Our Work | Petty's Welding Co.

petty_welding

Industrial and commercial fabrication, machinery repair, and custom ironwork. Refusing the modern divorce of utility and beauty. Knoxville, TN.

Plucked ten 5x5 acorn style tables from an industr

Plucked ten 5x5 acorn style tables from an industrial plant in South Carolina this week. They were setup in a 10'x20' configuration and mortared or grouted together between an angle and T-bar framework with levelers, which was awesome, but quite the challenge to deconstruct. Anyhow, keeping two for the shop, two are headed to @bezatesn and one to @mike_rideyourbike, and I have five left for sale for anyone interested.

They are in as good of condition as I've seen used and much better than the 3 we currently fab on now. I think pic three shows the average surface condition. A couple have small surface nicks but overall in great shape.

I've seen online that they can weigh somewhere between 2k and 3k each. There are no castings in them with the foundry they came from that I have seen unless it's on the bottom. The hole pattern is staggered which i also haven't seen.

DM me for details if you are seriously interested, don't kick my tires please, ain't nobody got time for that. I won't be around much the next couple days, but I'll respond to inquiries this weekend sometime.

#acornevangelist
#industrialathlete
#fabrication
#weld
#gobuildsomething
#platen
#acorn
#crane
#welding
#castiron

Hearth and steel surround fabrication. The hearth

Hearth and steel surround fabrication. The hearth is fabbed from 3/16" HRPO and @dumondiron slapped a blackening job on it and clearcoated it for me, mostly because he's a jewel of man and friend 😘. The floor to ceiling is 11ga corten (had in stock leftover from a job) that I accelerated the rust on with a muriatic acid mixture and clearcoated. Fabbed the install hardware from 1/4" lags and 1/2" carriage bolts. Chopped the carriage threads off welded the two together to create a fat rounded head to mimic a big rivet. Welded the 3/8" nuts on just to act as a driver, and I'm trimming them back off and rusting the heads to achieve the look I had in my mind. Minor nods to industry with a classy look is kind of the motif here... I don't know i'm makin' this stuff up as I go. Building a house with no blueprints and just winging it 😂😂. The CAD drawing was me deciding where I wanted the seam as my sheets were only ten footers. Glad I went high, the seam disappears as I patina'd the plates with them touching in the installed configuration and you can't even see it hardly. Looking forward to sitting around it with many of you this winter and spring.
#fabrication
#fireplace
#Steel
#webuild
#industrialathleteRetreat
#rivercamp
#KylesFord
#weld
#gobuildsomething

Was able to bring to completion some work we start

Was able to bring to completion some work we started over a decade ago. Somewhere around 2010 or 2011, a couple friends and I got our hands on a sawmill and started felling every pine tree we could get our saws on. We hauled them all up to my buddy Preston's farm in Kodak and milled many 1x's and 2x's just to learn how to do it. We put in a ton of work to create a modest pile of lumber with no purpose other than to do it and learn together. I decided recently to figure out how to turn it into siding for the cabin. We planed it all down to 3/4", created a lap joint with a router table, slapped a couple coats of poly on and started installing it. Absolutely tickled to death with how it turned out, it's perfectly imperfect. Lots of natural gap changes and even board heights from end to end. Felt so fulfilling to see tons of labor and sweat come together to make a space feel beautiful and comfortable. The best part is how straight the lines up the side of the steel look, I'll post the patina'd steel fabrication and the hearth soon. Up next is planing and finishing a big wooden beam we salvaged out of the old Corten building in the Old City to use for the mantle. It's well over 100 years old and I think it's 8x8.
We're well over 2 and a half years into this build, and while it's been challenging, it is stretching skills and creativity and scratching that building itch that never seems to go away. Gotta build stuff, created that way.

