Container Weld Shop build -

[BukitCase]

"that looks like a good way to bring stuff in and out of the container, atleast from one end anyways."
Yup, and mine only open on one end so it'll work good for me...

"I'm still not getting the the need for two different size wooden box patterns"

You missed the part where the FAN is 16" square, and the INLET air louver is a 24" square opening

Best way I've found to weld 2 small round rods together like that - take a fairly heavy-walled piece of angle, 2" wide or more and at least 12" long - cut a "window" out of the center by removing the angle part itself, leaving a "corner window" that's about an inch along the length of the angle, and about an inch from the angle's corner - so all that should be left of the angle in that center area would be about half of each SIDE of the angle, but NO CORNER - then hard clamp the two pieces (prepped/beveled, of course)just touching each other in that middle "window", turn the mig down a bit and weld a little on each side, let it cool completely, then 2 more welds 90* from the first ones, let cool, go til it's all done then grind it down as necessary - that's worked pretty well for me... Steve

 

[BukitCase]

Ordered the steel (couple sizes I didn't have in stock) to do the "security bezels" for the vent and fan(s) for all 4 containers today, gets here manana probably mid-afternoon. Before I did that, FORTUNATELY I did a "triple-check" on my plan; found out I had the motorized louvers envisioned BACKWARDS, which would've meant the controller had to go OUTSIDE in the rain in order for the louvers to work

That "triple check" kept me from ordering about $200 of steel that I MIGHT eventually use, if only 'cause it was on the rack - NOT 'cause it was what I woulda PREFERRED - so tomorrow, instead of being REALLY cheesed off I might actually get to start cutting parts :thumbsup:

Speaking of which, I finally quit putting it off and ordered one of these

The military discount puts that price about $20 less than the saw goes for anywhere else on the net, and it'll come in handy soon since I STILL haven't ordered a new bow for the Jet bandsaw (that'll hafta wait til it's raining again, too much to get done to wanna open THAT can of worms when there's perfectly good project weather )

I probably better go ahead and order the other three ventilation kits too, before my "vent guy" forgets he promised me 10% off my NEXT order too ...Steve

 

[Big Barn]

566815[/ATTACH]
Steve

Gee and after only three years of researching models and pricing and helping everyone else get theirs!

 

[BukitCase]

Yup, 'bout TIME I put my money where my mouth is - at least I bought the one I recommended, guess I ain't QUITE ready to go into politics :laughing: ...Steve

 

[Oldpath05]

"You missed the part where the FAN is 16" square, and the INLET air louver is a 24" square opening" <<<<I missed it because I'm still thinking that the fan and louvers are one unit and requires only one pattern, plus I have a slight case of ADD caused by to much lead paint, guess I'll have to wait til you install the two piece pattern louver fan, tomorrow.

I got a Dewalt abrasive saw for Christmas 5 years ago, went through two blades and that's all I wanted, the slowest most useless/unused tool I ever had, it makes too much dust, cuts way to slow, heats the material up way to much, why those things were ever on the market is beyond me. Right now I'm not sure if I want a steel cutting skill saw or a steel cutting chop saw like the one you ordered or a steel cutting band saw, I am leaning more towards the steel cutting skill saw.

 

[BukitCase]

OK, the fan and louvers ARE one unit, when the fan turns on it pushes its louvers open - but unless there's ANOTHER hole to let fresh air INTO the container, the fan would just DEADHEAD and probably burn up after a while - so there is a SEPARATE, BIGGER louver WITHOUT a fan - THAT one goes at the OTHER END of the container and has a little motor that opens THOSE louvers every time the temperature controller (thermostat) turns on - then when things cool down, the controller turns off the fan (and the separate louver motor) and BOTH sets of louvers close.

So, this (intended for greenhouse) ventilation "kit" consists of a dual controller, which runs a louvered fan AND a separate motorized INLET louver - that way, if you mount the fan at the dead end of the container (up high) and the inlet louver at the DOOR end of the container (down low, preferably shaded) you get "flow-through ventilation" -

This particular kit is sized for a greenhouse that is HALF the cubic footage of a 40' container, 'cause they recommend that a greenhouse gets one complete air change per MINUTE - but since I'm NOT planning on growing PLANTS in there (not even the LEGAL kind :laughing I figured that one air exchange every TWO minutes should be plenty...

