First Handrail(among other things)

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Hey everyone,  Not only is this my first handrailing, but it's also my first post! As such, i'll give you a quick background info about myself. I'm 23 and I just went into business for myself as a welder/fabricator here in Maryland. I started welding about two years ago when a neighbor let me borrow his garage for an engine build ( he had a no-name MIG machine i fooled around with). While I was there, I built a chopper moped and made a bunch of art-presents for my friends which they all thought were the greatest things ever . I realized welding was pretty sweet and, one day, months later, I broke a stud on my exhaust manifold and decided I NEEDED my own machine. Needless to say I got that stud out (I saved it as a momento because that was the day I decided to become a welder!).ok, fast foreward:Went to welding school at the Lincoln plant for 3 months, got a job in a performance car shop where I made these: 350z/FX45 exhaust components (All stainless. Some MIG, some TIG)Aluminum Radiator shroud (TIG welded, hand formed, polished):After deciding management sucked (even though I loved welding stuff for sports/show cars), I decided to fulfill my dream of being my own boss. So here I am! ok, NOW i'm ready for the handrail...Flux-core welded from scratch (minus the railings themselves / volutes / punched lower rail), the posts are solid 1" square stock, the balusters are 1/2" square tube. Secured to the concrete with four self-expanding anchors per post. Fab/paint time was one and a half days, install was 1/2 day.Anyways, Hope you like it! I look foreward to talking about all sorts of welding stuff with everyone here. From what I've seen it's a fairly diverse and very knowlegable forum!                -Avi
Reply:VERY NICE!  And thanks for the pics and introduction!What was the reason for the 1" to be solid stock, out of curiosity?
Reply:Nice work, thanks for posting it up here.
Reply:very nice work Shaggz00 thxs for sharing with us Creative metal Creative metal Facebook
Reply:Originally Posted by MAC702What was the reason for the 1" to be solid stock, out of curiosity?
Reply:I don't know why Shaggz00 uses solid, but I always use solid when outside. If water gets inside it rusts from the inside out, if you are in a freezing temp. area you will get ice swelling, enough water and freeze-thaw cycles, and it will take even 1/8" wall square tube and make it almost round, or split it apart. I prefer to core drill at the line posts, this will prevent any rust stain from under the mounting plates. But, when I started out, I used plates too, a core drill rig was a bit steep price wise when I first got into it. This is a very neat, professional looking job  Shaggz00. Where are you located? And did the "railing guys", help you with a price? How much per foot? It's about $70.00/ foot around here.Last edited by tessdad; 09-19-2006 at 11:06 AM.Just my  opinion, not from a book, just from the road.Howes Welding Inc.www.howesweldinginc.com
Reply:Shagg the is a great job.  Nice and clean.  Sometimes people complain about unpainted bolts.  I wish you well with your business.I builds lots of rails, also.  While I think overall solid bar looks better, I rarely use it. Solid is too heavy. 11g tubing is good enough for newells. I rarely core. Coring is only convient for the installer--easier and cheaper.  I have a maintenance contract where I a large part of the work is  replacing rails that are rusted near the ground.  Plating adds as much stability a coring.  The plate provides a large foot print reducing some of the resonance created when you shake a long rail.  Plates elevate the post reducing the possibility of the tubing rusting at ground. With tubing weld (seal) the top well and don't solid weld the bottom.  I have never had a problem with tubing bursting or swelling.  Though I have repaired several burst tubing and tubular cap rail.If cosmetics is an issue, then place covers over the plate.When I do core, I mostly use Rockite expanding cement.  Rockite does not promote rust.  Kwikcrete expanding cement is not nearly as good (not forgiving when mixing and set too quickly).  I like epoxy, but it is expensive and wastful if you don't use the entire tube and have plenty of extra tips.I used to do everything out of solid.  Now, I reserve it for special circumstances--Likewise with coring.This is my opinion, not meant to negate previous post.  Hope this helps Shagg or anybody who reads it.Last edited by tapwelder; 09-19-2006 at 01:15 PM.