Building a Bar Height Table… Belly Up to the Blog! – #6 “Mistakes” and Mistakes

“No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow you progress, you’re still way ahead of everyone who isn’t trying.” Tony Robbins

I have never claimed to be a great… heck… even a good welder. Welding is an art that takes a lot of practice. I admire the people who can make “laying a bead” that looks like a machine had done it. “Stack of dimes!”, as the pro welders call it. If I had to open up a welding shop right now, it would probably be called, …”AS IS Welding.” Moto, “No money back, take it AS IS.” If you’re wondering, NO, I will not be opening up a welding shop anytime soon.

This week I started working on the footrests. They are made out of 3″x3″ square metal tubing. I admit, I was hesitant to work on this part of the project. I knew welding was going to be the, “not so good” looking part of the project. Yes, I could have hired someone to weld it, but it would not have been a “Do It Yourself” project then. So, I took on the challenge and hoped for the best. Mistakes were made. I’m thankful for grinders and paint to help cover them up!

When talking about mistakes, people can make them trying to do the right thing, or make them when doing the wrong thing. It’s never right to justify a “mistake” when doing the wrong thing. Doing the wrong thing is a decision that leads to consequences. I wish society would learn this, so we can avoid having to deal with so many consequences. “Accountability” is a word that gets brought up pretty loosely now days. People use it to try to make a statement, but don’t take into account the other side of the accountability discussion. The word is directed at a group of people, who some say, are “not allowed” to make mistakes. “Accountability” is left out of the conversation when people chose to do the wrong thing and have to suffer the consequences. There are people who will justify those wrong things as “mistakes”, and not deserving of consequences. But those people are quick to crucify the people who make mistakes trying to do the right thing. That’s not how it works, and it will not solve any accountability issues if both sides aren’t being held accountable.

I am accountable for every mistake I made on this project. I made mistakes because of my lack of focus. I also made “mistakes”, because I tried to cut corners to save time, but it ultimately created more frustration and required more time to fix the “mistakes” that I knew could happen by cutting corners. I should have taken the time and done the task the right way, to avoid the heartache and headaches I had to deal with when choosing to make bad decisions.

There is so much conversation in society as to what could be done to save lives. A simple way to solve one of the issues that gets talked about, is to avoid choosing to make “mistakes”, so others don’t have to risk making a mistake, as they try to correct the “mistake” that was chosen to make. Read it a couple times if you have trouble understanding it.

In one of my favorite songs, “How to Save a Life”, the lead singer, Isaac Slade, in the band, The Fray, wrote, “He will do one of two things, He will admit to everything, Or he’ll say he’s just not the same And you’ll begin to wonder why you came”. I look at this as two people having a conversation about an intentional “mistake” that impacted both their lives. The guilty one who committed the “mistake” will either admit he made the “mistake”, or he’ll tell the other person they are not the same, so there is no reason to admit to the “mistake”. Nobody heals from this way of thinking. And now there is doubt as to if a relationship between them can even be an option.

“Accountability” and “mistakes” have to be acknowledged by everyone involved, before there can be healing. We will not save lives in our society if we don’t do this. Pointing fingers is just another “mistake”, that is a decision to make, that will lead to more consequences.

So enough about my mistakes I made while attempting to weld! Let’s get started on the footrests!

Making the Footrests

First Step, I measured the width of the table ends.  I decided to make the length of the footrests on the ends of the table 32″.  I measured the inside measurement of the table ends.  It measured 45 1/2″. 

Second Step, I cut 2 – 32″ pieces.  I cut 2 – 45 1/2″ pieces.  See photo #1 for reference.  

Photo #1, I used a band saw to cut the footrest pieces.

Step Three, I cut 4 – 7″ 45 degree angle brackets to weld to the footrests. See photo # 2 for reference.

Photo #2, The angle pieces that will be welded between the footrest and plate that the lags will be fastened through.

Step Four, I cut 4 the end caps for the two short footrests. I welded those to the ends of the footrests. See photo #3 and #4 for reference.

Photo #3, Here are the end caps before being to the footrests.

Photo #4, here is the finish weld job of the end caps. I didn’t want to have sharp edges that could hurt someone’s foot.

Step Five, I welded the angled pieces to the shorter footrests. See photo #5 for reference.

Photo #5, angled pieces welded in place. As you can see, I am not a professional welder. I’m glad the welds are on the bottom side.

Step Six, I cut 4 – 4″ x 5″ plates. I drilled four holes into the plates. I welded the four plates to the angled brackets. See photo # 6 and #7 for reference.

Photo #6, I used a drill press to drill the holes where the lags will go through to fasten the footrest to the table.

Photo #7, I used magnets to hold the plates in place as I tacked the plates to the brackets.

Step Seven, I cut 4 – 1 1/2″ x 2 1/4″ angle iron pieces for the tabs to weld to the longer footrest. I drilled two holes in the tabs for the lags to go through for mounting. See photos #8 and #9 for reference.

Photo #8, I used a chop saw to cut the tabs.

Photo #9, I used a 90 degree magnet to hold the tab in place, flush with the edge of the footrest, as I welded it to the footrest.

What’s next?

I’ll be painting the footrests and mounting them to the table.  I can’t wait to see how it turns out!  

Cited people and SOngs

Tony Robbins, Tony Robbins – The Official Website of Tony Robbins

“How to Save a Life”, YouTube, The Fray, The Fray – How to Save a Life (Official Video) – YouTube