Wire feeder boom ideas & design review

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I've always liked the idea of a boom mounted feeder to protect cables and keep the mess off the floor. In a month or two the part of my shop where I want the boom will be ready to install it so figured I might as well start the brainstorming process now, plus there is a shiny new S-54D feeder and blue box to power it on its way which this project will hold I did a search for feeder booms and used some ideas from all of them to design a few that would work for my application. My shop has 14' ceilings so the main column will be 6"x6"x3/8" or 1/4" and 13' tall placing the horizontal beam at about 11' from the floor when it's at 90 degrees. I'm still wondering about lowering it 1' so that the arm could swing out the front roll up door to weld outside. Don't know if that's a good or bad idea since I've still got the 12vs for outside/mobile projects. This is my first design which uses a single 8'L 4"x4"x1/4" horizontal arm with the feeder mounted to a pivot on the end. There is an electric winch to raise and lower the arm and a turnbuckle attached to the back of the feeder mount to tilt it down for ease of use and to keep the gun cable from having a sharp bend in it. When the unit is in use, the arm will be lowered just enough for me to reach up and adjust the settings. I'm working on drawing up one with two 4' arms and a pivot in the middle that will reduce the "dead space" under the boom. Please take a look at the design and critique it as I'm no structural engineer but it should be able to hold 200 pounds on the end. If you have any different ideas or pictures of manufactured/shop built ones please feel free to post them. Attached ImagesTOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:I'm sitting here thinking and it might be better to make the feeder bracket also rotate left and right to be able to weld closer to the column.TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Some of the booms I've seen have a simple hook or heavy duty suspended load rated carabiner on the end of the extension arm attached to a ring on the feeder. I may even have a factory one in a box around here somewhere.. It just connects to the top of the feeder's spool arm so it can be hung from a balance point. I wouldn't be concerned with necessarily making a cage for it to mount to, not unless you wanted it rigid. The factory ring works pretty well for as simple as it is.I'll see if I can remember where I put it. I'll give it to you if I still have it. You could even use a short chain or cable to adjust the height it hangs at.Expert Garage Hack....https://www.facebook.com/steven.webber.948
Reply:You will want a gusset line attached from the pole to the end of the boom arm to absorb some of the stress the fully loaded feeder will bear on the horizontal member. You can make a simple one out of some cable, clevis swivels and a turnbuckle. If you end up putting a 60lb spool of wire on it, it's going to be pretty heavy.Of course, I'm not a structural engineer, I'm only going off stuff I've seen in shops I've been in. Manufactured boom systems such as a Swingarc use a spring loaded counterweight system to balance the feed head, and wire is usually fed to the head via a pulley and guide setup, with wire being fed out of a barrel, or remote spool. They can also be set up with the feeder mounted directly to the boom. There's a few different ways it's done.As long as you have a sturdy crossmember with support for the feeder and wire spool, it shouldn't be a big undertaking to get it together. A bail style, free hanging arrangement would be ideal for the feeder you plan to use. Once you get the general numbers together for where you want it to be, it's cake from there. IMHO of courseExpert Garage Hack....https://www.facebook.com/steven.webber.948
Reply:Quite a bit different to your ideas but here is mine, its mounted off the shed upright, it 6 metres or 20' long for you yanks. The wire feeder runs back and forth on a door roller and the whole boom swings 180 degrees, giving me access to pretty much any part of my shed where I am likely to be welding.Cheers AndrewWIA 270amp Mig Transtig 200 AC/DC Tig/stickHypertherm PM45
Reply:That's a dandy set up right there. You have a simple track, and solid festooning to handle the cables.Very nice FODFA Expert Garage Hack....https://www.facebook.com/steven.webber.948
Reply:Thanks  stinking hot here so good weather for a drink Cheers AndrewLast edited by FODFA; 02-22-2015 at 12:22 AM.WIA 270amp Mig Transtig 200 AC/DC Tig/stickHypertherm PM45
Reply:We have been below zero for most of last week, or just above it.I'll take some of your heat anytime!! Expert Garage Hack....https://www.facebook.com/steven.webber.948
Reply:FODFA, that's an awesome setup you have there. What size are the uprights on the building?The plan was to have the winch running from back by the main column and attached to the tip of the boom which I figured would provide tension to balance the weight. If the feeder is bail mounted I can make the horizontal arm an I beam with one of those hoist rollers to slide the feeder. Can pick up another 1"x12" turnbuckle and run it from the boom tip back to the column on an angle for tension.TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Shed uprights are 100 x 100mm RHS, that 4x4" for you, they are 3.6m or 12' high.Cheers AndrewWIA 270amp Mig Transtig 200 AC/DC Tig/stickHypertherm PM45
Reply:Thats a really nice and well built shop.TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Here is a link to one I built. http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...ley&highlight=
Reply:Originally Posted by lik2waterskiHere is a link to one I built. http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...ley&highlight=
Reply:Originally Posted by Chris T.Great job on that gantry. Did you ever find out why the feeder needed to be insulated? I'm going to hang a S-54D feeder off mine and dont want to short out any of the boards.
Reply:Originally Posted by lik2waterskiWhen it isn't insulated it starts melting the wire on the reel.After reading my thread again, Someone was talking about their base being nonconductive. Mine isn't and I just welded a "hanger up out of 11/2 square tubing. Maybe the miller hanging attachment is insulated. but its pretty easy to insulate it so I didn't research anymore.
Reply:So the current runs through the entire feeder even when the trigger is not pulled? So the lifting bail is acting like a ground and completing the circuit?So is it ok to run my power and ground cables on the jib together?TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE