Corner Shelf for Plants in Wood and Metal

I'm getting into arc welding! I bought a small inverter welding machine and here is my first creation with: a shelf made up of a welded steel structure and 4 solid beech trays.

It is installed in a corner of a room and receives green plants of different sizes.

Total height: 2m
Dimensions of a tray: 40x70 cms

Tools:

metal Cut-Off Saw
MMA welding machine
drill press
circular saw
screwdriver

Supplies

Material:

4 square steel tubes, length 2m, section 35mm, thickness 2mm
2 raw iron angles, length 2m, section 21mm, thickness 3mm
2 glued laminated beech shelves 200x40 cms, 18mm thick
2 cans of black satin effect spray paint 400mL
4 plastic 35mm square end caps
anti-rust primer
glazier
screws

Step 1: Fusion 360

Drawing the project in 3D allows you to better understand the result but also to make precise plans that are easy to follow, which avoids errors.

For that I used Fusion 360 !

https://a360.co/3eDzusq

The plans are available in PDF format.

Etagere angle Plan v3.pdf
Download

Step 2: Cutout

The metal structure is made up of two different elements: square tubes and angle profiles.

I bought the square tubes in 2m length, so no need to cut them. For the steel angles, I cut them with a small Cut-Off Saw.

Then I grinded the edge of the pieces to remove the burrs and improve the grip of the weld.

I also drilled 3 holes on each bar so that I could screw the wood planks into it.

Step 3: Welding Preparation

I cleaned the metal with a grinder fitted with a flap disc, then I traced the location of the top of the angles.

I degreased the parts well with acetone.

Step 4: Welding

I bought a small welding machine (Gysmi 160P) and the necessary protective equipment. I start in welding with the first tests were not necessarily conclusive. There are welds that I had to start over !

I used magnetic brackets to hold the pieces.

Then I smoothed the welds with a flap disc to have something more "beautiful".