Mr Apple Fu

The upright on my steel tire rack cracked last week. I was rolling a pair of truck tires off the top shelf and heard the pop — the weld at the base of the upright had let go after years of loading heavy rubber on one side, and the whole rack leaned over like a tired dog.

I unloaded the tires, cut out the cracked weld, and ground a fresh bevel on the upright and the base plate. Then I added a small gusset plate on each side for good measure, clamped everything square, and burned it back in with a solid fillet. Couple of passes, cleaned it up with the flap disc.

The rack stands straight and is loaded back up with tires now. Another quiet job that keeps the shop working — you can see the fresh welds right at the base, holding strong.

The base of my old welding helmet stand finally gave up on me yesterday morning. I'd gone to hang my helmet after a quick bead on a gate frame and the whole stand tipped, the cast base having cracked clean through from an old drop last winter. The helmet rolled across the shop floor and the stand just rocked back and forth on the broken edge.

I stripped the base down, cut out the fractured section with the cutoff wheel, and ground both edges back to clean metal. Then I bent a piece of quarter inch flat bar into a collar, tacked it around the base, and ran short stitch welds so I wouldn't warp it. A little primer after it cooled.

The stand is solid as a rock now and the helmet hangs right where it should. Small fix, but it keeps the gear where I need it — and those bright new stitch welds aren't going anywhere.

A rancher nearby called about his cattle guard last week. One of the top rails snapped clean in the middle where a feed truck rolled over it too fast, and the broken ends stuck up sharp enough to cut a tire. He'd laid boards over the gap, but the cows were getting brave and testing the edges.

I hauled my portable rig out and cut the broken rail back to solid metal on both sides. I sleeved it with a short piece of larger pipe, welded both ends all the way around, and laid a reinforcing strap along the bottom where the trucks roll over. Checked the other rails too and touched up one cracked weld.

Nothing fancy, just a working ranch gate again. The cattle stay put, the trucks roll smooth, and the new welds will outlast the old ones.

A buddy backed his F-250 into a loading dock too hard last month and the brush guard took the hit. The passenger-side mount bracket bent back two inches and cracked through at the bolt hole, and the whole guard sat crooked, rattling over every bump. He drove it like that for weeks and the driver's side started stress-cracking from the vibration too.

I pulled the guard off and cut the bent bracket off flush with the plasma cutter. I fabbed a new bracket from quarter-inch plate, drilled fresh bolt holes, and welded it to the guard tube with a full bead on both sides. Ground it flat, hit it with a flap disc, and bolted it back on with new grade-8 hardware.

Small job, but that truck's front end is solid again. The welds sit right there on the mount where anyone can see them, and they look just fine.

The top joint of my backyard metal swing set developed a long crack right where the A-frame leg slides into the crossbar socket. Every swing made it creak and wobble, and last week the leg slipped down a full inch — the set was leaning dangerously to one side with the kids' swing hanging crooked.

I pulled the set apart and cut the cracked socket section off the crossbar with the cutoff wheel. The leg tube end was wallowed out too, so I sleeved it with a short piece of heavier pipe and drilled a new bolt hole. I welded the new socket collar solid around the crossbar end, bolted the leg back in tight, and ran an extra gusset plate across the joint for strength.

Hung the swing and put my full weight on it — not a creak in it. Just a backyard fix, but the set is safe for the kids again.

One of the legs on my steel chiminea fire bowl cracked clean through right at the weld where it meets the fire bowl. It tipped over mid-burn last weekend — the leg folded sideways and the whole bowl nearly spilled hot coals across the patio. The metal around the joint had rusted thin over the years, and the weight finally did it in.

I cut the broken leg off with the grinder, then cut out the rusted patch of the bowl rim where the leg had been welded. I bent a fresh piece of square tubing to match the other three legs, tacked it in place, and ran two solid passes of weld all around the joint. Ground the welds just enough to keep them looking honest, and hit the base with high-heat stove paint.

Lit a fire in it that same evening and it stood rock solid. Small job, but there's nothing like a warm fire on a fixed chiminea.