Project: X Table Legs
Difficulty: Beginner
Materials:
- 7′ of 2″ x 1/8″ square tubing
- 2′ of 4″ x 1/8″ flat bar
- Flap disc
Measurements
The math behind this was much more involved than I originally anticipated. Had to dust off the old trigonometry book (OK, truth told, I used Google).
For this reason, I created a calculator. Figured this could be of use for you, and I didn’t want to have to do ARCTANs again.
The calculator provides the angles of the pieces, the saw would need to be set to 90 degrees – Angle A or B.
The miters on the ends (Angle A) is the same for both short and long pieces. Both small pieces are identical, one is just rotated 180 degrees. Having an accurate miter saw if critical as the angles are generally not your standard 45s. I really like this Evolution one if you are a budget, and here’s my review.
Depending on the desired height & width, Angle A or B may be greater than 45 degrees. In this case, subtract it from 90 to get the miter angle you need to set the saw to. One of these T-Bevels can be useful, or the fancy digital type, to confirm you angles and cuts.
The Build
Next, tack and weld all of the pieces together and you’ve got you X table legs! I then weld a piece of flat bar to the top, ~1-2″ wider than the squaring tubing being used. This adds some additional support and provides a good spot to mount the table top to.
There are a number of options for the base. The bottoms can simply be grind smooth and used directly. You could also weld on a base and finish it up as I did.