Oh, and I don't think this'll get done TOMORROW - turns out, those "cutting templates" are gonna be the EASIER part of the job. Next, I'll need to make my OWN "un-equal leg angle" out of the 3/16"x6" flat bar I got today, and the 1/4"x2" flat bar I already had - then those will get cut up and made into "window frames" that'll stick out thru the square holes far enough to allow the louvers to open, PLUS enough room for bug screens and security bars (the 24" square holes will be down low, and too easy for trailer trash neighbors to crawl thru if my dobermans don't eat 'em first)

Know whatcha mean about abrasive saws - I had one (ryobi) hated that thing. So when #1 son wanted to use it to fit some pavers in a walkway he was building, I bought him a couple masonry blades for it and told him I never wanted to see it again :thumbdown:

Saws: they each seem to have their strong, weak, and useless points - I have 2 of the 4x6 metal band saws, one's over 30 years old and still going strong; plus the big Jet (gonna be a winter project, replacing that bow means completely disassembling the whole saw ( gearbox, bearings, wheels and bearings, guides, oiler, etc) and putting it all back together with the new bow, then starting from scratch and aligning it to cut true - I'm thinkin' if I don't goof around it'll probly be a 3 FULL day job before it's ready to go again.

I also have the cheapo HF version of the metal cutting skill saw (my local HF carries the metal cutting 7-1/2" blades; add a cheap NORMAL saw and you're sorta there) - it works good for thin stuff, used it (with a piece of straight angle as a guide) cutting 16 and 14 gauge sheets, face shield NOT optional... I went that way 'cause there's NO WAY I'm gonna treat either of my REAL skill saws that way, I use 'em to break down plywood when I don't wanna fight a BIG table saw in a SMALL space...

The "dry cut" saws like I ordered will cut thicker stuff, but do NOT like to cut flat - mine even comes with a angle block so you can cut square tube starting on a CORNER - same with angle (corner goes UP), and flat bar you set on EDGE instead of flat. One of the U-tubes on that saw shows cutting 3/4" x 4" flat bar, and the cut was only about .002" off of dead square.

My Jet saw (when it's workin' right) doesn't care HOW you cut, just so it'll fit in the saw. It's also the ONLY type you can gang cut with - I've cut up to 8 pieces of 2" square tube at a time with it (like when I was making the roof modules for the short container) that way it's easy to have all the "rafters" EXACTLY the same length - I welded those 8'x12' modules up sitting on jack stands (with a few shims, and a REALLY hard-clamped diagonal brace) on the gravel, and when I was done the diagonals measured less than a sixteenth different on all of 'em...

Then there's the portabands - I have the milwaukee, and it's useful for NON-precision stuff that you DON'T wanna drag a whole stick to the saw - with practice I've got where I can cut steel CLOSE to square; so if I need a fairly short, ACCURATE and SQUARE piece of heavier stuff I'll cut it about 1/8" long, then clean that SMALL piece up on one of the bigger saws.

Sooo, manana it's time to put a new blade on the old 4x6 bandsaw and chop up some flat bar - that 3/16" thick stuff is pretty floppy, so I'll bring a couple more roller stands up from the other shop and put one about every 4-5 feet... Steve

 

[Oldpath05]

"OK, the fan and louvers ARE one unit, when the fan turns on it pushes its louvers open - but unless there's ANOTHER hole to let fresh air INTO the container, the fan would just DEADHEAD and probably burn up after a while - so there is a SEPARATE, BIGGER louver WITHOUT a fan - THAT one goes at the OTHER END of the container and has a little motor that opens THOSE louvers every time the temperature controller (thermostat) turns on - then when things cool down, the controller turns off the fan (and the separate louver motor) and BOTH sets of louvers close."

WELL FINALLY something makes since..................Air outtake requires air intake from other end on the container which is facing the north pole so's to suck in cooler air, think I got it now. In my old shop didn't have to wooooory about air intake, it wasn't insulated and had high walls, not like airtight containers are. Without an air intake the fan might suck that container in like a soda can before the fan burns out. in that case you'd have to add in a pressure switch, you might need one anyways just in case you can't handle the pressure, you gotta watch the pressure, nothing worse than too much pressure.......

PS, you didn't have trouble writing 20 page book reports in school did you...........................I'll have to come back tomorrow.

