homemade T top

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

Hey Buckeyboy and everyone else!

I am interested in seeing the photos but don't see a link nor something to click on.

I have been interested in creating one for my rig over the past couple of years now. Would like to use OD 1.90 alumin. for ocean use only.

Would you mind reposting them?

Otherwise, thanks for all the info here!

-Dualie

the photos are at the begining of this thread.

 

[projecthog]

Re: homemade T top

Ayuh,...

I went,+ bought the original Ye Ole Joint Jigger before the Chinese started building them for Nothin'.....
I too think that the tightest possible joints are necessary,...
And Clean material,... Gotta have a SSteel Brush,...

With the Mig,...
I find I can butter a bead in,+ grind it back out to a nice radis,... then sand, brush,+ clear coat...

I'm getting ready to start another bimini for the boat in the background of my picture,...
It'll be based on Spun Aluminum Street Light overhanging Arms...
They've got some Sweet curves,.. Gonna look Great for the vertical legs,...
The rest will be Conduit,+ Hospital Bed parts,.....

Man after my own heart...., love to do with stuff that don't cost!
Amazing what can be done.
By the way, where on Lake Ontario? Watertown? Syracuse? Buffler? Used to live on the lake at Hamilton ON. and go all over. Erie too when I worked at Eurocopter in NF.
PH.

PS DUH... did it again...Chaumont gotcha!

 

[drew2302]

Re: homemade T top

Nice top, I want to make one for my 2302 , Question, What is "Starboard" and where can I find it ?
Thanks
Drew

 

[projecthog]

Re: homemade T top

Hey, guys and gals I'm kinda new to this forum I have posted a couple of times on the engine section. I just thought some of you may be intrested in the t top I fabricated for my sea hunt CC.
I live in RI so getting the itch to fish seeing as hunting season just ended.
If you can use a tape measure bend pipe and weld its not that hard and very inexpensive. here are some photos.

Definitely ace workmanship,

Love it when a guy can do things to make manufacturing pay attention! I'm deadgummed sure that's something that could be patented and produced for very little and sold accordingly to make a modest profit.
Kit form, do it yourself item like, Slip joints or weld, your preference. Great stuff!....Oh yeah...thinwall joints can be backed with pipe on the inside to give a good base to lay a bead onto, strengtens the weld area and narrows the Heat Affected Zone, less chance of cracking at the weld that way. Swaged slip joints do the same and add the "take apart option" if not welded.
Nice top!

Wow, got me excited for a minute, I'll go lay down now.

PH.

 

[SuzukiChopper]

Re: homemade T top

I'd like to see a demo of how to make a top like that using steel, preferably commonly available steel, like conduit or tubing.

Be careful with the conduit, need to make sure it isn't galvanized steel before welding otherwise you better do it out in the open and make sure you don't breath the fumes. Nasty nasty stuff to breath.

I too think that the tightest possible joints are necessary,...
And Clean material,... Gotta have a SSteel Brush,...

Clean material for sure for a good clean weld but the tightest possible joint, not necessarily. Tubing should be fish mouthed for fit but the joining metal shouldn't have a sharp edge before welding for the best strength. Always take an angle grinder and create a 'valley' (sorry, the proper wording fails me at this point) so you get the best penetration possible. Probably not the most important step in creating a t-top or bimini because ultimate strength isn't super important, but is definitely good practice.

 

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

great point on welding the galvey make sure you sand and weld in a well ventilated area..

 

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

Nice top, I want to make one for my 2302 , Question, What is "Starboard" and where can I find it ?
Thanks
Drew

Well DREW.Thats what the plastics supply called it. Its the same material that the white cutting board are made out of. I will search out the answer for you. If I cant find it. I will call the company I bought it from and get the proper name..

