Diesel Place banner

The Fallout shelter 14'X40'X80'

Tags
projects shop
79K views 1K replies 18 participants last post by  firestopper 
#1 ·
Back in 2013 I decided to build a detached shop next to my home. For 15 years I had been working out of an attached 26'X50" but it seemed I had acquired too many machines and quickly found myself unable to park any rigs inside. Living in the SW desert of Arizona, I was at full time war with packrats and the harsh UV rays of the sun. I wanted something large enough to address it all. My old shop had a large Band saw, cold saw, lathe, mill, pipe bender, CNC 5'x10' plasma table, several tool boxes, a compliment of miller welders, 51Ton iron worker and a 4'x12' jig table just to name a few. Needless to say all automotive work was preformed outside.

A last look of the old shop.
Motor vehicle Automotive design Engineering Industry Factory


After pulling a large Palo Verde tree and relocating a 40' sea container I was ready to layout the new pad.
Tire Wheel Vehicle Sky Car


Forming and importing dirt as well as laying out all the anchor bolts for the 10 columns.
Cloud Sky Wood Road surface Asphalt

The night before the 3am pour.
Automotive lighting Light Street light Road surface Asphalt

The foundation was poured in mid July with temps averaging 105Âş.
A 44 meter pump truck kept the flow coming. I had hired eight finishers for the day myself included.
The fella at the drivers side outrigger at the pump is 6'3" so it gives you an idea of the size of the pump rig.
Cloud Sky Road surface Asphalt Vehicle

The power finisher doing its magic.
Cloud Sky Property Tire Road surface

Finished up around noon for a 9 hour day. I kept the water on for 7 days to counter the hot days.
Cloud Sky Tree Asphalt Road surface

Another shot from the NW corner. You can see the 1.5" notch around the perimeter. This will secure a 3" base flange with the skins over it to keep water out. The hose entering the slab is a "man door" location. The west end will have
two 10' x 12' garage doors. the NE side will have a 10'X 12' rollup door (2 post lift), and the SE end will have a 10'X12'
garage door aligned up to the one of the West doors for a drive through option.
Water Plant Watercourse Composite material Tree

About a week later the delivery from El Paso arrived with the kit I purchased through Mueller inc. They were great to deal with every step of the way. The provided all the engineering to satisfy my county. The only thing I had to source was a foundation with an engineering stamp for all the steel in the piers and footers.
Cloud Sky Vehicle Wheel Tree

Between the drivers crab style fork lift and my Hyster, we made short work of staging the "red iron".
Cloud Sky Tree Road surface Mountain

More to follow.
 
See less See more
10
#2 ·
During one of my six day breaks, with the help of a neighbor and two other Buddys, we had all the red iron up and plumbed.

The bay with the Z purlins has the diagonal cables that provide the shear on the entire building prior to skinning.
This was the first phase in squaring the building.
Sky Tire Cloud Automotive parking light Wheel

The X bracing the cables provide is crucial in squaring and adding rigidity.
Sky Cloud Property Tire Wheel

I had owned that fork lift for a few years at this point but it really saved me serious money by erecting this building myself.
No way I could have done it without the Hyster. Notice the cab cover I had made to protect from the UV's. The dash and seat would only last two summer seasons without the cover. Now your getting why a 3200 sf shop.

Looking to the West with a monsoon storm approaching.
Cloud Sky Shade Wood Bench

Looking to the East after a six day work break.
Tire Wheel Cloud Sky Car

I had loaded all the skins onto my 20' trailer. This not only kept the skins off the ground but allowed me to stage the skins to the area I was working.
Cloud Wheel Tire Sky Vehicle

A shot of the Z purlins and bracing.
Cloud Sky Plant Shade Tree

Sun set.
Sky Cloud Shade Tire Architecture

With the red iron up it was time to focus on more concrete work. I added to the rear door of the old shop extending
6' past the end of the new building for a wash rack. I also set plate anchors to weld up a future awning.
Sky Road surface Wood Asphalt Track

The end of the wash rack turns right into a 6' sidewalk for the East end of the building. This will come in handy
for the future Swampzilla.
Sky Wood Land lot Shade Landscape

I still had a fair amount of concrete work and for that reason I had put off installing the skins. I didn't want dents,
or concrete splashed on the skins finish.
Shade Wood Sky Beam Line


More to follow...
 
#3 · (Edited)
With the wash rack formed up, tamped and re-mish set, we were close to pouring the next 20 yards.
Tree Wood Road surface Sky Landscape

The pour went fine and turned out great. This was done by three of us.
This is the East end that will serve as a 6' sidewalk and foundation for a large evaporative cooler.
The sidewalk has a 2" pitch away from the building.
Sky Ecoregion Cloud Shade Road surface

The North side of the building shows the rest of the wash rack as you look to the West.
The old shop has an 18' garage door at both ends making it convenient to pull a vehicle out through the East and turn into the Maintanace/repair bay of the new shop.
Sky Shade Road surface Wood Asphalt

looking to the SW.
Sky Shade Wood Land lot Slope

Next up was designing a drain system to route heavy water from the house scuppers. I designed a French drain with an independent leach field. The leach field consist of 70' trench 5' deep with perforated pipe on a 2' base of 1"rock. The
4" perf pipe was covered with 6"of the same rock and backfilled with dirt. The perforation holes were pointed down to keep dirt from fowling the drain.