 

[dragoneggs]

PS, you didn't have trouble writing 20 page book reports in school did you...........................I'll have to come back tomorrow.

You mean 'mañana' don't you?

 

[BukitCase]

Caramba - abla usted espaniel?? (Translation: Holy crap, do you speak "dog"??!?

 

[BukitCase]

Wow, tough room

Oh well, moving on....

Got a little more done on the bigger louver insert today - a test fit after tacking the 3/16"x6" sides together; if it looks like the corner gap is a bit bigger at the top of the joint than at the bottom, it's 'cause it IS - when I was checking sizes, etc, I didn't notice that the pivot points for each louver stick out about 1/16" past the aluminum frame, so the part of the steel insert where the louvers mount needs to be just a little wider than the rest - too late to start over, so I just clamped the sides a bit further apart at the top before I tacked 'em -
- it's easier to see in this pic -
This is what the louvers look like open and closed; that bar down the center gets a spring/chain/actuator motor. Gravity closes, motor opens by pulling the bar downward -
The 1/4"x2" mitered flat bar that's clamped to the table will get welded to the vertical pieces, then the whole assembly (minus the louvers til later) gets welded into the hole that'll get cut in the container wall - then, from outside to in will be 1/2" 1018 cold roll rods vertically every 2" across the opening with another welded in the center horizontally (for 2-legged varmints) - inside that will be 1/2" hardware cloth (smaller, 4-legged varmints) then a window screen/frame - the louvers themselves will protrude into that frame by about 4" or so, that's why the 6" sides - otherwise the louvers would hit the screen.

Then the aluminum framed louvers will get bolted to that 1/4"x2" mitered steel frame, that way I can clean/change/replace louvers if necessary (AND clean the screen), WITHOUT the 2-legged varmints being able to unscrew anything that'll give 'em access.

I'm keeping copious notes on my phone (notepad app) during this "prototype" so hopefully the other 8 (incl. an extra 2' louver for the other shop, to match the exhaust fan I already have in there), won't take much longer for ALL of 'em than this ONE has taken... OK, where's the "dang, I hope I didn't just lie to everybody INCLUDING myself" emoji??!?

Oh, and I'm writing the book itself; it's up to YOU guise to write the book REPORT :laughing: ...Steve

 

[Oldpath05]

Wow, tough room

Oh well, moving on....

Got a little more done on the bigger louver insert today - a test fit after tacking the 3/16"x6" sides together; if it looks like the corner gap is a bit bigger at the top of the joint than at the bottom, it's 'cause it IS - when I was checking sizes, etc, I didn't notice that the pivot points for each louver stick out about 1/16" past the aluminum frame, so the part of the steel insert where the louvers mount needs to be just a little wider than the rest - too late to start over, so I just clamped the sides a bit further apart at the top before I tacked 'em -
View attachment 567743 - it's easier to see in this pic - View attachment 567744 :laughing: ...Steve

You didn't know that I'm a professional post critic? that's what you get for missing staff meetings............. ("if it looks like the steel at the corners is a bit bigger then it has to be, it's 'cause it IS")<<<<<There I fixed that typo for you, are you kidding, 3/16", are these louvers going to be powered by turbojet engines, seems to me 1/8" would be plenty, I would've used 1/16" but what do I know I'm not making container garage with louver style warp engines so I can go on a Mars mission. There you have it, that's my 20 word-ish book report, I should get an A+ for not beating around the bush and not wasting paper........:reading:

What you think of this for cutting steel, you have something like it?>>> Evolution Power Tools EVOSAW23 9-Inch Steel Cutting Circular Saw - - Amazon.com

It sure is a handful and dont see much out there for competition at the same around about price. I could've sure use that this past month trying to cut 3 pc of 1/4"x 27" a straight cut is lot nicer to weld. I usually can cut nice and straight 2-3" with torch, it's just so hard for me to maintain a constant burn speed while holding the torch steady and it gotten harder as the years go by

 

[BukitCase]

Re: Post modification - the MAIN reason I went with thicker steel on that frame is my *#&%@** NEIGHBORS (and other sub-trailer trash) - that part of the frame is ALSO my "security blanket", that'll get 1/2" 1018 CR rods welded at the outer edges (think jail cell, but a little smaller) - so I wanted it to be fairly stiff (after it's all welded) - IOW, I PLANNED it that way - that's my story, an' I'm stickin' TO it

