Interest in welding covers?

[youngnstudly]

I am curious to see how many Everlast owners would be interested in owning a cover for their welder. I purchased a bit of material and I am planning to stitch a cover for my 160STH in the next few days. I thought others might be interested and I would be happy to make a little money with my machine. I have several ideas and a few different materials/colors, but I wasn't sure if there would be any interest to begin with. The biggest problem I see is getting accurate dimensions from those who own Everlast welders (other than the 160 STH that I have)...Not to mention the physical changes that Everlast has made to their welders over the years. Just thought I would throw this out there. Thoughts, opinions, ideas?

[DaveO]

I was thinking to set up a sweat shop in the garage, and have the kids sew welder covers in exchange for their computer privileges!

There's a thread here
http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...344-Dimensions
that serves as a clearinghouse for case dimensions. In the past there's been interest in having covers in "Everlast green", though it seems to me that finding the exact color match might be difficult. Is a Juki an industrial machine?

[scootarida1]

Post some pictures up of what they look like when your done.

[zedron]

Post some pictures up of what they look like when your done.

I would be interested in seeing the finished product as well.

[youngnstudly]

Cool, I have some time this weekend (at least I think I do! LOL) so I will "whip up" a few ideas. As for dimensions, I need the locations of leads, ground cables, handles (on top, if equipped) and shielding gas lines. Busy at the moment getting my list together for the welding shop! X-mas is coming early for me (at my own expense!). I'll keep you guys posted. Thanks for showing interest.

[zedron]

Cool, I have some time this weekend (at least I think I do! LOL) so I will "whip up" a few ideas. As for dimensions, I need the locations of leads, ground cables, handles (on top, if equipped) and shielding gas lines. Busy at the moment getting my list together for the welding shop! X-mas is coming early for me (at my own expense!). I'll keep you guys posted. Thanks for showing interest.

Ill post up some measurements for my 200DX with locations of leads, and argon inlet, etc.

[youngnstudly]

I was thinking to set up a sweat shop in the garage, and have the kids sew welder covers in exchange for their computer privileges!

There's a thread here
http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...344-Dimensions
that serves as a clearinghouse for case dimensions. In the past there's been interest in having covers in "Everlast green", though it seems to me that finding the exact color match might be difficult. Is a Juki an industrial machine?

Sorry for ignoring you Dave! I sort of scanned over your comment quickly when I replied (since I was in a hurry) but I missed your key points and questions. You're absolutely correct about finding the correct green color. Attached is a pic of the Green vinyl I have and it's certainly not a perfect match to Everlast green. The other pic is my Juki machine. It is a walking foot industrial machine that will handle anything I need to sew. I modified the stock treadle (by removing it completely and throwing it away!), and a stock Chrome Harley brake pedal now operates the linkage for the electric motor. All the mounts and brackets are 1/4" angle iron or flat bar that I welded and shot in grey primer. I made a custom "floor pan", complete with a floor hump and black carpet, but I have yet to install it. I always wanted to fab a Model A or '32 style dash at work to make it look that much more like a 50's hot rod, but again, other things came first.

Ill post up some measurements for my 200DX with locations of leads, and argon inlet, etc.

That would be very cool! I would love to have access to measure every Everlast machine so I could produce covers for any model of welder, but I'm still not sure how well these will sell in the first place. I'm not looking to make 10,000 of these things, even if there is that much interest. If it's easier, you can take pics with a tape measure attached to your welder. Welders sure aren't the easiest thing to measure out with all those knobs, cables, leads, and odd shapes in the casings! My 160 STH has a slight crown to it on the end caps (front and rear panels), so I'm sure the others have unique shapes and styles to them too.

[DaveO]

Sorry for ignoring you Dave

No worries- I'm married with children, so used to being ignored.

I know your "sewing is for girls" tagline isn't totally serious, right? anyone who has sewed, manually or with a machine, has realized there is talent required, and respect due for those that can do it well.

Instead of attempting to accomodate each and every combination of dinse lead or argon connection that occurs on all these machines, would it be possible to arrange a flap at the front and rear? If you apply the cover with leads connected, the flap would lay on top of the leads, sticking out at a 90* angle to the machine; with no leads or hoses connected the flap lays flat against the side of the case. If you're finishing every edge this would require 2 hems on each lower corner, but at least they'd be straight, as opposed to finishing all the notches or cut-outs for every connection on every machine. Might even add velcro closures to keep the flap down.

As to colors, all-black or camouflage offerings might resonate well with the target audience- but I read posts by guys looking to match the cover to the welder like MillLincolnSab covers. I'm sure you could custom-order a color but that it would boost acquisition cost WAY up.