The same 1.5" x 1.5" tubbing was used to create a notch for the steel grating to rest in.
Wood Asphalt Road surface Tire Urban design


The drain runs the entire width of the West end. During Monsoons, we get serious down pours that result in a ton of water coming off the house scuppers that could easily overwhelm a grade without a dedicated drain.
Road surface Wood Tints and shades Bridge Road

This portion took 5.5 yards averaging 10" thick. I wanted to ensure the 9K pound fork lift could travel over the French Drain.
A look to the North and you can see three scuppers coming off the old shop/house.
Building Sky Cloud Wood Road surface

Prior to stripping the forms.
Road surface Wood Asphalt Flooring Floor

Forms stripped and ready to pour the drain floor section. I used my 3 bag mixer and 18 90# bags of concreate to pour this portion. A string line was followed with a 3" pitch in 40'.
Road surface Wood Urban design Flooring Parallel

All done and ready for measuring up for the steel grating.
Road surface Wood Asphalt Grass Rectangle

More to follow...
 
#4 ·
The steel grating was ordered to size and fit well. The southern most end got a small section of grating making it easier to pull off to clean the strainer.
Wood Road surface Shade Flooring Floor

Looking to the East.
Sky Light Plant Shade Tree

The side skins went up fairly easy with just two of us working. I had stacked about 1/2" thick worth of sheets and pre drilled the stack. This ensured the Tek screws where centered on the purlins and a straight line of screws looking from the outside.
Sky Shade Wood Land lot Asphalt

All the opening had to be cut by hand. I used an electric shear, it work great despite the ribs.
This door opening will be the Automotive bay that will utilize a rollup door. The rollup door is a great option when installing a 2-post lift.
Sky Wood Shade Composite material Urban design

The red iron that contacts the skins were treated with a 1/8" thick X 2" wide neoprene insulator type tape. I wanted to prevent any condensation at the contact points since I didn't use the cheaper insulation Muller sold me with the building. They actually gave me a full refund since I decided to go a different route with insulation.
Sky Tire Vehicle Wheel Car

Hard to see but the screws are nice and straight as a result of gang drilling them first.
Property Sky Wood Shade Beam

Getting closer.
Sky Cloud Shade Building Wood

The East end door lines up with one of the West end doors.
Rectangle Shade Wood Sky Fixture

Looking a bit like a warehouse. The home made man lift platform on the fork lift sure made it safer.
Property Sky Wood Shade Beam

The start of the roof. Myself and a buddy were the only ones walking on the roof. I had two guys on the ground
prepping the sheets and sending them up with the fork lift. The man lift platform worked well for this by resting the sheets on top of the hand rail. Each 20' sheet got a strip of sealant along the overlapping joint.
Building Window Vehicle Tire Shade

More to come...
 
#5 ·
Skinning the roof took about two weeks as the winds up here can get intense. We were still in monsoon season so it wasn't uncommon to shut down due to lightning rain and wind.

This is one of two vents I opted to go with. It proved to be a good choice when heavy welding or machining create a smoky haze. Pop open a vent or two and use positive pressure to push out the haze.
If you look closely you can see two green string lines. This was our guide when setting the roof skins. You can also see the amount of screws used on each Z Purlin.
Wood Building Window Fixture Wood stain

Another Monsoon afternoon. You can see the top of one vent. It's designed to keep rain and birds out. I get an occasional bee or wasp bit nothing to worry about.
Cloud Sky Plant Property Daytime

All the trim complete and ready for the doors.
Automotive parking light Sky Automotive tire Road surface Asphalt


Sky Shade Wood Land lot Architecture

Somewhat dried in. Looking West
Tire Wheel Vehicle Building Wood

Looking East.
Wood Shade Building Fixture Hall

It was time to pull the 200 amp feeders. Back in 98 when I built the house I used a 400 amp service panel. At the time I never dreamed I would have a detached shop but knew I would use plenty of juice.

I built brackets that screwed into the Purlins to set the 200 amp panel. The stubs coming from the floor are Electric and H2O. If you notice the added base angle anchored to the floor. This will create an 8" space for insulation and also provide a place to screw down the 3/4" BC plywood later. It lines up with the faces of the two Purlins.
Wood Interior design Gas Hardwood Curtain

A close up of the panel brackets.
Wood Door Automotive exterior Gas Latch

With some power to the shop, it was time to hang garage doors.
Sky Cloud Wood Land lot Asphalt

The three garage doors use a Liftmaster 3800 with soft start/stop and electric bolt. The motors are jack shaft and keep the ceiling free of any chain track. The doors I went with are insulated commercial grade. The fourth and only rollup
door is also insulated and made by Janus. Now we're dried in!
Wood Hall Floor Beam Flooring

More to come...
 
#6 ·
I was now ready for the electrical phase of the build. I used just over a mile of wire to complete all circuits. The Purlins provided an excellent platform to run and secure wires.
Wood Fixture Handle Automotive exterior Gas


Wood Engineering Composite material Wire Metal

Heading up for the overhead circuits. Three way switches were used to control the lights from either end of the shop.
Each bay is also on its own lighting circuit so no need to have all the light on. Also next to the man door are the pump and motor switches for the cooler.
Wood Textile Rectangle Fixture Shelving

With the T-5 fixtures in service, the bays have ample light. An extra fixture was added to the fabrication bay and to the machine shop bay. Each fixture puts out 33K lumen and there's a total of 18. I also added overhead reels each on it's own circuit. At the time LED were too costly and even the T-5 ran a decent coin. If you look high on the third horizontal Purlin, you can see receptacles. These are on independent switches and are there for neon vintage signs (someday).
They compliment both sides of the shop and ends. I purchase commercial cases of electrical boxes and spools of wire so I wanted to use as much of it as possible.
Wheel Tire Land vehicle Car Table

A shot of the rollup door in the proposed auto bay. More three way switches for the bay lighting.
Wheel Tire Automotive parking light Vehicle Automotive lighting

Looking to the West.
Automotive parking light Wheel Tire Car Vehicle

Each door got a double LED outdoor fixture by Rebb.
Cloud Sky Building Wood Rectangle

Couple of overhead circuits. All the light fixtures got a receptacle box and cord cap vs hard wire. This will make it easier to unplug and repair the fixture on the Bench vs overhead. It will also make it easier when I upgrade to LED fixtures.
Wood Lighting Shade Fixture Beam

Any wires that penetrate a purlin got a plastic bushing.
Wood Publication Composite material Shelving Hardwood

This is the finished panel. I only have two spare breakers at this point.
Electricity Electronic engineering Computer hardware Circuit component Gas

More to come...
 
