250EX-Aluminum welding cart

[5440]

Bought my first house and it came with a 30'x60' shop so time to make a welding cart for my 250EX and not have to worry about making it too compact. During my Xmas vist to the parents in another province I managed to get some "scrap" aluminum from my father, mainly 3/16" sheet & 1" angle. He had a Pro-Tools bender and made me a handle.

So off to Casterland for the wheels.The rear is 8" with bearings and the casters lock the wheel as well as position.
I wanted the basic cart design, but one solid and made from aluminum using 1-1/2" sq tube x 1/8" wall. 1/2" axle shaft.

I wanted the cart wide enough to add tool compartments for extra nozzles etc., so I went about 16" wide.

[5440]

I didn't take enough pics during the actual construction so here is the finished cart. I left to top tubes open to store some rods which I like handy when welding.

The middle level is large enough for a pedal and helmet.

[DVA]

I didn't take enough pics during the actual construction so here is the finished cart. I left to top tubes open to store some rods which I like handy when welding.

The middle level is large enough for a pedal and helmet.

The more I see these aluminum welding carts, I think that may be a good option to hold my 255 EXT when it arrives.

[5440]

I melted the sharp edges of the angle so they were smooth for the hoses.

I cleaned the hoses up and using tape.

[MuttonHawg]

There's seriously a store named Casterland? Simple ... no nonsense ... to the point ... I like it! Kind like "Tipsy's" for a liquor store or "Rug Emporium" for ... well ... it's pretty obvious, I suppose.

Looks really nice. You said you're about 16" wide - how about front to back? 32" or so?

And where did you find those small-parts bins with the green latches? I've seen them with yellow latches (Dewalt-branded), but never with green. The green is appropriate, given the branding of hardware sitting on the cart

[5440]

It's new home beside the 7.5 HP compressor.

[DVA]

It's new home beside the 7.5 HP compressor.

Nice compressor, now you can run some serious air tools.

[5440]

The more I see these aluminum welding carts, I think that may be a good option to hold my 255 EXT when it arrives.

Either way, it's a great excuse to TIG something in aluminum!

[5440]

There's seriously a store named Casterland? Simple ... no nonsense ... to the point ... I like it! Kind like "Tipsy's" for a liquor store or "Rug Emporium" for ... well ... it's pretty obvious, I suppose.

Looks really nice. You said you're about 16" wide - how about front to back? 32" or so?

And where did you find those small-parts bins with the green latches? I've seen them with yellow latches (Dewalt-branded), but never with green. The green is appropriate, given the branding of hardware sitting on the cart

This local Casterland store is cool and they sell the plastic end caps for the sq tube to boot

http://www.casterland.com/

The plastic boxes are from these guys

http://www.stack-on.com/categories/s...s/products/180

I got them from my favourite local tool store, http://www.kmstools.com/ that puts them sale everyone and then. They have Millermatic 252 going on sale for $2200 and 30A spool gun for $1000, which is decent pricing for Canada....I just might have to snag these this weekend.

The top two shelves are 25" long. I'm glad I made them longer because I forgot about the Everlast put the gas conection near the center back..would have been better to place it on the side to avoid the tank.

The bottom shelf is 40" long which is probably 5-8" longer than required but I cut this from an end sheet my father had laying around and did not have the cooler or welder handing to size it uo so added a little to make sure.

[Rambozo]

The more I see these aluminum welding carts, I think that may be a good option to hold my 255 EXT when it arrives.

Same here. I like the idea that I can easily add that "one more thing" without the issue of prep and paint.

[youngnstudly]

Nice compressor, now you can run some serious air tools.

And run up some even more serious utility costs! My dad's compressor practically makes the "ding-ding-ding-ding" noise like the old gas pumps while it's running. The neighbor even commented that "Somebody in this neighborhood is drawing some serious power from the pole! Every time this item turns on at night, the street light goes dim and there is a loud humming noise during start up!"

I especially like the hook on the side that allows you to hang your TIG torch and leads out of the way! Don't worry about not taking enough pics, I find myself in the same boat after finishing a project. You get caught up in working and forget to pull the camera out to snap shots of your progress during the build! I can't wait to get an A/C capable welder after seeing everyone weld up all these fancy aluminum projects! I miss welding aluminum!

[5440]

And run up some even more serious utility costs! My dad's compressor practically makes the "ding-ding-ding-ding" noise like the old gas pumps while it's running. The neighbor even commented that "Somebody in this neighborhood is drawing some serious power from the pole! Every time this item turns on at night, the street light goes dim and there is a loud humming noise during start up!"

I especially like the hook on the side that allows you to hang your TIG torch and leads out of the way! Don't worry about not taking enough pics, I find myself in the same boat after finishing a project. You get caught up in working and forget to pull the camera out to snap shots of your progress during the build! I can't wait to get an A/C capable welder after seeing everyone weld up all these fancy aluminum projects! I miss welding aluminum!

No doubt the compressor will draw power at 36 FL, but it's intermediate but will add up in time. My wife did question the current draw of my tools as she is an EE as am I in the electrical utility biz.