[Rambozo]

That color looks like a pretty good match. At least as good as most companies use. I agree that something like flaps would be a good way to deal with things that protrude. I'm not sure which there would be more demand for, one with a hole for the handle so that it could be carried, or a completely enclosed cover that is more dust-proof. I would prefer the latter, myself. At least Everlast uses some of the same basic chassis for more than one product, so some covers can do more than one model. For ease of removal and replacement I would allow some clearance and not necessarily follow all the curves and angles. If the cover is hard to install, it won't get used.

[DaveO]

...one with a hole for the handle so that it could be carried, or a completely enclosed cover that is more dust-proof. ...For ease of removal and replacement I would allow some clearance and not necessarily follow all the curves and angles...

With the right amount of extra clearance you could grab the handle(s) with the cover on, plus a lot of guys store their welders on their carts so this would only be a question mark for a few. I like the "no hole on top" idea too, since the whole point is to keep dust and airborne shop crud out of the picture.

[Gerry]

What kind of material would you use to make the covers ??

[Mike J]

Great idea - I do not think it has to be that snug so its easy to put on, as well as a lot of the connectors are low on the unit, so I am not sure if its worth going to the trouble of putting in slots, you might be able to get away with cutting it short.

Cheers,

Mike

[zoama]

Great idea - I do not think it has to be that snug so its easy to put on, as well as a lot of the connectors are low on the unit, so I am not sure if its worth going to the trouble of putting in slots, you might be able to get away with cutting it short.

Cheers,

Mike

I agree, I'd just leave the front connection area open.

[youngnstudly]

I'm liking all the ideas that you guys are bringing to the table. I thought about each one of them before, but I wasn't totally sure about a few. My initial thought on the flap idea was to make the flap similar to what comes on your button up jacket/Pendleton shirt so that it would still loosely cover the stinger lead receptacles that weren't being used. My idea about fitting the cover around the handle (on top of the welder) was a similar thought using 2 flaps that overlapped each other so just the handle was showing, but the cover could easily be removed and reinstalled. It would only be convenient for the guys using their welders as portable units as they wouldn't want to carry the welder to their truck, then slip the cover on. Installing the cover first and stashing your coiled up ground cable and other leads into side pockets would really make the whole portable idea work well. Of course the small portable units come with a carrying case in the first place...but getting all those cables and the welder into the case isn't always easy.

As for me wanting to have the covers fit well, I was thinking about how professional they would look while installed. I am planning on stitching a white tuck n' roll cover up for my welder with black piping, and it simply wouldn't look good fitting loose or baggy. Other colors and materials that I have on hand are a dark green canvas, and a medium green (green grass or John Deere type of green) canvas, as well as the vinyl I posted. I also have a lime green fabric that is light weight, but I was planning on using that for backing material for when I stitch a pattern (diamond pleat, tuck n' roll, single decorative stitch, etc.). That way I could advertise those covers as being "insulated" (LOL).

All of the Vinyl materials I use are automotive grade upholstery (name brand, resistant of UV rays, etc.). Heck, I'd be stitching right now if my (dumb) computer didn't crash on Friday night. My early X-mas present was a new computer desk, a side (file) cabinet, and a leather chair (from family), so yesterday I was kneeling on the carpet assembling cheap junk furniture and setting up my old backup computer. Today is being spent cleaning up and moving furniture around to make things work. I'd rather be using the new Argon bottle, stainless rod, and stick electrodes that were purchased Friday night!

[MuttonHawg]

Andy - did you ever end up stitching up that cover for your 160STH? If so, I'd love to see how it turned out. I was thinking I'd like a green cover with black piping (for my new 140, as well as the machines I plan/hope to get sometime in the future), and if I had my own sewing machine I'd even do the work myself.

I'd definitely be interested if you end up making a few of these covers. I like your idea of having them fitted, but not so tight that it's a pain to get on (especially if it's on the bottom shelf of a cart, where clearance around the machine might be an issue). And the flap on the lower front would be perfect, I'd think -simpler to make, but able to cover the connections and ports if nothing is hooked up, or able to accommodate cords/hoses for when torches/etc ARE attached.

[performance]

We may have it available ourselves in the future.

[Jason]

I am also interested in seeing how these turned out.

[youngnstudly]

I've had a lot going on lately, but I can whip up a few simple designs just to show what can be done. I went a different route with my welder and I probably won't need a cover for it...so now I have quite a bit of material in lime green that I don't have a use for! As I mentioned before, I don't have dimensions for any welders besides my own, which I don't think there's much of a market for selling covers with. The smaller units like mine are portable and come with a carrying case. Thanks for the interest and I will sew something and post pics for those interested.

[Titan winch]

I have a sample cover that i had made and we need to just check the fit and finish when i bring it back into work with me. This particular one is in green but i think the finished cover will be in black with our logo either side.
Cheers
Duncan

[Markcuda]

I'll take a cover for a 250P.