#7 ·
So with having power and also being dried in, my first job and priority was to refurbish a pair of Klipsch Cornwall from 1982. I have been an audiophile from a young age and serving overseas made collecting easier.
First up, custom speaker cabinet brackets made from 2" angle and chain. They will sit 38' apart and 8' up at the East end of the shop.
Left side.
Wood House Floor Flooring Hardwood

Right side.
Wood Fixture Gas Tints and shades Composite material

Next phase is insulation. I used R-30 on ceiling and walls. The EcoBatt is 10" thick stuffed into an 8" space. It's
covered in white scrim sheet and wired in every 16" using pound in clips into the red iron. A commercial type application.
Building Wood Interior design Floor Beam

The acoustics after the insulation made for a great sounding sound system.
Fixture Wood Hall Wall Floor

All done and waiting for plywood. the walls will consist of 3/4" BC plywood standing on edge to create an 8' wall.
This will allow for anchoring whatever I want and also protect the lower portion of the walls.
Property Light Lighting Fixture Building

Tape and texture the plywood walls. I purchased a "Bunk" (pallet) of plywood vs individual sheets. By doing this I payed $32/sheet vs $38/sheet. I ended up with three extra sheets but saved some dough.
Wheel Tire Building Hall Flooring

The sheets were hung in a single with the help of a buddy. He measured the electrical box hight and I laid them out and cut accordingly.
Wood Building Composite material Gas Building material

Time for texture and prime.
Wood Building Flooring Floor Hall

With the texture and prime done, its looking like a shop.
Building Hall Flooring Floor Gas

More to follow...
 

Attachments

#939 ·
So with having power and also being dried in, my first job and priority was to refurbish a pair of Klipsch Cornwall from 1982. I have been an audiophile from a young age and serving overseas made collecting easier.
First up, custom speaker cabinet brackets made from 2" angle and chain. They will sit 38' apart and 8' up at the East end of the shop.
Left side.
View attachment 639726
Right side.
View attachment 639727
Next phase is insulation. I used R-30 on ceiling and walls. The EcoBatt is 10" thick stuffed into an 8" space. It's
covered in white scrim sheet and wired in every 16" using pound in clips into the red iron. A commercial type application.
View attachment 639728
The acoustics after the insulation made for a great sounding sound system.
View attachment 639729
All done and waiting for plywood. the walls will consist of 3/4" BC plywood standing on edge to create an 8' wall.
This will allow for anchoring whatever I want and also protect the lower portion of the walls.
View attachment 639730
Tape and texture the plywood walls. I purchased a "Bunk" (pallet) of plywood vs individual sheets. By doing this I payed $32/sheet vs $38/sheet. I ended up with three extra sheets but saved some dough.
View attachment 639733
The sheets were hung in a single with the help of a buddy. He measured the electrical box hight and I laid them out and cut accordingly.
View attachment 639734
Time for texture and prime.
View attachment 639735
With the texture and prime done, its looking like a shop.
View attachment 639736
More to follow...
I have built and maintained buildings for almost my whole adult life, it’s what I do for a living. This is some great work. These MPB’s are great buildings. Mike
 
#8 ·
Some detailed work on the Klipsch Cornwalls. I had to refinish the cabinets (real wood), replace the capacitors on the crossovers, and replace the grill fabric to original specs. I also had to source a missing copper badge.

The crossovers original capacitors were those large metal wet type (the best). The top one was modified with the ribbon type. The lower crossover was on deck.
Circuit component Passive circuit component Electronic instrument Electronic engineering Audio equipment

A schematic I came up with before any modifications were made. The old caps looked good but at over 32 years old
I thought its best to replace them.
Circuit component Gas Electrical wiring Font Electronic engineering

This is the Fallout Shelters sound system. An SAE rack system with all consecutive serial numbers. The SAE system was a trade I did for a AR-15 build I was commissioned to do. The fella once had a high end stereo shop in the 80's and had a fair amount of equipment NIB. My system was in such boxes with original plastic, foam, and original paperwork.
Musical instrument accessory Musical instrument Audio equipment Electrical wiring Gas


Wood Audio equipment Tire Communication Device Wood stain

With the shop tunes working it was time to finish the paint scheme. I decided to start with the area with the most switches. The black line is 10" wide and does a great job of hiding paw prints when using the switches.
Building Interior design Wall Flooring Gas

The blue line breaks up the the white and adds a nice touch. Yes I'm anal, I masked off the back of the I-beams to continue the paint theme.
Building Floor Wall Flooring Wood

Once I finished the walls, it became obvious I had to carry the same paint theme to the doors.
Building Field house Floor Flooring Gas

Green frog tape does a great job with crisp lines but I used a method of painting the tape with the base color to seal off the line followed up with the different color. Once you're done you pull the tape before the paint dries leaving crisp lines.
Here you can see the assembled Swampzilla cooler in front of the fork lift.
Vehicle Wheel Motor vehicle Tire Automotive design

Getting close.
Motor vehicle Vehicle Wheel Floor Building

More to follow...
 