" I should get an A+" I agree; and the next few letters are "S-S-H-O...." :laughing: (and yeah, it DOES take one to know one )

"What you think of this for cutting steel, you have something like it?" Similar, sorta - I wasn't sure how much I'd use a "skil-saw" type, so I got one of these
7-1/4 in. 12 Amp Heavy Duty Circular Saw With Laser Guide System on a coupon for $29, and one (two, actually) of these
7-1/4 in. 48T Metal Cutting Circular Saw Blade

I have 3 OTHER skil saws; a worm drive, a left-blade Porter-Cable, and a DeWalt 18 volt - I use ALL of them at various times, but usually for fairly precise stuff and ALWAYS only on WOOD, so I wasn't willing to destroy ANY of those for a "maybe" (That particular Porter Cable is no longer available, so if anybody tried to walk away with it I'd probly "fire a WARNING shot to the HEAD" and THEN ask 'em what they were doin'....

Anyway, the HF stuff works OK for up to maybe 1/8", I've used it several times cutting 16 ga. sheet metal - but that saw is nowhere NEAR as well-guarded as the EVO, so I ALWAYS use a full face shield (and gloves) with it. It IS real easy to clamp a piece of angle to a sheet and get those cuts almost as straight as an Iowa road :thumbsup:

I have the same problem as you with torch cuts; my (sorta) "fix" - I converted the cut speed table in my plasma's manual from inches per minute (who the **** can figure THAT one out?? into SECONDS per INCH at all thicknesses from 16 ga. to 1" steel -
Then I lay one of these
48 in. Aluminum Ruler

alongside the cut (plasma is so "focused" I can lay the ruler within 1/4" and not burn it up) - that way I can just drag the torch along a piece of 1" angle (guide) with the ruler next to it, and it's easier to count "one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three, and (if the speed needs to be 20" per minute) when I say "three", I should be an inch further along the ruler. That works better than anything ELSE I've tried -

I haven't tried it (yet), but I don't see why that wouldn't work with a "gas axe" if you have a cut speed chart for your torch...

Well, the FedEx guy just brightened up my day, new toy showed up -


Still waiting to hear back from Jet on the new bow for my bandsaw, but the new toy should ease the pain a bit
(OK, QUITE a bit :laughing: )...Steve

 

[BukitCase]

Oh, another "helper" - I bought one of these about 5 years ago -
Plasma Cutting Guide | Flange Wizard
with a couple extras, the little wheels even help on STRAIGHT cuts - my PM45 uses drag-type tips but unless you polish the cut area, the torch kinda just "jumps along", and leaves un-cut spots. I set the wheels to just BARELY keep the torch tip off the metal, so it runs a LOT less jumpy.

They make something similar for O/A torches too -
Multi-Purpose Chariot Cutting Guide | Flange Wizard
They're a little bit "proud" of their stuff, but it works really well...

The circle cutter came in handy when beefing up my ZTR's mower deck - I put a piece of 1/4" flat bar across the discharge (laid FLAT, NOT as a mulcher) when the stock one folded up; centered the circle cutter on the blade spindle next to the discharge, set the radius 1/4" longer than the blade's radius; zero interference, it's been on there for about 4 years now, MUCH more durable... Steve

 

[Big Barn]

Just checking in on progress, but truth be told, I’m only here for the “witticisms”.

 

[BukitCase]

Appreciate the compliment Terry, but today it's been more like an "exorcism" than a "witticism" (altho, considering the word structure "exor" meaning "removal" of a demon, then "witticism" must mean the REMOVAL of WIT)

As in, spent most of the morning troubleshooting our well (no water this morning), then when I figured out the culprit, the REST of the day spent replacing everything but the porcelain on one of our toilets (no exaggeration) -

Our well water has REALLY high iron (don't need Geritol here :=) and VERY low flow - about 1.2 GPM after it's drawn down to pump level; the high iron (rust) likes to mess up the guts in toilets, to the point that the flapper valve stops sealing til you flush the tank out with a hose - near as I can tell, that toilet effectively flushed itself about 5-6 times per HOUR, for at LEAST 24 hours. That finally used up the approximately 30 feet of water in the 6" casing sometime in the night, so no water this morning.

