A quick-n-dirty "Un-Cart"

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I received a coupon for the Harbor Freight MIG 170 for $169, and after having read about the capacitor mod, I just couldn't help myself, and picked one up.  I'm still waiting on the capacitor order to arrive.But in the mean time, I thought I'd make a welder cart.Being that this is just about the cheapest imaginable welder, I thought I'd stick with that theme:Come up with absolute cheapest cart for this welderOnly using parts from Harbor FreightThe result is what I call the "un-cart": some Harbor Freight casters epoxied onto the bottom of the chassis (using Harbor Freight epoxy) and some Harbor Freight Tape Roll Holders bolted to the side of the chassis to coil up all of the cables.The result is a hobbyist-friendly small package which you can roll under the workbench and forget about until you use it again 6 months from now We'll see how well the epoxy holds up.  I gave that a shot because I was worried about metal shavings getting into the welder if I drilled through the bottom of the chassis.Higher-res shots:http://i.imgur.com/hTpftBG.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/iWX5X8z.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/jNlVNIH.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/F7dMUb7.jpgLast edited by cell; 08-04-2013 at 06:27 PM.
Reply:I wish I had known those tape roll holders existed when I made my cart. That's perfect. I bet they were 99 cents too!Everlast PA160-STH... and that's about it!
Reply:Couple of questions...How long does that little bottle last when welding?Do you have a part number for the tape holders? I can't find them online searching for "tape holder".ThanksMr. HE
Reply:Cute little stinker!I hate being bi-polar it's awsomeMy Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
Reply:The part number of the tape holders is 92895Here's the HF Reviews page: http://hfreviews.com/item.php?id=3034Oh, bummer, I can't seem to get these to come up on the HF website.  To be honest, I picked up 8 of these over a year ago with the idea of using them on a TIG cart, but I never got around to using them.
Reply:This is the first 24 oz CO2 I've used, so I'm not sure how long it will last.Years ago, I had a Miller Passport welder, which was a suitcase MIG which ran off of 110v or 220v, and had a little paintball CO2 / regulator right inside the suitcase.  I really regret getting rid of that welder...Anyway, my memory from back then was that a small-ish project could be done on one 12 oz bottle.  However, I was in the habit of owning two bottles, so that I could run one down to empty and not have to stop mid-project and go to Academy to refill.This time around, I was again curious about the runtime of these paintball CO2's, and I found a forum post which stated that a pound of CO2 makes roughly 8 cubic feet of gas.So, the 12 oz. would be 6 cu ft of gas, and the 24 oz would be 12 cu ft.So if you using a 12 cu ft / hr gas rate (which is pretty marginal), you can get an hour of arc-time out of the larger bottle.  Not bad for a hobbyist, but totally unworkable for a professional.As for cost, my understanding is that CO2 can be had for $1 / pound in large quantity.  At Academy, they charge $3 to fill the 12 oz and $4 to fill the 24 oz, which works out to $4 per pound and $2.67 per pound, respectively.Also, the 24 oz tank was $24 to purchase (empty).So it's a tradeoff.  More expensive, but easier to store / transport, and Academy is open on Sunday.
Reply:well, that is cute isn't it! I like it. Keep us posted on the how well the epoxi holds up. DId you distress (sand) the epoxi sites at all?There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger