Re: NEW conversion project....

> > Another issue, is someone overtightened a bolt or stud in the center
> > T slot right at the center of the table.
> >
> > It broke a hole the width of the slot and about 3" wide along
> > the length.

I am not much of an electronics geek, but I am a long-time machinery
junkie.

I have bought machinery with damaged tables before and here are the options
I have tried:
1. Use the mill to cut around the hole and braze a new piece of steel in
place.
Welding Iron needs careful prep including preheat and very slow cool
down. It can be done, but it
is unlikely that most people would be successful.
2. Mill the top of the right off using the machine it sits on, bolt a
plate of steel to the top and mill it flat and
cut new slots.
This was fun in fact. It worked out really well - I bolted the plate
on from the underside of the table. When
I had a friend surface grind it for me, the bolt location teligraphed
their position to the top of the plate.
3. Junk the entire table top. Buy a cheap x-y positioning table from J&L
for a $100, throw away the base and
attach it to the mill. Palmgren makes a marginal small table.
Chinese imports are big, substantial and are
cheap.
4. Work over or off to the side of the damage.

The table is damaged because a dummy didn't know how to place a t-nut on
the table and overtighted a
bolt until it broke. T-slots can take a lot of punishment. It is unlikely
that epoxy will hold however. The requirements
for shear strength are way beyond what even a steel-laded epoxy can
deliver.

Dick