It is an accepted fact that welding is a risky

There are many different ways to design a welding table but the design must be such that it is cost-effective and also provide working comfort to the welding operator.

The biggest cost component in the making of any welding table is the thick steel top. But a 1.6mm gauge sheet metal on top of marine ply should suffice. This relatively thin sheet metal is more to protect the top of the ply wood from all possible spatter and hot sparks that emanate during the welding operations.

The ideal height of a welding table is 900mm high and this height would be right for all welding operators. It will be helpful to fit castor wheels to the bottom of the legs for easy movement of the welding table inside the workshop.

Materials needed to construct a welding table:

* Metal top of 1.6mm sheet metal to size 832x1195mm for use as table top surface

* Marine ply or some similar flat wood for table top, of the same size as the sheet metal

* Legs are 40x40x3mm box section

* Castor wheels 4 nos.

* Iron angle for the underside of the table preferably 40x40x4mm

* Mesh for shelf beneath the table top

* Iron angle to size 25x25x3mm for using around the top ply edges

* Small length of 5mm diameter rod of half meter length

Procedure to construct the welding table:

* Cut down the marine ply to match the size of the sheet metal top. Chop up some angle iron that will be welded up so that it can be bolted to the underside of the wooded table top. Cut two angle irons to 632mm length and two other 995mm length and these will make up the underside frame of the table top.

* Lay out your four bits of angle on the workshop floor. All the cuts have to be at right angles. You will need to cut them at 45 degrees so that when you weld them together, the height will be flush. On the particular abrasive chop saw loosen the two bolts and adjust the angle to 45 degrees. Once that is done, trim the ends at 45 degrees.

* Get the angle grinder and clean up the cuts and make them fine and smooth so that when the pieces are butted together, there will not have any problems. Lay out the four pieces again and tack-weld them together.

* Once the four corners are tack welded you will need to check the whole thing for square and flatness. Check the corners with a square to make sure that they are at perfect right angles.

* Next, grind down the weld beads on the top flat angle surface. Some holes will have to be drilled around the frame to facilitate screwing the timber top to the bench.

* Now make up the shelf frame to consist of four pieces of the 40x40x3mm box section steel welded into a rectangle of the same dimensions of the top frame. Finish them off with a grinder to get the burrs and metal shavings off the cut face. Go to clamp and weld the frame up.

* Lay out your four lengths of steel and tack-weld them in all four corners four times. This frame should not be fully welded as the legs have to sit on top of and underneath it. So leave the four tack welds in each corner and just grind them down.

* Cut to length four pieces of box at 500mm long. These will be welded onto the frame that that was just made. Next, you will tack weld the angle iron frame to the top of these legs.

* ake some mesh and cut it out to fit on top of the shelf frame. Chop the corners out of the mesh so that the legs can be welded on. The bottom legs will now need to be cut out. Again out of 40x40x3mm box. Only tack welds for now.

* Weld the mesh into its place. The mesh once welded will hold the frame tightly. If everything is perfect and hold square, weld it all up. A few small tack welds for each castor wheel should see them holding on tight. Get hold of the angle grinder and use the wire brush and go over the whole frame work of the welding table.

* Use an angle iron frame to go around the edge of the marine ply top to protect the edge of the wood, and also to make it look more aesthetic. Tack-weld the top sheet of steel in a few places to the angle iron edge and do the vertical down welds for the edges of the angle iron.