#9 ·
Next up was designing a duct system for the cooler. I wanted to use spiral oval ducting to preserve as much ceiling hight as possible. A buddy's dad helped with the scheduling using HVAC formulas. Before I could install the ductwork I had to come up with a robust penetration into the building. I used 1/8" X 2" X 2" angle iron. The idea was to make two frames that matched the R-panel profile both inside and out. The inside frame would be welded to the red iron and have four capture nuts welded allowing me to assemble the outside frame without the help of anyone else. I was pretty much working alone after the electrical phase so this went into designing the frames.
The cooler stand was also built with the rear legs slightly longer than the front to off set the 2" pitch in the concrete sidewalk. I wanted to keep the cooler as close to the ground as possible for maintenance reasons.
Building Wood Shade Floor Line

The ductwork was staged. I ended up using aircraft cable to support the sections of duct.
Tire Car Wheel Land vehicle Vehicle

The CNC Mill followed me home this day. I had to make the shop budget work with the purchase of the Mill but
It wasn't too difficult as I had done most of the work myself and only paid the concrete finishers. Everyone else who helped had basically re-payed from me helping them along the way so I could spend some on a new to me Mill.
Car Tire Wheel Property Vehicle

Building Automotive tire Ladder Flooring Floor

The fork lift saved the day again along with the man lift to support the sections while it got attached and supported with cables. As each section was installed, I crawled into each section to apply HVAC joint compound on the inside joints keeping the outside clean. The last section was too small so clear silicone sealant was used. I like the way it looks with the cable supporting the system. Almost as if it's floating.
Field house Building Hall Shade Flooring

A different angle.
Building Vehicle Floor Motor vehicle Flooring

Looking straight out the back.
Vehicle Tire Car Line Beam

Swampzilla sitting in her stand with the updraft ductwork.
Sky Tire Building Vehicle Automotive tire

A cool view, I think anyway.
You can see the exterior penetration frame supporting the exterior ductwork eliminating the need for intermediate bracing. The large elbow has turbinators to help with laminar flow theory.
Fixture Shade Wood Road surface Composite material

The overall design achieves a 30-32Âş pulldown during hot dry summers. 105Âş outside = 72-75Âş inside.

More to follow...
 
#10 ·
Peek-a-boo! A shot inside one of the sections.
Fixture Engineering Gas Beam Glass

Now that we have some cooler conditions it was time to run the shop air system. I designed a loop sytem to prevent any pressure drops in the event a friend is using air while I'm plasma cutting on the CNC table. I went with Rapidair ridged 1" pipe. Its made from aluminum and is finished in blue powder coat. The fittings are nylon compression style and rated at 195psi.
Automotive tire Tire Wheel Motor vehicle Gas

I made some trapeze style hangers to suppler the water and air lines.
Field house Shade Table Sport venue Ceiling


Lighting Beam Engineering Gas Wood

On the side of the shop that didn't have water the airline was supported by a dedicated loop hanger found in supporting sprinkler system piping.
Automotive parking light Land vehicle Car Tire Vehicle

I used my Ercolina bender to put in a 15Âş bent for the roof crown.
Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Hood

This is the SE end of the shop were the compressor will live. I ran a 28' pre-cooling line to help bring down the temp before it goes into a refrigeration cooler. This will prevent any condensation from forming in the air system. It also has two auto dump prior to the cooler and three separate moistures dumps in the refrigeration cooler itself. The compressor has ben plumbed with a timer and auto dump that dumps moisture out through the shop wall to keep things quiet. The timer is adjustable in dump frequency and duration.
Automotive parking light Vehicle Car Automotive lighting Hood

The bypass manifold allows me to use the compressor without the refrigeration's unit when not plasma cutting.
Engineering Gas Service Cylinder Machine

More to come...
 
#11 ·
With the air system behind me, it was time to focus on the floors. At this point I was just under two years since starting this build and I was looking forward to moving in equipment. The floors had heavy marks from the fork lift and other stains from the building process. I rented a floor scrubber and purchased aggressive pads as well as finishing pads. The equipment that was in the building was all moved into 1/2 of the space. The floor process took a full six days to get to where I wanted. A lot of mopping and mopping and mopping...
Wheel Land vehicle Tire Vehicle Automotive tire

What I didn't mention is the nasty Xylene base floor sealer I used. It required a respirator and a lot of ventilation.
Wheel Car Tire Vehicle Automotive tire

Sika self leveling caulk was used to seal up the saw cuts.
Hood Tile flooring Bumper Floor Flooring


Vehicle Grille Automotive tire Automotive lighting Hood

The shine was nice but the reason for sealing is more important than looks. It makes it easier to wipe up spills but mostly keeps the concrete from emitting dust as it wares. I rolled two heavy coats using a 18" roller with 1" nap.
Automotive tire Light Fixture Tread Door

After the sealant was cured and the self leveling sealant applied, I installed 6" mop board to the base of the interior walls. This made for a super clean finish and a breeze to mop without making a mess of the walls.

Wood Asphalt Flooring Road surface Composite material

Like most concrete, I got some cracks but no heaving so that a plus.
Building Field house Hall Floor Flooring


Building Floor Parking Asphalt Flooring

The original NOS Fallout Shelter sign was sourced online and it was a must for me to have. It has the original reflective finish like the ones back in the Cold War era.
Door Fixture Font Wood Building

More to follow...
 
