Some of what I do... finally.

[chrisgay@sbcglo]

1. The welding machines we used were: a Passport for the frame, and a Maxstar 200DX for the stainless rod around the bar shelf. Small welders... big light.

I had just purchased the Passport, and this was a great job for it. Its small footprint really shined as we could place it anywhere we wanted while we climbed all over this birdcage. Overall I've been very pleased with this machine and it has become the "go-to" MIG unit around here. I do have a few minor gripes about it, but it's a pretty "mad-tight" little welding machine.

2. through 5.: frame coming together, including the "ribs."

[chrisgay@sbcglo]

1. Backtracking a litte in my time-line, JC is checking that all three layers will match up. It took a lot of pushing and pulling to get the shape to match the layout at the job site.

2. Templates for the shelves, which were fabricated from 1" thick cast resin panels. These were heavy as all heck, and we cut them on a 30" bandsaw.

3. Things can get messy when you're chasing down a deadline.

4. Loaded.

5. I love it when a plan comes together.


Thanks for looking.

[tnjind]

Dang, man,

You are a different caliber then I am.

Very well executed.
Dang good job all around,
Nice to be able to work with tour friends and your father, I know, great.

Again, good job.

[chrisgay@sbcglo]

Dang, man,

You are a different caliber then I am.

I'ts probably safe to say that I'm just... different than you are.

Very well executed.
Dang good job all around,

Thanks again. Been at it for a while.

Nice to be able to work with tour friends and your father, I know, great.

Can't beat it. I feel privileged. Dad's an old-school race car guy, so when he comes by I try to pretend I know what I'm doing. Plus he's probably shown me one or two tricks now and again.

[chrisgay@sbcglo]

Hey tnjind,

What kinds of things are you welding up in Indiana?

[Admin]

I was trolling the message boards today when I ran across your pics. I think I nearly choked! Beautiful, beautiful work! My compliments to you and your team!

Some of the work is on such a large scale, how big of a shop/studio do you run?

[chrisgay@sbcglo]

I was trolling the message boards today when I ran across your pics. I think I nearly choked! Beautiful, beautiful work! My compliments to you and your team!

Some of the work is on such a large scale, how big of a shop/studio do you run?

Admin, thanks for the kind words. I appreciate it.

Well, believe it or not, we are usually two , sometimes three, and maybe they'll be a handful of us if we need the bodies for an afternoon. We'll usually be running two or three jobs, sometimes more, in various stages of development, at any given time. Pretty much everything gets fabricated under an 800 s.f. shelter. This space includes all the necessary equipment, much of which is on wheels, and currently includes a whopping 90 pounds of Miller welders (1 Passport, and 1 Maxstar 200DX). There's a Dynasty 200DX kickin' around here too, but it's a friend's and I only use it to weld up Aluminum for his fancy boat projects. It pretty much lives under a cover the rest of the time. An outdoor shop lends to some surface rust on machinery, which we have to stay on top of, but working in the fresh air and natural light year-round has spoiled me. I have amassed quite a collection of old, heavy, cast machinery. It's safe to say that I like my machinery old and my welders new(er). In addition to all the metalworking equipment, I've a cr@pload of woodworking tools and equipment. I've sold off a few pieces over the years, but I can honestly say we use about everything at one point or another. This kind of work is all about TIME. Things take time. We are fast at what we do, but as many of you know, making things by hand takes a lot of time.
We don't have a lot of production type tools, i.e. power shears, press brakes, there's not even a cold-saw right now. Just a couple of small welders, some levels, some squares, and many many many many hand-tools. Everyone is making their own kind of shoes, I'm just making mine the way I know how.

Thanks again. I'll try to post pics of the shop space soon. I do have a peripheral involvement in motorsports through my father, so I occassionally get to work on some fast cars and have been around them my whole life... I may post some racing car pics on the motorsports board, too, for the car guys.