I need a welding bench and am drooling over making an aluminum bench so I will see what the costs will beM

[youngnstudly]

No doubt the compressor will draw power at 36 FL, but it's intermediate but will add up in time. My wife did question the current draw of my tools as she is an EE as am I in the electrical utility biz.

I need a welding bench and am drooling over making an aluminum bench so I will see what the costs will beM

We found over the years that if you do have to pump up the compressor, shut it down and run the tank down a bit before allowing it to pump up again. If you don't, they just cycle on and off like crazy every few minutes and the electric bill jumps $30 or $40 in very little time!

A matching aluminum bench would be sweet to build! Around here the aluminum prices are pretty high, so I don't use it much on it's own. It's nice for "mixing" into other projects in order to use up material I have laying around though.

[Rambozo]

We found over the years that if you do have to pump up the compressor, shut it down and run the tank down a bit before allowing it to pump up again. If you don't, they just cycle on and off like crazy every few minutes and the electric bill jumps $30 or $40 in very little time!

The only reason they would cycle, and the only thing that causes extra power consumption are air leaks. You have to take a zero tolerance stand on leaks of any kind as you are just converting one form of power into another, electrical to compressed air. Leaks are just pissing away money. You can adjust your cut in and cut out pressures to suit your shop and the type of air requirements you have. But if you don't use any air, your compressor should never run. Also you can save some by using a VFD and a 3 phase motor, as even though they have some conversion loss, they allow you to tune the motor to the load much better. At first they were only cost effective on large rotary screw compressors, but now they are getting cheaper and are used all over the place. Even things like washing machines now come with a VFD and a 3 phase motor instead of transmissions and complex drive systems. The software handles all the changes.

[youngnstudly]

This particular compressor tends to kick out more water than the previous compressor (which was larger), and due to the fact the shop was used (back in the day-LOL) for painting cars, there are 3 or 4 petcocks for draining water throughout the shop (not including the one in the tank). A few of them could probably stand to be replaced, as they are all old and don't always seal tightly when closed. I didn't think to mention however, that there are many times when we use 2 separate air hoses for running different tools (so multiple people can use air tools at one time). Jobs get done quicker with 2 people working, but the tank drains quicker!

The "biggie" in the shop for air consumption is the bead blast cabinet though. Come to think of it, a few air hoses need replacing due to cracks. To be honest, I've been trying to buy needed shop tools that are electric so I don't have to use the compressor. Especially since I can use smaller (conservative) electric tools with the solar panel and batteries when the weather allows.

Either way, compressors are somewhat known for using a lot of energy, so I avoid using it when I can (which is most of the time).

[5440]

Well when I made the cart I planned for a possible larger tank in the future, but thought I would never get one until I got a killer deal on tanks when I bought my Millermatic 252 a few weeks ago and decided to get some tanks they gave me what they called #300 tanks for $200Cdn (Ar & C25 fills were $98ea, & O2 fill was $38)

I was told I could trade up my 125 cu ft for the difference in price which is about the same I paid for the 300's so it should just be the cost for fill. I got a Spectrum 625 Extreme on order with them so I don't see them not giving my the 125 tank upgrade for the fill cost.

All I can say is the these #300 tanks are heavy as hell. I needed a ramp to get it onto my DIY TIG cart. Have to make sure the #300 tanks get loaded into my truck with the valves pointed in first. Tempted to get a gantry crane in the shop for these bad boys.

I see why the Millermatic 252 now has a low running tank rack.

[zoama]

Just curious what made you choose the 252 over an Everlast 250p ?

[5440]

Just curious what made you choose the 252 over an Everlast 250p ?

I owned a 251 (gave to my Dad) and know what to expect plus the 30A spool gun integration with the MM252 plus they were both on sale, $2200 Cdn for MM252 & $1000 for the 30A. The big bonus from this purchase, I got into a local welding supplier with the special pricing (stable gas pricing, cheaper tanks, etc.)

Miller still can't touch Everlast on price/performance of an 250EX with a cooler.

If it wasn't for the Miller 15% promo and the small size of an Extreme 625, I was looking at Everlast on the plasma.

[youngnstudly]

Those larger tanks are a total pain to move since they are so slippery and awkward, but you only have to move them once in a great while since they almost never run out of gas! That is one thing I miss about using the welder at my old job....they had one big 330CF cylinder on the welding cart, and 4 backup 330 cylinders in the cage! Endless supply for building home projects at work!

Come to think of it, I saw a cool dolly with some sort of hydraulic ramp on it for moving the heavy cylinders by yourself and loading them into your welding cart (without using all those pesky swear words!). Someone built it and posted pics on one of the welding or hot rod forums. Wish I would have saved the pics I saw since it looked like a really good idea!

[everlastsupport]

We have two dollies and normally two people the handle the big tanks, well worth it when you see the price and duration on the gas. I still have two 150's for TIG, but might trade them up this year. Just like having a backup tanks like Andy mention.