I have been thinking about building a frame table. A few of the things I have been thinking about is, plates running acrossed the top of the frame table (rails) with taped holes every inch or two. That way I can bolt things to the top of it, it will be adjustable for different frame widths, cross members and such. It has to have levelers in the feet. Would like to be able to brake it down for space reasons, maybe just to be able to take the legs off so I can lean it up against the wall. What do you guys think is important, how long, and how wide?
nicest one that i've seen http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=577892&highlight=frame+table later jim
The idea of slotted plates sounds good. I am going to build one with wheels, that way it can be moved out of the way, it can also be used to store a body on if necssary. I got a boat dolley from a friend last year made from heavy channel iron to use for the frame jig, just haven't put it together yet.
I've had my frame table 30 some odd years, pretty simple and has served me well. 2 12' heavy 8" channels spaced 2' apart. 18" high legs with levelers. I've often thought of adding plate to the top so I could bolt stuff to it but sometimes that would get in the way, good to have access from under it to what your working on. At one time I had "pockets" to hold certain jigs but it seemed they were never where I wanted them so now I just spot weld my needs to it, when I'm done knock them off and grind the weld flush. Worked well for me. Not sure about portable, mine weighs a ton so I don't move it often. I do have some old solid doors I throw on it when I'm not using it so it doubles as an extra work bench.
That's a nice table but I think I want mine a bit taller. Its a lot easier to use my tig welder if I don't have to work the pedal with my knee. I don't think I want plate mounted to the top of it. I want to be able to get under it or in it if I have to.
Here are my 2. 800 bucks for the one on the left from a Boeing auction 4'x12'. The one on the right is a 12' by 18"slotted fixture plate. 300 bucks at a machinery auction. When I moved I took the one on wheels. The big one weighed 8000 pounds. Gave it to a friend who builds racecars.
here's mine. cost me about $150 to build it. it's available for long term use for free if anyone wants it (in so cal).
To me, the first thing a person needs to determine before building one is how often it will get used. If it is one that you are going to be using often then the more permanent type, with legs, levelers, etc, make sense. But if you are only going to use it every few years, then one that is stowable takes up less room. When my Son Dan built ours years ago he made it from some heavy steel channel and made it so we can prop it up against a wall when not in use. We didn't want a 4 x 8 table taking up valuable floor space when we might only use it every two to 3 years. This is the one he made, and it has served us well. Probably 7 or 8 frames have been made on it and all we do is clamp the frame pieces down with C clamps every so often and things can't move. Not the fanciest one around, but it works. Don
25 years ago I built the frame table I still use. 2X6x11 gauge rec tube frame work with adjustable feet on the bottom, covered by a 4X10X1/2inch sheet of steel. 1200 + chassis have been built on this table and it's still going strong. The reason I did it this way was because when I started space was at a premium and I build 28-40 Ford chassis and did not have room for a fixture for each type of chassis. It has worked good for me all these years.
Anyone ever use wood ijoist. I know wood moves a little and is flamable, but you can get the ijoist cheap espc. if it is for a one time use.
This is the one I built about 12 years a go. Has served me verry well! Prob built 50 plus chassis on it! In the pics I am doing a 50 chevy truck chassis. Using my adjustable fixtures. I have other fixtures for model A,32,34 and 35 to 40 ford chassis. It has leveling feet on it and is very flat and stout!
Here's the one I built. it's 5'x14' and the working surface is 2"x12". It's slightly large for the model a yet I built it to sub frame a caddy or continental in the future. It has four trailer jack so I can lift it and move it around. It's leveled with 4 1" all thread and nuts welded to a pad with a thin layer of rubber under it. The top is filled with sand to help deaden the sound (I live in an hoa community). I found all the green steel laying in a field and between a couple of 2x3 stick and other parts im in it for cheap!! The bolt hole idea is great- i just weld to mine. One thing i would do differently would be to make it just about knee high.
I just made one i can use for doing my A body and frame( sorry no pics yet). i took the frame from a 49 f-6 i just cut up for parts,and cut it 12' from the back end of the frame,made my own removeable and ajustable legs with both wheels and adjustable feet.then i bolted down some 3/4" plywood i had on it so ican use it as a cart,work table or whatever just by putting a different top on it. the frames top rail is strait for about 13' on this truck and its a double frame so its plenty sturdy. When i dont need it unbolt the legs and stand it up on its side and store it out of the way
I guess it would be better than nothing at all, but steel is just so much more rigid and immovable. Sometimes you can find suitable steel at your local scrap yard and pay pennies a pound for it. One thing I like about ours is that we can flip it over with our gantry or an engine lift. My Son prefers to weld stuff on a horizontal surface, as opposed to on a vertical or overhead surface, so we keep flipping a frame all around so he is always welding straight down. It does get a little heavy because the jig probably weighs 200-300 pounds and then add the weight of a frame to that, but our gantry does the heavy lifting for us. Don
I think access from underneath for welding and other tasks is very important. Wheels to move it around are nice to have so you can roll it out of the way when the project needs to go away for a while. Obviously it need to be wide and long enough to fit what you will be building in the future.
4 x 8 (maybe 4 x 10 now that I think about it) is what we have and it works out fine for the 1930 ish frames we work on. Later cars may need a bigger surface, but we don't do those. Don
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