the I-beam and also acts as a pivot point for the turntable floor just below the upper deck. The support pipe is a piece of 2 inch Schedule 40 steel pipe welded to a 1/2 inch plate bolted down to the church floor. The top U-channel piece that holds the I- beam in place are 3 pieces of 1/2 inch bar stock welded to the pipe. There are 2 holes drilled through the U channel and the i beam to hold it in place.

Each deck piece easily weighed 300+ pounds. Multiply that by 8 plus the weight of the choir and i was a little worried that just a 6 inch aluminum I-beam may flex too much, but i was proven wrong. The I-Beam, at maximum capacity, only flexed about a 1/4 inch.

The first picture shows the set under construction, the 2nd two show the finished product.

This is pretty typical of what I do welding wise, decks and trusses for shows. Tomorrow i start building some steel set carts for a new touring show about Marvin Gaye, the Motown singer that was shot to death by his father. Always something different!

Other Steve

Wow!

That has to be interesting every day.

How blessed are we, to have jobs we LIKE to go to each morning?

There are so many here who feel the same!

That's most likely one thing that sets these forums apart from the rest......we all like what we do, from Jody on down.

Hey,

It bugs me when people who dont like their jobs grump and groan when you talk about yours. I like doing what i do, problems? Too bad, i say.

Mick

People who bitch about their jobs amuse me. If they'd invest that energy in finding something they like to do...

Admittedly, somebody has to sit in the factory, inserting tab "A" into slot "B" all day. But if you're not capable of doing greater, don't cry to me about it.

I know a lot of factory workers who love that type of work. They wouldn't give up their jobs for the world, whereas many others wouldn't last a week in that setting. It takes certain mindsets and different personalities to do different types of work and some have certain aptitudes for certain things that others don't. I probably wouldn't last on an assembly line for more than a few years, but put me on as a millwright in that same plant and i could easily see an enjoyably long career.

Nice job.

Being able to count the money for services rendered isn't half bad either. Same thing, really. . .you just have to find what you like to do outside of your job.

I've been fortunate having worked places that even if the work wasn't great, the coworkers were. That's half the battle.

Couple of nice points, there.

I agree with Jeff, having good co-workers can make a less-than-ideal job much more pleasant.

Steve is right, as well. With the right mindset, a simple production/manufacturing job can be enjoyed, or at least easily endured.

My problem comes in with those who seem to hate their jobs. They want to bitch about them at the bar every night, or go home and kick the dog and yell at the wife (or other way 'round). If you're working toward something better, I'll listen to you gripe about the process and pain. If you just plan to repeat the same day tomorrow and every day for 20 years, please either shut up or write country music!

Steve S

I could not have said the above any better myself, well put! However I have found that people find it much easier to b--ch and complain rather than get off there a$$ and do something about it. THOSE WHO SUCEED, ARE THOSE WHO KEEP TRYING words to live by right there! Alos nice work as always!

That's very true about co-workers, they can make or break any job. I've worked with people who can make the day go by fast, while others can leave you wondering if the clock is moving backwards.

If I rant here, it's likely tongue-in-cheek. Kind of like ripping on your buddies at work. I love what I do. At the very least, I am proud of it. Any of us who work at welding and then show up to hang out on a welding forum, really can't hate our jobs.

Admittedly, I am thankful to even have a job in light of what the economy has been doing the last few years. I try not to gripe too much. The alternatives can be much worse. I'm about to quit welding for a living soon after nearly 30 years of it. Which is why I started the " starting your own business" thread. I may have to go back into drywall for a bit. But there were always good people in that trade and it was respectable work.

So even after all this time welding, I am still wanting to do it on the side for myself. Not so much for the money, but because I love it.

When I was 18 or so, I worked in an aircraft assembly plant. This wasn't so much a true assembly line job because the planes were pretty much built by hand. I used to see the floor sweepers everyday and once asked this one guy how he could stand to just walk the floors all day. It seemed totally boring to me. Well this guy was also a farmer and both he and his Dad worked there doing the same job. He told me that the pay was very close to what I was getting (which was pretty good for the time)and he had no stress. He kept in great physical shape and enjoyed talking to people as he made his way around the plant. He said he was thinking about what he would do when he got home with his family on the farm.
I kind of liked what he had to say. There was more to life than work for him and he was enjoying himself. It is not for everyone to do that type of job, but at least he was happy.
I have tried to remember his words all these years. When my Youngest Daughter was thinking of going to University...mainly because She thought it was the thing to do and her sisters had both gone before her. I knew She would be miserable and in the end...there would just be a lot of bills to pay!
I knew She really enjoyed taking photos and I felt She had a true "eye" for it. She saw things through her lens that the rest of us never saw. I encouraged her to take it up professionally and She did a 2 year college course and now enjoys working at it. I'm very proud of her.

I always told my girls that I was fortunate to work at something that was my hobby first, and now made a good living at it.

Like already mentioned, if welding was just a job...we wouldn't all be here on this forum in our spare time!

Ultralow,

My hat is off to you, you are a very good parent!! You saw that your daughter was good at photography and gave her the freedom and encouragement to pursue it as a career. Many parents would have just pushed her into making up her mind about something she wouldn't really be happy doing. Congratulations, you should be very proud of her and yourself!

Other Steve

Amen.

I've seen too many times where a parent pushes a child toward their own dream... What they wish the child to become. The Pygmalian gift.

Blessed are the parents who push a child to persue his or her own dream, wishing happiness as the outcome, rather than wealth. Often, they get both, but happiness is enough.

Thanks guys! Coming from men of your apparent caliber, that means a lot!

I know this attitude of mine will never make me rich, but I am pretty happy!