 

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

Definitely ace workmanship,

Love it when a guy can do things to make manufacturing pay attention! I'm deadgummed sure that's something that could be patented and produced for very little and sold accordingly to make a modest profit.
Kit form, do it yourself item like, Slip joints or weld, your preference. Great stuff!....Oh yeah...thinwall joints can be backed with pipe on the inside to give a good base to lay a bead onto, strengtens the weld area and narrows the Heat Affected Zone, less chance of cracking at the weld that way. Swaged slip joints do the same and add the "take apart option" if not welded.
Nice top!

Wow, got me excited for a minute, I'll go lay down now.

PH.

Thanks man my preference would be aluminum. But I was building it on a budget. now you have me thinking on some sort of kit at an affordable price.

 

[BWR1953]

Re: homemade T top

Nice top, I want to make one for my 2302 , Question, What is "Starboard" and where can I find it ?
Thanks
Drew

Cabela's sells it, just do a search for StarBoard on their website.

-BWR

 

[erikgreen]

Re: homemade T top

great point on welding the galvey make sure you sand and weld in a well ventilated area..

Yeah, that's why I never weld galvanized.

To be clear on this, it's very, very dangerous. If you vaporize zinc in welding or preheat, very small amounts in your air are enough to cause heavy metal poisoning, and you can easily die the first time you do this.

Check out this link for a bit more info:

http://www.anvilfire.com/iForge/tutor/safety3/index.htm

For hard tops like this, galvanized conduit or pipe is fine (good, even) if you're not welding it. The zinc protects the metal.

For my own hardtop I'm thinking of using either stainless tubing or possibly non galvanized steel that I'll paint or powder coat. If anyone knows a good type of steel tubing that's the right size, readily available, bendable with simple tools, and weldable, I'd love to see a reference posted here.

Erik
k

 

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

Yeah, that's why I never weld galvanized.

To be clear on this, it's very, very dangerous. If you vaporize zinc in welding or preheat, very small amounts in your air are enough to cause heavy metal poisoning, and you can easily die the first time you do this.

Check out this link for a bit more info:

http://www.anvilfire.com/iForge/tutor/safety3/index.htm

For hard tops like this, galvanized conduit or pipe is fine (good, even) if you're not welding it. The zinc protects the metal.

For my own hardtop I'm thinking of using either stainless tubing or possibly non galvanized steel that I'll paint or powder coat. If anyone knows a good type of steel tubing that's the right size, readily available, bendable with simple tools, and weldable, I'd love to see a reference posted here.

Erik
k

if you have adiquate ventilation and i sand the welding area first its no Issue.

 

[erikgreen]

Re: homemade T top

I know buckey, but I wanted the (probably) amateur welders here to be safe.

To clarify, remove all the zinc from your weld area before welding. Preferably with acid, although sanding or grinding works too, if you are sure you're getting it all.

Always weld with adequate ventilation regardless, and preferably with a welding respirator. Zinc's not the only impurity that will kill you to breathe.

Erik

 

[BlazinKuztumz]

Re: homemade T top

Yep, it's easy for experienced welders to either not know (being as though they haven't worked with galv before) or get in a hurry and not pay attention, or prep properly. My dad had a buddy that did ARC welding for years, then went to fix a friends tow behind cooker, and welded on the galvanized trailer it was on, and ended up in the hospital because of it. I've also seen people use zinc coat weld-thru primer, and weld without respirators and get sick. If you are going to do welding, you had better do a lot of research, read, and be well prepared before you start. Also, know the metal you are working with, hazards of it, tips to best procedures for it, etc.

Just like with the bending, people get actual tube and pipe mixed up and think they are the same things. It all comes down to have the knowledge because you took the time to learn about what it is you are doing. Good posts though guys. Glad to see people putting the right information out there.

 

[jonesg]

Re: homemade T top

I know of a metalworker who was treating galvi parts in a small furnace, he went into his shed for a quick check on it and never came back out.

 

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

Yep, it's easy for experienced welders to either not know (being as though they haven't worked with galv before) or get in a hurry and not pay attention, or prep properly. My dad had a buddy that did ARC welding for years, then went to fix a friends tow behind cooker, and welded on the galvanized trailer it was on, and ended up in the hospital because of it. I've also seen people use zinc coat weld-thru primer, and weld without respirators and get sick. If you are going to do welding, you had better do a lot of research, read, and be well prepared before you start. Also, know the metal you are working with, hazards of it, tips to best procedures for it, etc.

