The compression struts are coming along. I have two finished with six that have one end welded.
The
jig I used I made from some square stock steel I had from a trailer
project. Just about anything could be used. I made sure the holes
kept everything in alignment.
I first rough cut the tubes to be close enough to check for alignment as I made
the wood part of the jig. This is just 3/4″ pine used to hold the tube centered on the strut ends. Next I tack welded
and finish welded one end on the eight tubes needed.
These are the single ends welded.
Next I fitted the tube back into the
jig with a shim at one end to establish the correct finished length. The
first ones I welded were set at 30-1/4″.
Once
I had the lengths correct I put the wood blocks back onto the jig and tack
welded the second end in place.
Then, remove and finish weld.
Pretty easy compared to many of the other parts I have made. The other
struts will be different length but will use the same jig with different shims
for correct length.
The test fit went well so on to
finishing the other four at this length than finish the other lengths.
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