Brackets

Fuzzy photo from the cheapie flip phone of one of my fixes for a machine at my side hustle. There is supposed to be an angle bent on the galvanized sheet on the side of the machine that fastens it down to the base. However, the sheet rusted away allowing the front of the machine to separate from both the base and the back section. I made up a new piece by welding a piece of 1/8 x 1 x1 angle to some 1/8" sheet. I was able to utilize a couple of the existing mounting holes as well as adding a few more. I made a couple of studs on the right side of the bracket by drilling and countersinking holes for 10-24 flat head screws on the backside and then welding the heads in place. The piece bolted onto the studs is 1/8 x 2 flat with bends on each end. The end opposite the studs is held in place with a couple of self-tapping screws. This piece is to add some additional strength to keep everything together during transportation and installation.

The parts look pretty simple now that they're in place, and they are, but they did require a bit of thinking to design and make. My resources for fabricating at work are pretty limited, so I made up a carboard pattern and made the parts at home. Fortunately, everything fit well and the holes all lined up. Now that I've got my part done, one of the technicians will take the machine apart, clean it up and get it ready to go back into service. The parts I made will get painted or cold galvanized while the machine is apart to prevent further rusting.

And for something completely different, I've noticed a big jump in my page counts as of late. Not sure why, but welcome to all the new visitors and thanks to all of you regulars out there. I've been doing this for quite a while now and have been able to keep to my original goal of at least two posts per week. I enjoy writing this thing, I'm glad others get something from it as well.