#12 ·
With the floors done it was time to start staging machines. Each machine was cleaned and serviced prior to staging.
The largest machine in terms of footprint is the CNC Plasma table. I dedicated the NW garage door strictly for this machine as I would need access with the fork lift to load full sheets.
Tire Automotive parking light Wheel Car Motor vehicle

I then found a nice SS sink on Ebay complete with legs. The sink was advertised as new but they indicated it was bent from rough shipping handling. I took a chance as it was cheap including shipping from PA.
After it arrived I assessed the damage and was able to tweak everything back to like new. I decided not to use the four legs as I thought they would hinder with sweeping/mopping. I built a support bracket and mounted it to the plywood wall. I made it strong enough to support a decent load.
Bicycle frame Triangle Bicycle fork Wood Composite material

I don't have hot water in this building as my old shop has a full bathroom and shower. I can always add a 110 V heater
in the future so I plumbed in the second line. I also found a new faucet and eyewash attachment on Ebay.
Mocking up the sink for the drain penetration.
Tire Wheel Automotive tire Motor vehicle Gas

All done! The top SS shelf came out of a firehouse kitchen back in 2005, I hung onto it for years until the right moment.:) I made a simple bracket that allows the shelf to snap in.
Shelving Gas Flooring Machine Automotive design

The next two machines I brought in after cleaning and servicing were a Dake-Johnson V-40 band saw and a New Dimention (N.D.) plate roller. At this point, I still hadn't ran any 3 phase power so staging was important to long term satisfaction of machine placement.
Van Gas Engineering Vehicle Machine

Other equipment on wheels were also cleaned and moved in.
Motor vehicle Automotive tire Building Gas Flooring

On the plate roller. It was purchased by NASA back in 1998. I found out the history after contacting the manufacture to purchase a schematic. The machine had a 440 3ph VFD and I really didn't want to use a transformer to up my 240vac 3 ph power. I decided to rewire the unit with the help of a friend.

Look at the factory bird nest wiring, messy to say the least. Also notice the rather large VFD to the left. The hour meter above the electrical cabinet indicated 10 hours when I punched the machine at action. The paint on the gears and chain confirmed the low hours.
Automotive tire Motor vehicle Gas Engineering Machine tool

After re-wiring both the motors to 240 I was ready to design a new control system. BTW, this is the factory schematic sent to me by N.D. Unreal a company would sell you this for $60.
Font Schematic Parallel Engineering Pattern

After drawing up a new schematic, the machine got a new low voltage system to include an E-stop, and pilot light.
Compared to the factory wiring, I'd say our work is cleaner and better designed.
Control panel Circuit component Electronic engineering Electricity Electrical wiring

The new smaller VFD was "auto tuned" using a laptop plugged into the USB on the Hitachi unit. The large
brake resistor below the new VFD also allows the machines drive motor to brake instantly.
Electrical wiring Engineering Gas Motor vehicle Machine tool

More to follow...
 
#13 ·
A little more on the ND roller.
The added control features.
Electrical wiring Electronic instrument Audio equipment Gas Electronic engineering

The Auto tuning runs a series of tests to the motor and changes certain parameters of the VFD.
Computer Personal computer Laptop Netbook Product

And finally the new schematic.
Rectangle Schematic Font Parallel Plan

Rectangle Schematic Font Parallel Slope


With the plate roller complete it was time to move more equipment in.
This is a scotchman 51-I iron worker. Its an invaluable machine for fabrication. It shears up to 14" widwide, shears angle iron up to 3/8" X 5"X 5", notches, punches and bends up to 1/4' X 12" flat strap.
Motor vehicle Vehicle Building Asphalt Automotive design

Another Scotchman moved in is this semi auto cold saw. I rarely use this saw but it comes in very useful when designing and building jigs/fixtures. It does use coolant but it's really a milling process that leaves a true flat finish without burrs. It require clean dry air that feeds and returns after a cut. The vise is also pneumatic.
Motor vehicle Toolroom Engineering Gas Industry

The next piece of equipment was purchased through a group buy on another forum. I went with a Bend-Pac
Asymmetrical low profile 10K lift. I own a couple of low profile cars and I didn't want to preJack prior to lifting. I also installed the lift in a wide configuration to allow my 2500 HD doors to open more. The install went well with the help of the fork lift.
Building Floor Flooring Gas Hall

I was pleased no shimming required to achieve level.
Asphalt Gas Engineering Machine Flooring

After wiring the lift and filling the reservoir with close to 3 gallons, I realized a weak design by Bend-Pac.
It seems the entire load of the hydraulic fluid is held on by four small cap screws. The reservoir is also made of plastic.
I could see bumping into the reservoir and breaking off with close to 3 gallons of fluid on the floor.
Wood Gas Cylinder Machine Metal

More to follow...
 
#14 ·
The new bracket is a simple solution.
Automotive tire Gas Engineering Flooring Waste container

The broken sides provide bump protection to the reservoir.
Flowerpot Plant Cylinder Gas Machine


After staging more machine I was satisfied with placement so 3 phase wire was pulled through conduit and receptacle installed. A couple of machine have ceiling drops as they are located away from a wall.
Engineering Gas Machine Auto part Toolroom


My good friend and neighbor used to install security gates on military bases and ended up with this traffic signal (NIB).
He had heard me mention I needed a pilot light to help me remember to turn off the auto dump feature on the air compressor. I wired in the new signal and mounted above the the compressor. Now at a glance I can see if the system is on when shutting down at the end of the day.
Electricity Gas Electrical wiring Electric blue Electrical supply

Back to the 3 phase Rotery Phase Converter (RPC) that powers nine machines.
I built a bracket to support the 7.5 hp idler motor and used isolators to prevent any resonance.
Its a self starting (push button) system that is balanced within 5% between the three power legs. The machines run smoothly and don't mind the generated wild leg of juice. I can run as many machines at once so long a they are started one at a time. This system also requires a pilot light as it's extremely quiet. Many phase generators sold in the market are too dang noisy and have given the RPC a bad name. One can use a VFD to convert single phase to 3 but it gets pricy to buy a VFD per machine. I do run two VFD's (Roller and Lathe) but they are used to convert the control system to low voltage and enhance fine controls.
Gas Machine Engineering Office equipment Rectangle

Another machine cleaned and serviced. This is an Italian made profile roller. I can roll different material including flat bar on edge. It features a digital readout for repeatable bends. The smaller unit to the left is a pipe/tube bender that bends with a mandrel like finish. It's made by Ercolina and also comes from Italy. It features repeatable bends and also takes into account spring back. Digital controls as well.
Motor vehicle Gas Automotive exterior Machine Electric blue

With the final concert pour looming I wanted to set some Ballards to protect the building from customers or friends dropping off trailers for me to repair. I used 1/4"x 6" pipe and set them in the ground 3'.
Property Wood Road surface Shade Sky

Nice and lined up.
Building Road surface Asphalt Sky Wood

The one in the East end.
Tire Wheel Sky Automotive tire Building

More to come...
 
  • Like
Reactions: OkDually
#15 · (Edited)
With the final pour done (20 yards) all concert work is complete. In total we poured close to 155 yards for the new shop.
Road surface Wood Asphalt Automotive tire Flooring

On the existing apron, I drilled and epoxied in some #5 rebar.
Sky Plant Road surface Asphalt Land lot

A day later I sawed some control joints.
Water Road surface Asphalt Wood Flooring

By now with close to two years building the shop, many return clients had been asking for my services. The list had grown so I needed to knock some work out. I'm a full-time firefighter paramedic but still mange to work 50 hour weeks during work tours and 70 hour work weeks while on my 6 day break from fire work.

I would like to keep this shop build going even with the major shop build done. I would like to add to this forum with projects built in the new shop. The first paying job was to build a 14K pound dump trailer. The customer provided the axels and tires. I built the rest.
The frame consists of 6" channel. All welding was done with a Miller P-350 in pulse mode.

Here you can see the frame is upside down for all welding in this position to include the spring hangers.
Shade Road surface Wood Asphalt Gas

With a rolling frame, it was time to design the dump bed section to include the scissor bracket assembly.
Wheel Tire Automotive tire Motor vehicle Vehicle

A tongue box was added for the hydraulic pump, battery and battery charger. The hydraulic lines are routed along the drivers side frame and 5/16" round bar was used to secure the lines. These lines will serge a bit so I wanted freedom od movement without the possibility of chaffing.
Wood Automotive exterior Door Composite material Gas

Locating and leveling.
Hood Motor vehicle Bumper Wood Automotive exterior

A test run without the bed.
Tire Automotive tire Motor vehicle Wheel Automotive design

Looking good to move on.
Tire Wheel Vehicle Car Automotive tire

A shot of the pump, battery mounted in the tongue box. The passengers side of the tongue box had a male plug receptacle installed for the onboard battery charger.
Product Automotive design Trunk Bumper Automotive exterior

More to follow...
 
#16 ·
The lines that penetrate the frame are protected by the same round bar used to secure the lines along the frame.
A soft edge prevents chaffing.
Automotive design Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive tire Rim

The Miller P-350 really does a nice job on heavier material. Almost no splatter in pulse mode.
Bumper Wood Composite material Gas Automotive exterior

The bed and fenders welded in it was time for paint.
Wheel Tire Automotive tire Motor vehicle Tread

A little out of order but the main frame was painted prior to the box being placed. This allowed me to get the nooks and crannies shot. I used industrial direct to metal (DTM) from Sherwin-Williams. Yes the rear axel eventually got electric brakes upon my insisting.
Sky Tire Tree Wheel Automotive tire

I like to use junction boxes (color coded ) for the customers to be able to troubleshoot any lighting issues. All lights used were LED.
Wheel Tire Automotive tire Tread Motor vehicle

Ready for safety stickers and wood.
Tire Wheel Automotive tire Motor vehicle Vehicle

The stickers are provided when you purchase a kit.
Tire Wheel Vehicle Automotive tire Tread

A break away wired into the pump battery will lock up the brakes in the event of separation.
Automotive tire Table Tire Hood Wheel

A test drive empty at 80 MPH she pulled straight with zero side to side drift.
Tire Wheel Land vehicle Plant Vehicle

At full dump.
Wheel Tire Land vehicle Vehicle Sky

Next up more shop improvement projects.
 
#17 ·
Another job waiting was a custom rail with 3/8" tempered glass. The job required a couple of trips to ensure a good fit and the end result was just that. I also ended up finishing the floor tile as the customer could not get a floor guy to finish a few pieces of tile.
The rail was made from 14 ga. X 1.5"x 1.5" square tubing. The glass clamps were SS and secured with a nutsert using a 5/16-18 SS cap screw. The tempered glass was ordered to fit with polished edges. The paint was a Rust-o-lium Copper Hammertone cut with Xylene to spray using an HVLP chepo gun I've had for 25 years.

The Ellis 1800 band saw does a nice job on those miter cuts.
Wood Engineering Gas Machine tool Machine

90Âş miter fit. A slight gap allows for good burn in when grinding smooth.
Rectangle Bumper Wood Composite material Gas

Drilling for the nutserts.
Wheel Automotive tire Building Floor Motor vehicle

5/16"-18 nutsert.
Motor vehicle Hood Automotive tire Bumper Bicycle part

The SS glass clamp fit up (1/2 of it).
Motor vehicle Automotive tire Hood Bumper Automotive exterior

Shooting the Hammertone.
Sky Plant Road surface Tree Wood

Smooth finish after grinding the weld. Remember to gap your joint or you'll grind away the weld.
Tire Table Automotive tire Wood Rectangle

The finished miter and 1/2 the glass clamps installed.
Building Architecture Interior design Gas Engineering

Installed at the customers dining room.
Building Wood Rectangle Interior design Flooring

Looking from the dining area.
Furniture Building Wood Flooring Hall

The tile was done a week later to complete this job.
 
