I'm looking to build a small welding table and it needs to be able to roll around. But not when I'm working! All the casters that lock the swivel and wheel seem to be made of a non-metallic material. A friend suggested buying those and using my metal lathe to make some replacement aluminum wheels (another excuse to use my lathe toy!) but I'm just wondering if I'm not being too paranoid about non-metallic wheels.
I would not use aluminum personally for wheels on, as they will get all nicked up and if you try and roll the table and something finds its way under a wheel and causes it to sprag, they would flat spot relatively easy. I have rubber tired casters on my table and it works just fine. Just what is your fear with using non-metalic wheels?
They also make a nifty assembly that is attached to tables, work benchs etc that are on wheels that you simply push down with your foot to lock and it positions a pad on the ground to prevent the item from moving during use. I forget what they are technically called.. Visit my website:
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Is it that the locking is not adequate for non-metallic material? Scaffolding wheels are available in an all-metal configuration. Would that do what you want?
Our welding table uses rubber composition wheels with no problem...
If you have your heart set on metal wheels, most every large city has a jobber specializing in casters and wheels, so if you need steel wheels with locking cam thingies, I'm sure they'd be happy to oblige you. Check your yellow pages. As an aside, (and I have no connection to the company other than as a satisfied customer) we get our casters from the John W. Negus Co. in Portland Oregon ... Caster Heaven!
(clip) using my metal lathe to make some replacement aluminum wheels (another excuse to use my lathe toy!) (clip) ^^^^^^^^^^^^ Then, how about turning down the OD of the non-metallic wheels and slipping on steel "tires?"
I'd want metal wheels on a foundry furnace cart, but I wouldn't worry about non-metallic wheels on a welding table. You'll be grounding the table anyway so conductivity isn't an issue. A few sparks won't ignite hard thermoset (brown) wheels.
Depending on how small your welding table is, and what kind of floor surface it will be used on, it may be possible to just skid it around rather than rolling it. I have some smithing capabilities in addition to machine shop capabilities, and my anvil and my post vise are both skid-arounds and neither present a problem.
If you do decide to use casters, there are several approaches. One is to put
2 wheels just on one end of your table, so they almost touch the floor. Put a bar on the other end waist-high. Then when you want to move the thing lift up on the bar so the wheels engage, and move it. That's how they move 250# horizontal bandsaws, and it works well.
Another approach used on some woodworking machinery is to have your casters mounted on axles which are mounted on eccentric cams. To lower your wheels you just step on one end of a pedal; to raise your wheels you just step on the other end.
Finally, you can do what I did on my lathe stand. Design the whole thing so you can roll it around easily but then weld lugs to the corners and put in long bolts such that when you want the thing to stay put you crank down the bolts. This serves also to allow leveling the table, which can be useful.
Another idea if this will be used on a surface which isn't perfect (few are) is to have only 3 feet instead of 4. A thingie on 3 legs is always stable, and many thingies on 4 legs will rock a little.
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