Thanks for all the pointers and loaned out tools @rencreations_knox @johnwallace302
#fabrication
#deadtrees
#gobuildsomething
#industrialathleteRetreat
#cabin
#Clinchriver
#KylesFord

Classic case of an apprentice mechanic with a tap,

Classic case of an apprentice mechanic with a tap, a crescent wrench, and a can of WD-40 trying to repair a jacked up 22mm thread in a D6 chain. It helped a lot that it had been heated and struck with a chisel several times in the hole 😂😂😂.
Coated the threads with lube to minimize spall damage, gouged out the center of the tap, and pried the engaged teeth out. Used a pick to clean out the carbon deposits best I could and knocked down some upset material with a carbide. Gently and ever so gently I was able to recut the threads with a new tap.
#threadpitchJesus
#industrialathlete
#in7018wetrust
#fabrication
#heavyequipment
#CAT
#dozer
#Komatsu
#millerwelders

Some crack repairs on a Prowler ROPS and added two

Some crack repairs on a Prowler ROPS and added two chintzy 12ga brackets for reinforcement. Never seen a joint configuration like this and it was really baffling. Apparently they have tons of problems, can't imagine flipping this thing over with a load on it. Engineer said and I quote "Vee it out, weld it up, and let's run it for a while and see how it holds up."
Allllrighty then.

#fabrication
#industrialathlete
#GODSRODS
#in7018wetrust
#weld
#7018
#millerwelders
#hopesandprayers
#heavyequipment
#becauseforklift

Scratch built air manifold setup for the Zoo to ru

Scratch built air manifold setup for the Zoo to run four pneumatic dinosaurs off of. 1.5" npt inlet with (6) 3/4" outlets reduced to 3/8" valving. Made a little jig and domed the end caps with the press and plasma cut all the holes for my outlets. Really happy with how this turned out, especially for being a mediocre tig welder at best. Cherry red for a crisp finish 👌
#fabrication
#weld
#webuild
#industrialathlete
#willweldfordinosaurs
#zoowelder
#millerwelders

A few more looks at the completed rails we are wor

A few more looks at the completed rails we are working on with @dumondiron. Dropped them off at powder this week for a lightly textured black and we hope to install in a few days if things dry out around here. Stainless all thread through the standoffs with rubber plugs to fill the holes and hide the hardware. The rails get lighting under the top angle and a wooden cap rail. There are lots of hours in these rails to make them right, but I think it will pay dividends in the final product aesthetics. All the joints and such came out mint and it seems they may just disappear all together once colored. The two sections join with a half lap we routed in and will be drilled and tapped for countersunk screws.
#gobuildsomething
#fabrication
#in7018wetrust
#weld
#webuild
#bluecollarsurgeons
#cncplasma
#hypertherm
#JD2

Had these two shirts made for Greg to celebrate th

Had these two shirts made for Greg to celebrate the fine craftsman I've watched him become.

Long story short, over the last 13 years I've never really had much of a business goal other than to stay focused and committed to craftsmanship/problem solving/creativity and simply let the rest of the pieces work themselves out. The actual business side of being a tradesman is just a necessary evil, and I'm only ever going to give it the attention I want to give it versus letting it take from me what it wants.

Fast forward, I met @bull_fab in a welding class six years ago and I promise you he didn't know bullshit from apple butter about welding but he was asking all the right questions and it caught my attention. He plowed through an associates degree and is coming up on six years of employment and has developed into a craftsman and a fantastic problem solver. I think we need to stop and recognize these things more often, give credit where credit is due, build each other up inside of this blue collar culture that constantly encourages us to tear each other down. He's put in his 10,000 hours and matured from being an apprentice to a peer. I've mouthpieced craftsmanship from my little bullhorn since welding got ahold of me when I was 15 and changed the course of my life, and I think watching you develop Greg is one of the proudest parts of my career thus far. With your skills and work ethic you could work for anyone and I know it's my job to treat you fairly, keep you challenged, and to continue to foster an environment you thrive in. Thanks for letting me be your mentor.

🍺🍺🍺 here's to craftsmanship, building stuff, and always striving to get better.

Big thanks to @upinsmokeweldingapparel
For making such great shirts and for @nothingtoofancyknoxville for customizing them for me. These shirts mean alot to me.

#craftsmanship
#industrialathletes
#dowork

A couple petty little fab jobs we did for a good c

A couple petty little fab jobs we did for a good client. A handful of 3/16" aluminum fire extinguisher holders we designed and formed up along with some 11ga stainless straps to grab some high pressure piping.
#fabrication
#industrialathlete
#weld
#aintnothintoitbuttodoit
#bluecollarsurgeons
#webuildstuff
#killthecubicle
#tigtuesday
#aluminum

