I made a simple launch platform by welding together a couple scraps of steel tubing and a small shaft coupler with set screws, into which a 1/4″ steel rod can be held. Ideally I would also add a means to pivot the rod so that it can be aimed into the wind, as well as a plate so the rocket exhaust doesn’t burn the ground (and potentially set stuff on fire). For now I’ll leave it as is and use something else as the blast plate or more likely I’ll just make sure there is nothing flammable nearby. It’s going to be in a desert after all.
When ramming the clay and fuel into the engine during assembly, it creates a lot of outward forces that have a tendency to damage the cardboard tubes. In order to abate this problem, you surround the cardboard tube with a casing retainer that will take up some of that force and prevent the tubes from deforming or bursting. This can be done with either plastic or steel, but steel allows you to use fewer clamping bolts due to rigidity so I went with that. The fabrication process basically starts with a schedule 40 steel pipe, which is cleaned up and slit down the middle with a slitting saw on the mill. Then a flange is machined and welded in place. The only really tricky part of this is that you need to be VERY careful not to overheat and warp the part when welding. The easiest way to accomplish this is to simply go very slowly, welding about an inch at a time and then giving the part time for the heat to equalize and cool a bit. Seems like everything went pretty smoothly, though for the large retainer the flange warped a tiny bit, which reduces it’s clamping range somewhat. Shouldn’t be too hard to account for this, and i can easily make another in the future if it becomes bothersome.
Small Benchtop Mills usually have an optional cast iron table, but I didn’t like the height (it was too low) and the lack of storage that these tables have. I decided to make my own, just like the lathe table. I didn’t spend quite as much time making it perfect like the previous table, but this one is certainly built like a tank and should last me forever. Like the lathe table, it has both leveling feet and wheels to move it around and keep it stable.
Small lathes live and die by the bench upon which they are mounted. My little lathe has been struggling for the past year or so on a wobbly table and it’s really making me uncomfortable. The table is rated for 700lb, but my 350lb lathe is clearly too much for it. Because of this I decided to make a proper welded bench for my lathe. I spent the better part of a month on it and I’m extremely proud. The top surface is flat to within at least 10 thousandths of an inch and that’s more than enough to be able to mount the lathe and level it properly. Now that the lathe is mounted on a sturdy table the experience using it is 100% better. No wobbles and no worrying about 350lb of cast iron crashing down onto my feet. Also, the table has wheels to move it around, and levelling feet to keep it stable.
This project took me about a week. I used 16g square steel tubing for the frame, and 1/8 thick steel for the tabletop. In total the table is about 200 pounds. I accidentally warped the table top during welding but was able to grind it down a little to make it relatively smooth again. All in all I feel like I learned a lot about what to do and what not to do. This table will definitely serve me well in the years to come.
I’ve never welded before, but I am tired of the wobbly table the lathe is on, and I want to try my hand at making a better one. To start though I am going to make a welding table, both to get some experience and to have a good surface to weld on for future projects.
