Step 2

WEARING A LEATHER WELDING GLOVE ... I pull the welded pipe & washer off the rod ... slide the next washer down the rod to the top of the vise ... invert the welded section ... and slide it down onto the rod (so it looks like the foto at left).

NEXT IMPORTANT STEP: slide a spoke or straight wire down through the spoke holes you drilled in the top washer ... set the end down directly in between two adjacent holes on the bottom washer ... and rotate the upper welded section until the wire or spoke is perfectly vertical (and still centered between the two bottom holes).

GENTLY attach ground clamp to exposed rod (so you don't move the vertical alignment) ... and make your first weld. Then check that things are still lined up as they should be (otherwise you have to grind it loose and weld it again -- correctly). Now proceed to finish welding as in Step 1.

Step 1 ... after drilling & countersinking

I had a piece of 5/8" rod left over that I clamped in the vise ... the important thing was to check it from all sides with the square ... just to make sure it is vertical to the vise top.

Then I slid one of the washers down the rod to the top of the vise ... followed by a 3-1/2" length of the black pipe (note pilot hole already drilled through the pipe).

I then clamp my welder ground to the top of the exposed rod ... and weld the washer to the pipe ... starting on this side ... then going to the direct opposite side ... and then alternately welding the ones in between ... until I have at least 8 welds connecting the pipe and the washer.