THIS time the rust had gone too far, so I ended up taking the tank off, removing ACTUALLY everything but the tank itself, and starting over. The BAD news is ZERO progress on the "project du jur" - the GOOD news is, I probably won't have to go THAT far for ANOTHER 10 years :licking:

Soooo, "exorcism" was successful, demon is gone; "witticism" narrowly averted, might be back to full obnoxiousness by manana ...Steve

 

[BukitCase]

It started gettin' too warm about 10am, so all I got done today (even WITH 2 fans helping) was beveling the 1/4x2 FB "flange" pieces, then clamping everything down to the table starting with the (mitered) flange pieces, making sure everything was exactly spaced (and SQUARE) like it needs to be (24-1/16" between horizontals and 24-1/8" between verticals for louver pivot clearance) - then lining up the previously tacked 3/16x6 "shadow box" frame, pulling it a little bit til it lines up with the mitered frame - bottom line, it's al ready to tack and weld.
(Did I mention how much I LOVE Stronghand 4 in 1 weld clamps??:thumbsup:

The DOWN side - it's 97* outside in the shade, so it's gonna wait til manana for the "sparky thang", it's only supposed to be 80 tomorrow, and low 70's the NEXT 4 days. Hopefully I'll get this frame welded out, and maybe even have time to add 1/2" grab hooks and swivel D rings to my chain hook inserts - right now they only have 3/8" grab hooks - the 1/2" hooks will go on the opposite side, and the D rings on one of the two sides NOT already used -



Sorry, thought I had pics of the add-ons The 1/2" hooks (and probably the D rings) will get used when I lift the two hi-cube containers onto my "mil-spec lego blocks", along with a 1/2" Gr. 70 chain (1400 lb. WLL) - I don't really trust my 3/8 "regular" grade chains with just under 3 tons per end, even tho I will NEVER have any body parts "in between a hard place and a hard place"

Well, "Missus Bukit" just got her new phone, and setting THAT up in a nice COOL 76*house seems like a 'WAY BETTER idea than makin' sparks in a 97* shed

Later... Steve

 

[dragoneggs]

You gettin' smoke down there, Steve? Bad, bad in Puget Sound. Now in Reno area and better than it has been but headed back home mañana, where the 'bluest skies are in Seattle'... not! Been able to stare directly at the sun. Reminds me of Beijing!

The Bluest Skies You've Ever Seen Are In Seattle - YouTube

 

[BukitCase]

No real smoke here, just quite a bit of hazy skies - I think we're just about centered between the two worst areas. Can't really smell much, just a whiff now and then.

You're in Reno - if you were lookin' really close, you mighta seen my last two Stronghand clamps zip thru - from Reno stock (former Enco, now MSC) - they caught me by surprise; ordered online sunday nite, showed up here Tuesday morning ! Now I have 12 of the 8-1/2"/1200 lb and 12 of the 12-1/2" 1200 lb. I did have only 10 of the longer ones, but some of the things I fab I'd had to make do with 1 or 2 OTHER clamps. Now it's less likely (see yesterday's pics)

We're supposed to get some cooler weather for the next 3-4 days, hoping to get caught up on weld-outs without sweat-outs ...Steve

 

[dragoneggs]

Never enough clamps! Sounds like a nice 'herd' or whatever you call a group of clamps? :laughing: Jealous. Just about hit the amazon 1 click order button. Yeah bored in a hotel room in Carson City. And no, didn't see your go by.

 

[BukitCase]

" Just about hit the amazon 1 click order button" - DON'T DO IT... from Amazon -

Strong Hand Tools 4-in-1 Sliding Arm Clamp Kit - 12.5in - C Clamps - Amazon.com ($72, with free shipping)

"WEB ORDER 08/19/18 $44.92" - That's my price from MSC - for TWO of the 12"/1200 lb. clamps, INCLUDING FREE SHIPPING -

Soooo, for less than Amazon's price for ONE, if you decide you want those you could have THREE for the price of one (from Amazon), and STILL have $5 left over for gas to drive to Albany and pick 'em up. (I'm a "legacy" customer of Enco, so my price on stuff at MSC is typically 40-70% of their "list" prices).

That was a serious offer, so unless you just wanna pay 320% (in THIS case) for "braggin' rights".... Steve

Oh, and here's MSC's price EACH if I'm NOT logged in - ($53.50)
4-3/4" Deep Throat, 12-1/2" Max Capacity, 4 74553918 - MSC