Hi there,
I used to work in a heavy engineering workshop. We used to make a lot of cylindrical components typically around 2 foot diameter with a 1 foot diameter hole and around 2 foot high. Like a massive pipe.
They were actally welded out of 3 pieces that were flame cut out of 8" plate. Imagine 3 car tyres sitting on top of each other and welded together ( you get the picture)
We made up our own welding machine it was actually an old 4 jaw chuck that was tilted on 45 degrees so the sparks and crap fell to the ground. A motor and simple gearbox slowly rotated the chuck. ( Could even be thick flat plate with clamps on it)
On the back of the chuck a simple ring was made so some limit switches could be slid around.
Used to turn on the motor, turn the gun on (forget how it stayed on, clip on the trigger??) and when the chuck had turned 360 degrees (or whatever) the limit switches would turn off both the chuck and mig. One switch for the chuck and one for the gun.
You make the hardware any sparky worth anything could wire the switches in.
The best part was this welder was operated by one of the guys that used to operate one of the heavy mills, it was set up right next to him. He would set it to weld then go and do some milling. Really did the welding for free(ish) and did not tie up someone manually holding a torch.
Keep in mind that the parts we made had a hugh weld vee on them and required a large amount amount of filler material. What I mean by that is wasn't just a one or two pass operation. The chuck welder was very beneficial in our circumstances.
Is this the sort of thing that would help you out?
Cheers all M.
No, Little-Johnny, pomegranate is not a type of English stone.