#18 ·
Another job came in from California. The customer wanted his new Acra Mill fitted with a power drawbar and a custom rolling base with levelers. It was paramount to keep the machine as close to the floor as possible to keep the controls within a reasonable reach. The material selected for the stand was 3/8" x 4" x 4" angle. The leveling brackets were cut from 5/16"x 3" x 3" structural tubing. The threaded bushings where turned and power tapped on the lathe. All the coping/notching was done on the iron worker. The caster brackets were made from 1/2" x 4" CR steel and drilled then broken on the iron worker using the brake press.

The new arrival from Rancho Cucamonga Ca.
Tire Sky Wheel Truck Vehicle

At 3500 pounds the Hyster had no issues.
Sky Wheel Automotive tire Plant Tire

Removing the plastic, cosmoline, and a detailed inspection. The speed control has a digital readout and utilizes a VFD for fine speed control.
Engineering Building Machine Composite material Science

The fit and finish is over the top. This machine is sold by Acra and comes from Taiwan.
Taiwan is known for excellent machines and now many well known American names come from there.
I wish it were different but that what our politicians have done to us.
Look at the frosting on the table. The machine scraping looks beautiful!
Automotive tire Automotive exterior Audio equipment Automotive design Gas

The torque rite power draw bar install required a little custom machined spacer to achieve the perfect grip length.
Automotive design Gas Engineering Motor vehicle Automotive lighting

The pneumatic control switch installed.
Electrical wiring Gas Motor vehicle Engineering Wire

Lastly the air regulator and oiler drill/tapped to the rear.
Motor vehicle Automotive design Building Tire Mode of transport

The base frame is notched on the iron worker.
Wood Road surface Flooring Floor Composite material

This type of notch is important vs a traditional 45Âş miter for this application. What you end up with is double the weld length for a stronger joint. This rolling base is dynamic when the machine is moving so no tweaking is encouraged with a notched joint.
Picture frame Wood Rectangle Grey Gas

The rear section is drilled using an Annular cutter for access to the coolant base drain. This was done prior to welding the frame together for obvious reasons.
Milling Wood Machine tool Gas Machine

Max photo limit...
 
#19 ·
With the frame welded it was time to make a transfer punch that would fit snuggly into the Mills base mounting holes.
The punch was use to mark the centers for drilling and tapping for the anchor bolts.
Wheel Automotive tire Tire Bumper Hood

The punch being turned.
Cylinder Engineering Gas Auto part Machine

The castor brackets bent on the iron worker to a 22.5Âş= 45Âş
Automotive tire Motor vehicle Automotive wheel system Gas Wood

The finished transfer punch.
Bumper Rectangle Automotive exterior Gas Composite material

A section of the same structural tube was cut for the weldment. A section of the same tube was also used to jig up
the assembly for tacking and welding. All welds were vertical up for deep penetration.
Tire Wheel Automotive tire Motor vehicle Tread

The leveling brackets and threaded bushings (1/2"-13). The leveling feet were sourced at J.W. Winco.
Motor vehicle Bumper Automotive exterior Automotive tire Automotive design

The welding is done. Fitting on the four swivel castors and mocking up the base onto the machine.
Wood Composite material Rectangle Gas Automotive exterior

Another shot. Here you can see two of four mounting holes that were drilled and threaded by hand.
Automotive tire Automotive exterior Bumper Engineering Gas




The casters are rated to 990 lb each. I sourced them from Service Caster in PA. The level bubble matches the rolling jig table.
Motor vehicle Automotive tire Bumper Tool Machine tool

Nice floor clearance of about 3/4" for "wheels up".
Automotive tire Tire Tread Gas Engineering

A few more shots to follow.
 
  • Like
Reactions: OkDually
#20 ·
The Mill actually rolled fairly easily on a flat floor.
Motor vehicle Building Engineering Industry Factory


Wheel Tire Motor vehicle Automotive tire Vehicle

Prime and painted gunmetal grey.
Cloud Sky Picnic table Tree Table

It cured for a week.
Automotive tire Wood Exercise machine Flooring Engineering

Loaded the the Mill on to a drop deck trailer for delivery to the customers home. The Mill head was rotated 180Âş
to reduce hight and top weight. The machine was also resting on wood. The leveling feet were used to jack up the
entire machine to place the cribbing under the frame.
Sky Automotive tire Motor vehicle Tree Road surface

The casters made simple work of locating the machine.
Toolroom Machine tool Gas Engineering Machine

That ones done!
 
#21 ·
Great write-up!
Thanks for sharing (y)
 
#22 ·
Thank you Sir.
Recovering from knee surgery and trying to keep busy.
 
#28 ·
Great pic (y)
[/QUOTE]


Thank you Rusty.
Been practicing for north of 40 years. Learn new things daily and am blessed with little sleep and a fire to knock thing out. I hope some comments can be helpful to some out there.
 
  • Like
Reactions: OkDually
#24 · (Edited)
Another shop improvement project was to modify the steel rack to support sheets of plate steel.
I also fabricated an additional rack for sections of steel 10' and under.

