From Sawdust to Sparks: Transform an Old Table Saw Into a Budget-Friendly Welding Table

I recently purchased an inexpensive lightly used flux core welder to start adding that skill to my maker skillset. Since I mostly do woodworking and general tinkering, I only have wooden workbenches in my small garage shop. When I started to research welding tables, the least expensive ones looked very flimsy, and moderately priced better ones were nearly $200 from Harbor Freight! So, I did what we all do as Instructables enthusiasts and started to look at other DIY options. I found the great idea from this YouTube video to repurpose an old table saw to make a welding table, and wanted to share this with the Instructables community. I finished this whole project in about 5 hours with a total cost of $45, so it's a quick and easy way to get a decent welding table on a budget!

You'll not need much to make something similar to what I made.

1. An old table saw with a cast iron top
2. Wrenches and/or socket set
3. Some plywood
4. Casters
5. Table saw or circular saw

If your table is somewhat rusty like mine, you'll need the below:

1. 50 and 80 grit metal sanding paper
2. Palm sander
3. Paste wax or oil of some sort
4. Penetrating oil

I did a fair bit of research and thinking about which type of table saw would be best for this purpose. Old ones like the 10" Craftsman I was able to purchase are all over Facebook marketplace and Craigslist. When I started searching, there were about 10 or so viable options all for less than $100 within an hour's drive, and I live in a relatively rural state. Some were even listed for free! The most important consideration here is that you want something that is cast iron, and preferably has 1-2 wings with a web or grid. This is helpful for clamping smaller items - most professional tables have a grid of holes in them (bench dog holes) for clamping items in the middle of the table in addition to the edge, and this helps to serve that same purpose.

Cast iron tables will likely have a bit of red surface rust, aluminum will be whitish if corroded and most likely have fluted channels as well. Some tables have a nice thick cast iron surface that is pretty small, with attached sheet metal wings to extend the table - I would avoid these, those sheet metal wings are poorly attached and flimsy, so your surface won't be very flat and they will be easier to blow through when welding.

You'll most likely need a truck or trailer to haul this, unless the seller is willing to help or wait around while you remove the base to fit it in the back of your car. I highly recommend transporting with the table facing down - these are very top-heavy and the base isn't super solid, so they will shift a lot in the back of a truck with the legs facing down.

I paid $40 for mine and met a very nice farmer who was into building stuff and fixing cars and had a great time chatting with him!

I flipped the table upside-down on my workshop floor for the majority of this project. Take all of the stuff that makes this into a table saw like the motor and blade assembly off the table. This will likely be really easy, unless you have some really rusty bolts. Use PB Blaster or WD-40 to help loosen them. My saw had a very nice motor that I plan to repurpose, and the switch is great - I have already reused it for my dust collector system to more easily turn it on and off!

I fully removed everything from the saw top for cleaning and reassembly, you might be able to get the blade assembly out without doing this but it's much, much easier to take it all off.

Once I got everything removed, I gave it a quick clean to get all of the sawdust off of the bottom of the table and the base with some windex, a rag and a vacuum cleaner. Then, I reassembled the base to the saw top. I would recommend flipping the base around when you do this - the open back of the box where the saw assembly used to be is an excellent storage solution for clamps, grinder, etc. If you are able to rotate it so that open end faces the front of the table you'll have a wider section the table facing you to weld on, while also being able to access your stored items. I had to replace one of the leg bolts that was missing from my stock of random bolts, and I recommend tightening everything to ensure it's more stable.

Here is where I majorly lucked out with this project. I had planned on replacing the adjustable leveling threaded feet of the base with some casters, but on the same day that I was working on this I visited a local reuse store that I frequent - Home Resource - and scored this cart which you can plop something on for moving it around! They sold it to me for a whole $5, way less than I would spend on new casters. It was adjustable and only missing a couple of bolts, which I happened to have kicking around anyways. I took it apart and reassembled on the base, using clamps to help with the process.

If you're adding casters to your machine, take the leveling feet off and get the thread pitch by checking with a known nut size or take it to the hardware store and use the little display they have in the fasteners aisle to get the threading off it and purchase some casters that match.

Depending on the condition of your table, you might have to do a bit of work on the tabletop surface. Mine had a moderate amount of surface rust that I wanted to remove. The main reason for this is that you can clamp your ground to the table itself, rather than your workpiece, when welding. If you have a lot of rust, the electrical connection between your workpiece and ground will not be great, resulting in poor welds. I've refinished other cast iron tables for woodworking to get every bit of rust off them - fortunately, you don't need to go too crazy here. I spent about 45 min sanding to get the bulk of it off, then called it good enough.

My recommendation for this is the specific sandpaper for metal that they sell at hardware and big box stores - woodworking sandpaper will wear down very quickly. This Gator sandpaper has been my go-to for a couple years now for projects like this, and I had all the sheets I needed laying around. For thicker rust like mine, start with 50 grit and work up to 80 and maybe 150 to finish. Use a sanding block like shown or chunk of wood, you want to keep the table surface flat and not get too aggressive with one section. I also will cut this paper and put it in an old palm sander I have for the final steps, but getting the bulk of the material off with the coarsest grit takes a lot of old fashioned elbow grease.

I took some 3M green scrubbing pad and some Tri-Flow to rub in and lightly polish the surface to help keep it from corroding. I cleaned this off with a light solvent, and rubbed on a small amount of Johnson's Paste Wax to help keep it from rusting over time. You can do as much or as little refinishing as you'd like, this step is not completely crucial to the functionality of your table. My favorite patina is this slightly refinished steel surface with a bit of oil rubbed in!

The nicest thing about repurposing a table saw for a welding workbench is that you can easily add a few pieces of plywood for storage of your welder and other items. I took an old piece of 1/2" plywood and cut two panels to plop in the box where the saw assembly used to be and at the base. Measure up and lay out, then cut on your table saw or with a circular saw. These just sit in there, so you don't have to be super precise, and use whatever is lying around.

After finishing everything, I put the welder on the base and clamped the ground to the tabletop. All of my welding stuff like helmet, gloves, grinder, clamps, etc. is stored inside the table, and I can wheel it wherever needed in my shop to weld away from flammable items. I plan to add a hook for the welding gun and my heavy gauge extension cord by using the holes that are already around the perimeter of the table top surface, but otherwise this project is exactly what I needed for very little money and only a short amount of time.

I hope you are inspired to create something similar using whatever inexpensive materials you can repurpose!