Haven't had chance to talk to my dad yet, he's the one with the (arc)
welder...

I'm looking to pick up a cheap set of metal gates from Wickes / B&Q,
and was thinking of getting some of the spiky railheads to stop the
"locals" using them to sit on.

Given that these things are likely to be hard to clamp, how hard would
it be to get them tacked on ?

(these are the sort of things i'm talking about)

http://www.brindley-steel-forging.co...lheads2040.htm

TIA :-}

On Fri, 21 Mar 2008 11:30:34 +0000, Colin Wilson wrote:

Haven't had chance to talk to my dad yet, he's the one with the (arc)
welder...

I'm looking to pick up a cheap set of metal gates from Wickes / B&Q,
and was thinking of getting some of the spiky railheads to stop the
"locals" using them to sit on.

Given that these things are likely to be hard to clamp, how hard would
it be to get them tacked on ?

(these are the sort of things i'm talking about)

http://www.brindley-steel-forging.co...lheads2040.htm

TIA :-}

==================================
Welding the cappings would depend on the capacity of your welder. Welding
might not be necessary because the cappings might be drilled
and tapped to take a set screw. You would only have to drill the top of
your gates with holes to match.

Magnetic welding clamps are readily available so holding the cappings
shouldn't be difficult if welding is necessary:

http://tinyurl.com/36ofal

It might be easier to drill and tap the cappings in any case (if not
already done) rather than weld.

Cic.

--
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Using Ubuntu Linux
Windows shown the door
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Welding the cappings would depend on the capacity of your welder. Welding
might not be necessary because the cappings might be drilled
and tapped to take a set screw. You would only have to drill the top of
your gates with holes to match.

AFAIK (and without seeing any) they've got "holes" in the bottom to
accept a steel rod, which you can then just drop through a suitably
pre-punched steel strip (i.e. if you were making them regularly)

They wouldn't need to be "perfectly" welded to the correct depth etc,
just tacked on to stop the little darlings sitting on the gates :-}

It might be easier to drill and tap the cappings in any case (if not
already done) rather than weld.

I don't have a bench drill, otherwise that'd be a good idea :-}

On 21 Mar, 11:30, Colin Wilson
http://www.brindley-steel-forging.co...lheads2040.htm

At least you've chosen good ones, where the steel is easily weldable,
not the usual iron potmetal.

Arc (manual stick) or MIG will do this easily. Bevel the ends of the
rod first, then tack, then weld a good bead all round. Clamp with
cheap magnet, or just by lying it down on a suitable wooden block.

Colin Wilson o.uk
wrote:

Haven't had chance to talk to my dad yet, he's the one with the (arc)
welder...

I'm looking to pick up a cheap set of metal gates from Wickes / B&Q,
and was thinking of getting some of the spiky railheads to stop the
"locals" using them to sit on.

I fitted a pair of double gates from Wickes a few weeks ago.
They look alright, but are not very good actually.
The steel is too thin. I fitted them, then had to go back the next day
"as they wouldnt shut".
The house owner, instead of lifting up the bolt, had just dragged it
across the concrete when opening the gates, it had jammed in a divot,
and he just used force to pull it open.
The gate was bent back in one corner by 3 inches. It was easily bent
back into shape.
Another pair of 'old' gates I worked on last week were the opposite -
they were probably 30 years old, covered in rust, but they were heavy
and rigid, and once cleaned up, still looked good.
So, if possible, have a good look round for some old gates, take the
time to clean them up, and they'll last a lot longer than the ones on
sale at B+Q/Wickes.
Alan.
--
To reply by e-mail, change the ' + ' to 'plus'.

So, if possible, have a good look round for some old gates, take the
time to clean them up, and they'll last a lot longer than the ones on
sale at B+Q/Wickes.

Cheers for that, they're only to keep the local scrotes^H^Hkids from
using the driveway as a goal, and we're planning on moving within a
couple of years, so they wouldn't need to be particularly heavy or
long-lasting :-}

Looking at the price of steel on the site I mentioned, if I had more
time (and could weld) i'd be tempted to knock my own up !

It's a real eye opener when you see mid-range gates going for £400 and
the bits to make it less than £40 - sure, labour is the biggest cost,
but even that must be minimal given that the site does pre-punched
steel so all you need to do is a weld in each corner, and literally
drop the vertical rods into place !