What Should I Use???

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I need to attach a small nut (3/8ths, 1-32, or 1/4 - 20) to a 2.5" piece of 1.75 square stock that is 1/8th" thick.  These square stock pieces will be used as leg supports.  The nut is to allow a bolt to be used as a set screw to stablize the leg when inserted in the square stock socket.  I' ve asked around locally and have had several answers to the point of confusion.  Thought I'd come to a place with experts that have experience in such matters.  Since I'm not a welder and this is a small job of convenience rather than necessity, I thought a trip to HF and purchasing one of their light weight MIG welders might do the trick.  Thank you
Reply:it should be enough welder to do that task. are you really gonna buy a welder and practice enough to be able to do this one thing, or do you wanna have a welder to play with , and this is the excuse?
Reply:Originally Posted by foilerI need to attach a small nut (3/8ths, 1-32, or 1/4 - 20) to a 2.5" piece of 1.75 square stock that is 1/8th" thick....
Reply:Originally Posted by weldbeadit should be enough welder to do that task. are you really gonna buy a welder and practice enough to be able to do this one thing, or do you wanna have a welder to play with , and this is the excuse?
Reply:Welcome. Here is how I did it. I just used regular Hex nut. No probs. here.T.J.http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=19836www.tjsperformance.comDynasty 300 DXHTP 240HTP Microcut 380Hyperthem 85JD2 Hyd Bender and HF Hyd Ring Roller all in one =(Frankenbender)Bpt. Mill/DRO4' x 8' CNC Plasma TableInstagram: tjsperformanceYT: TJS Welding and Fabrication
Reply:good for you, man. i'm 59 and never struck am arc till i was 57.was a project manager for mechanical contractors for 35 years , always union companies,  i could never touch anything.. retired, bought a small mig began to fart around with it and got hooked on melting steel.  my only caution would be against too small a machine which you sound like you will outgrow. and if you do get too small a machine, when it becomes a pain in the *** you get a bigger one.
Reply:I don't know... Maybe the 3/8...  but seems to me that welding a 10-32 or 1/4-20 hex nut, to 1/8 tube as a set screw anchor, is going to leave something to be desired.Although I'm sure someone can "Mythbust" this!
Reply:denrep,in your above post, I'm pretty sure that's a quarter.....Where's your dime?????   I r 2 a perfessional
Reply:Have you thought about silver soldering them? Might be easier on you, but if it's just an excuse to get a welder go ahead and get a Hobart, Lincoln or Miller. Then you can get parts easily and it will handle the bigger projects you are gonna come up with, lol. I have a Lincoln Weldpak HD I got at Lowes for 259 bucks that I use for itty bitty stuff like that. I actually got it for stair and balcony rail repair on apartment complexes because dragging the 220v weldpak and that heavy duty cord it needs around was killing me, lol. I've had it two years now and worked the heck out of it and it just keeps welding.The difference between art and craft is the quality of the workmanship. I am an artist.
Reply:Originally Posted by TJSWelcome. Here is how I did it. I just used regular Hex nut. No probs. here.T.J.http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=19836
Reply:I just went out to the shop to look some of mine over. I've got everything from 1/2" down to 1/4" everywhere for the set screw operation just like you're wanting to do. At a glance the 1/4" ones look GMAW to me, no FCAW that was obvious without turning the lights on. One thing I have done on some that helps is to buy the longer 'coupling nuts' then cut them in half. Makes them tall enough you can stay away from the upper rim. I also fork out the extra pennies for the regular set screws too. Ordinary bolts will flatten and one day you'll want one out and it'll be too late. Besides that the regular set screws give a much better bite.
Reply:I would think welding a 1/4" nut to a bar would not be a problem for a MIG.  No doubt TIG will be easiest.  I don't have a 1/4" nut welded to something I can photograph, but I do have a picture of a 3/8 nut I welded (MGAW) to 1" sq tube.Below are pictures of an adjustable stand I made.  There is a 3/8 nut welded to a 1"sq tube for a lock knob on this "dumb helper".   It works really well for supporting the long end of stock for my chop saw.  It is a 3/4" sq tube inside a 1" sq tube. The 1" tube has a 0.0625 wall so the inner tube had a loose fit. To fill the extra space between the two tubes and make this a real nice fit I stuffed two 6" lengths of 3/4 x 1/8 flat bar down inside the 1" tube as shims on adjacent sides and welded just the top edge to the outer tube.  The lock knob tightens one of the shims against the inner tube.  This provided a firm grip yet prevents the end of the lock knob screw from putting divots in the surface of the inner tube that might make subsequent minor adjustments awkward.  A little dry lube spray and it slides nicely when the knob is loosened, but stays good and snug when tightened.To weld on the nut I first welded on the angled bracket then drilled the hole through the bracket and the tube, threaded a bolt through the nut so it would protrude into the hole guaranteeing alignment, placed it in position and welded it on.  After it cooled I removed the bolt, welded in the shim, then installed the lock knob (ACE hardware store, $4.90).You can tell I'm still a novice.... the welds aren't artistically pretty and neither are the photographs... but this adjustable stand has been the best helper around!  It stands right where I want it and holds the end of the stock to be cut nice and steady.  It doesn't smoke, whine about the weather, or ask when will it be time for lunch!   Attached ImagesMember, AWSLincoln ProMIG 140Lincoln AC TombstoneCraftsman Lathe 12 x 24 c1935Atlas MFC Horizontal MillCraftsman Commercial Lathe 12 x 36 c1970- - - I'll just keep on keepin' on.
Reply:that small braze it or solder it the nut is nothing more than a structure to lock the nut and if you want cheap lock for the nut J-B weld if its just to hold the nut in place 5 dallors beats a couple of hundred