Beginnings of a 35' handrail from 1/2" 6061 we're

Beginnings of a 35' handrail from 1/2" 6061 we're cranking out for a residence in West Knox. Offset cap rail from angle with under lighting to illuminate the holes or bubbles or whatever they are 😂😂. Second video is the standoffs @bull_fab sewed together as it mounts directly to a vertical concrete wall with 5/8" stainless all thread and some isolation material to keep the aluminum from the crete. All finished up in black powder. Looks like from my plasma notes I'll have 2200 holes in total and 1.4 million dollars in electrodes 😂😂 but we're hauling donkey at 50ipm. One more 8' panel tomorrow 💪💪and hopefully get these in the oven next week
#whoseideawasthis
#ArchitectsGoneWild
#industrialathlete
#bluecollarsurgeons
#fabrication
#weld
#aluminum
#spoolgun
#millerwelders
#gobuildsomething

Few parts we whipped up for our fire truck friends

Few parts we whipped up for our fire truck friends. Two stainless brackets to adapt a track in a truck body to a cast aluminum ladder hanging bracket. Countersunk the plate for 3/8" hardware and then CS the other way for the 5/16" hardware to hold the bracket on. Those screws got welded and blended so you only have to install the nuts from the outside. Last pic was a fun rendering/cutting job on some 3/16" aluminum treadplate. Lots of holes to hit and radius's to guess at because the piece was all mang-fangled but I think it came out slick.
#firetruck
#heavyequipment
#stainless
#aluminum
#fabrication
#gobuildsomething
#industrialathlete
#underthehoodinthehood
#bluecollarsurgeon
#weld

Fun little puzzle piece we whipped out for a T.D.O

Fun little puzzle piece we whipped out for a T.D.O.T. dump truck. They dropped off about 70% of a broken fan shroud from an old Peterbilt and OEM shrouds are impossible to find apparently. Not even the junkyards had any. We dimensioned everything the best we could and rebuilt it from 11ga p&o. Came out crisp and clean with some super slick fitting and welding @bull_fab
#industrialathlete
#in7018wetrust
#weld
#tigtuesday
#fabrication
#gobuildsomething
#heavyequipment
#dumptruck
#weldtilitkillsme

A little project we wrapped up last week for a Gib

A little project we wrapped up last week for a Gibbon shift door over at the Zoo. The HDPE doors aren't rotating well in the summer time with all the heat and expansion. We rebuilt the rotating door with aluminum and shrunk the dimensions a 1/4" in every direction to free up some room. Mechanically laminated (3) 1/4" plates with the interior piece having a smaller O.D. to create a cable groove. Gotta make the groove a bit deeper on the next 6 doors as the cable has misalignment by design and relies on the depth of the groove to hold it in, but we were able to get this one to stay on with a smaller cable. We chucked an oilite bronze bearing in the center to ride on the stainless shaft which was an upgrade from having no bearing at all. All powdered up it looks pretty darn slick.
#fabrication
#industrialathlete
#problemsolvers
#crane
#gobuildsomething
#weld
#in7018wetrust
#millerwelders

Another pressure test plate for a CAT engine from

Another pressure test plate for a CAT engine from 1/2" P&O.. Mapped out the head gasket and let her rip. I'll take that slightest bit of angularity all day long. Time for a little rest 💪
#cncplasma
#fabrication
#industrialathlete
#weld
#gototradeschoolkids
#gobuildsomething
#hypertherm
#JD2
#doworkson

Firetruck outrigger was accidentally left down and

Firetruck outrigger was accidentally left down and attempted to be driven until all the bolts snapped off. Tech's removed two, converted one of the threaded holes back to smooth bore 😂😂 and then decided to wisely stop on the fourth one. I successfully extracted the remaining bolt and did a more extensive repair on the other one. Opted against a heli-coil fix for obvious reasons, so I ripped the side of the plate out to the bottom of the hole and carbide cleaned the inside. Welded up the groove and plasma cut a tight drill template. After a 5/8" drill and tap job she's like new again 💪💪
#whatwouldArenJenkinsdo
#heavyequipment
#fabrication
#gobuildsomething
#weld
#firetruck
#almostamachinist
#bluecollarsurgeon
#in7018wetrust

Took advantage of having my friends at the shop Fr

Took advantage of having my friends at the shop Friday to work in a homeschool lesson for my oldest son Levi. He had never seen caldo rods in use, and I've always wanted to pre and post mic a pin to get an idea of how much shrinkage is occurring. I've never been able to because of the urgency of field repairs and not being able to mic the pin because it's stuck in the bore. One could look up original pin I.D., but it wouldn't account for wear and rust which is always a crap shoot. Anyway, we were lancing 3" 1018 which mic'd at 2.999". @arenjenkins taught Levi how to use the mic and he worked through the 4 digit subtraction and came up with 12.5 thousandths. We had quenched the pin rapidly after the rod made it through for max shrinkage and wire wheeled the new formed scale off. I'm sure different materials and hardnesses could shrink differently, just a neat thing to see the numbers and show my son and discuss how it happens.

If you are new to lancing, the down and dirty is relying on the heat input to break rust bonds to the bearing/bore, and the hole created in the middle allows shrinkage to occur upon cooling now that there is a relief. The hotter it gets and the faster it cools, the more shrinkage that occurs. Most of the time you've got two worn out sledge hammer slinging mechanics 8 hours into trying to extract the pin, and if all goes well you extract the pin in a few minutes. Probably one of the most enjoyable things to do in my opinion.
#fabrication
#heavyequipment
#CAT
#in7018wetrust
#Komatsu
#gobuildsomething
#weld
#oxylance
#gototradeschoolkids
#killthedeskjob

Another Fabtech down and ALOT to be thankful for.

Another Fabtech down and ALOT to be thankful for. I'm not a huge fan of social media for many reasons, but I'll forever be thankful for the network we've been able to build of like minded problem solvers and critical thinkers. I think for most of us, building a friend group and network like this locally was never going to be an option, and professional groups for small shop owners simply don't exist. Sharing knowledge and experience with each other everyday here on IG has paid dividends for all of us. This years been heavy, and I'm even thankful for the headaches from laughing so much this week as it was good for the soul. After the show we rendezvous'd back in Knoxville for a couple bonus days of conversation and skill sharing and it won't be the last time. A couple other special thanks are warranted to @apexish for always being a kick ass host for an awesome party with @ckworldwide, and to the stellar treatment from @millerwelders for all the generosity, feedback, and film work. All the black and white pics are thanks to @markadamspictures who captured the best of many of us. Love all of y'all 💪💪
#industrialathlete
#in7018wetrust
#fabtech2022
#millerwelders
#gobuildsomething
#weldtilitkillsme
#weld

It was beyond time to rebuild these barn door hang

It was beyond time to rebuild these barn door hangers (actual barn door hangers not Pinterest stuff) and we fabbed up two new doors to go with them. The lower track is 2" pipe, so we ripped some half pipes from 3" sched 80 and designed the brackets to adjust with 5/8" B7 rod that we fabbed adjuster bolts from. Capped the end of the trolley and door brackets with 3/8" slotted plate and 1/2" hardware. Hadn't needed to make half pipes before, but our first attempt with the plasma was pretty darn good. Drew two single lines in CAD leaving a half inch attached in the very middle and on each end. Cooled the pipe before we nipped the last little sections and warpage was only about a 1/4". Greg ran them through the plate roll and they flattened right out. We adjusted the door up off the lower guide pipe about 3/16" and everything worked really nice once we hooked the pneumatic cylinders back up to new mounts. Good enough to get smashed by charging bulls at the livestock yard 💪💪
#industrialathlete
#fabrication
#heavyduty
#in7018wetrust
#gobuildsomething
#weld
#builder
#dowork
#millerwelders
#gototradeschoolkids

12 of our excavator roller frame steps out for del

12 of our excavator roller frame steps out for delivery. 1/2" P & O with slots cut for bolt on extensions if needed. Chopped up on the JD2 table and formed up on the Scotchman. If you're like me and sick of your feed filled with augmented women selling machinery, stupid tok ticky dancing videos mocking tradesmen, clowns with stuffed animals selling filler metal, and worthless welding videos with pop music dubbed over them, you can always come here and actually see and learn how to build stuff 😂😂👍👍
#fabrication
#in7018wetrust
#weldtilitkillsme
#cncplasma
#gobuildsomething
#haterade
#weld
#fab
#heavyequipment
#Cat
#Komatsu
#excavator

Four sliding door trolley brackets with steel whee

Four sliding door trolley brackets with steel wheels fabbed up for our next project at the livestock yard. All zapped up with .030 on the little Miller 215
#industrialathlete
#fabrication
#mig
#wireweldingsucks
#shouldvetiggedit
#in7018wetrust
#moretriggertimethantheaveragegangster
#underthehoodinthehood
#eastKnox
#fabtechcrunch
#gototradeschoolkids
#buildsomething

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