The two support columns were reinforced with a truss style design. The flat bar used was 1/4" x 2.5". This does a good job supporting a fair amount of weight. Two of the extra 3/4"X 4'x 8' pieces of plywood left over from the walls are perfect for supporting the full sheets and remnants. The fork lift is used to pull a shelf down when the need arises.
Table Wood Workbench Saw Machine tool

The base of the columns were held off the floor about 1/4" allowing the empty rack to roll. The original rack was built back in 1989 when I had a small shop in the city.
Hood Motor vehicle Automotive tire Car Automotive lighting

One of two column ready for the rack. The flat bar will be in tensile when the plates are loaded keeping the columns from sagging.
Car Motor vehicle Vehicle Hood Vehicle registration plate

Welded in place the rack is ready for paint. The lower back of the steel rack have stand offs keeping the rack from pressing up against the wall. The two closest straddle the I-beam column. The receptacles along that bay are above
The rack by a few inches allowing full access.
Automotive design Floor Flooring Engineering Gas

A shot of the rear after painting.
Plant Building Wood Tree Door

Partially loaded.
Mode of transport Railway Bench Gas Rectangle

Top plates loaded.
Building Gas Flooring Machine Technology

The start of the vertical remnant rack. It also got casters to allow me to move it for cleaning.
Road surface Asphalt Bumper Flooring Gas

The ribs are fed through the spine then welded on both sides. The major weight is on the platform.
The staggered ribs allow for different lengths of steel to be supported. Anything less than 24" goes into a different pile.
Building Motor vehicle Electrical wiring Industry Engineering

The finished ribcage rack ready for paint.
Vehicle Automotive design Hood Airplane Floor

Done.
 
#25 · (Edited)
Another return customer needed some gunsmith work. He wanted to run a specific compensator that required "timing" when installed on his rifle. I also worked on a big revolver (different fellow) that was failing to fire due to a damaged pin.
The last little job that day was for a guy that buys and restores vintage roulette wheels. It seem these items fetch some good coin when functioning to original status.

On the rifle. A 6.5mm Creedmoor (6.5X48mm) with a carbon fiber wrapped barrel. The customer was adamantly against using peel washers so I calculated the amount required to face off the compensator allowing the correct position or timing when snugged on. I also turned him a thread protector for his barrel when not using the compensator.
Here you can see the compensator required about a 3Âş rotation for proper line up.
About .040" was faced off to achieve proper alignment.
Automotive design Automotive tire Motor vehicle Engineering Table

The other issue he was having was a "sticky" bolt. I mixed up a special blend of pumice powder and lite gun oil to make a lapping paste. The end result was smooth like glass followed by a thorough cleaning.
Air gun Camera accessory Gas Trigger Cameras & optics


On the S&W Pistola! it's a model 460.
After the repair I wasn't able to test fire it but the gentleman reported back to me it was back in reliable service.
I also indicated the erosion I discovered to the firing pin was more than likely due to lighter loads being used as these type of loads result in a fair amount of hot gasses. He relies on this weapon for bear protection when hunting other game. That Sid it needs to be 100% reliable.
Bicycle part Wood Automotive tire Flooring Machine

The firing pin protrusion is back to specifications and ready for action. I also had to dress up (hone) the back face of the cylinder frame.
Tire Wheel Automotive tire Motor vehicle Automotive design

On the roulette wheel. It was missing a key component that adjusts the tension of the spinning feature.
A new bushing was mad from brass to match the other original components.
Automotive tire Wood Automotive lighting Asphalt Road surface

The new piece threaded into the original axel support.
Office supplies Space bar Office equipment Audio equipment Technology

The thumb screw was also made.
Table Input device Font Gas Office equipment

Back to personal shop improvement projects.
 
#26 ·
An item that I really needed was a new custom work bench. A bench that would divide the automotive bay from the machining bay. The specialty tools required for both of these disciplines require proper storage and easy access.
I designed a work bench with tool storage on both sides. Auto on one and machining on the other. The bench also features a pocket in the middle on both sides allowing me to sit on a stool while working on detailed items. I also incorporated a receiver for specialty jigs or vise. This project like most of my personal projects don't require a sketch or shop drawing. I build and design as I go. This helps me catch conflicts before they occur (usually).

The two halves were built independent from each other. Once I had the two, they were welded into one using a laser level for accurate joining.
Tire Vehicle Wheel Motor vehicle Car

Test fitting the box.
Tire Wheel Automotive tire Product Tread

And the second box.
The same leveling feet were used for this project as for the Milling machine rolling base. J.W. Winco offerers a pound in receiver with a brass threaded insert for this application. The frame is a .120" (wall) X 2" x 2" tube. The lower tool box supports are 1/8" x 1.5" x 1.5" angle.
Hood Vehicle Motor vehicle Automotive design Bumper

After welding the two sections together, it was time for prime and paint. You can see the 2" receivers in the middle were the pockets are. They have a 11/16"-11 nut welded for a bolt to secure whatever your working on. The notches you see on the top angle rail are for the badging and the lock for the tool boxes.

Automotive parking light Automotive tail & brake light Car Tire Automotive side marker light

The prime is sprayed on and ready for the Gunmetal gray finish.
Wood Tree Plant Building Gas

Setting up the bench.
Motor vehicle Automotive wheel system Gas Engineering Auto part

The large sheet being laid out for corner notching. The goal is to have a single sheet (1/8" thick) with 2" returns all the way around. I had to source out the braking as my brake is only 8' long.
Automotive tire Building Automotive design Floor Flooring

The top that supports the steel consists of two pieces of 3/4" plywood to make a robust 1.5" thick top covered by the
steel.
Motor vehicle Hood Vehicle Grille Automotive lighting

I screwed the base piece to the tubing using #14 self tappers with a 3/8" hex head. The plywood was counterbored using a 1/2" spade bit allowing the screw head to sit flush for the next sheet to rest on top. The top sheet was also counterbored for the flush head allowing the top skin to sit flat.
Table Wood Grey Flooring Floor

Locating the bench into position was done using long fork extensions to span most of the bench.
Motor vehicle Automotive design Vehicle Automotive exterior Firefighter

More details to follow...
 
  • Like
Reactions: OkDually
Top