Just like with the bending, people get actual tube and pipe mixed up and think they are the same things. It all comes down to have the knowledge because you took the time to learn about what it is you are doing. Good posts though guys. Glad to see people putting the right information out there.

Great post, Please all take the time to know with what you are working with there is a wealth of info out there,

Quick note on my top I used pre bent 90's for the top part and if you dont have a bender this will work for pipe and tubing, Also if tou want real suttle bends with an electric ban saw make cuts about 1/2" apart where you want the bend cut about 1/2 way through the tubing it will bend evenly. this requires extra weling and grinding as you will have to later weld and sand the cuts.

 

[tylerr83]

Re: homemade T top

Thats a great looking top, I have been wanting one for my center console for some time, but couldn't justify spending over $2000. about how much did it cost you to fabricate that yourself? (not counting the time that you have invested)

 

[buckeyboy]

Re: homemade T top

Thats a great looking top, I have been wanting one for my center console for some time, but couldn't justify spending over $2000. about how much did it cost you to fabricate that yourself? (not counting the time that you have invested)

ABOUT $250.00 IF THAT

 

[SuzukiChopper]

Re: homemade T top

Great post, Please all take the time to know with what you are working with there is a wealth of info out there,

Quick note on my top I used pre bent 90's for the top part and if you dont have a bender this will work for pipe and tubing, Also if tou want real suttle bends with an electric ban saw make cuts about 1/2" apart where you want the bend cut about 1/2 way through the tubing it will bend evenly. this requires extra weling and grinding as you will have to later weld and sand the cuts.

Glad to see a lot of information flowing about welding various things. A lot of back yard welders will just go at a project without knowing what they're dealing with first. I myself am by no means a certified welder but after being a part of custom motorcycle frame manufacturing start-up (did R&D and was involved heavily in the tooling and jigging, a certified welder makes it strong), I took the time to learn and know about the metals I would be dealing with and what worked best where. It really doesn't take a lot of time to do and can save your life as well as others.

As for the pre-bent 90's... a great idea for people that don't have the tools available to make their own bends. There are a lot of places around on the internet that sell not only pre-made 90's, 45's, etc but also sell donuts that you can cut in to whatever degree fit you might need. Most will also offer these in various different types of pipe and tubing so that you can match up your straight pieces to the bend pieces, material wise.

 

[jonesg]

Re: homemade T top

ABOUT $250.00 IF THAT

Ok you're on. Howsabout a small supplier list and what materials we need to get, is it pipe or tubing? what type of bender?

 

[BlazinKuztumz]

Re: homemade T top

I agree with everything in this post (especially my previous posts, LOL J/K). I'm also glad to see that people are doing their own welding, but making sure that they read, know their materials, welding wire needs, gas needs, etc. before they jump into something, and practice until their welds are not only esthetically pleasing, but also strong and proper. I do a lot of custom vehicle applications, and have had to repair a good deal of vehicle customs that some backyard hobbyist did, or even a so-called "shop" that picked up a 105a 110v welder w/flux-core and after two test welds, turned around and went to work on their own/others rides.

Funny that you mentioned custom motorcycles SuzukiChopper .. I'm wanting to build my own chopper coming up, but not sure where to begin researching the actual information I need. Any ideas?

I just got a Pro Tools 105 heavy duty bender, Miller 180 220v welder w/aluminum gun, Logan metal lathe, and HyperTherm plasma cutter to increase my abilities. So I'm ready to get busy building some stuff. LOL

And not trying to advertise guys, but I am an auto parts dealer, a dealer for Pro-Tools (benders, dies, etc.) and wouldn't mind making some tubular products for anyone that can't do it themselves coming up. Just thought I'd throw it out there, because I love this forum and the members are awesome.

Scott