I have a small inverter welding machine which was quite useful for welding small parts. It was very light and portable and was able to produce acceptable welding results. Furthermore, for me to be able to transport the machine easily was an advantage.
However, the welding work was limited by the short welding cable that was supplied with the machine. For work pieces that were on the same level as the welding machine there was not much of a problem. The welding cable could reach to them with enough space to spare for movement. However, if the heights were different, oftentimes I find the welding cable was not long enough for me to do a reasonable job.
Having both the welding machine and the work pieces on the floor would work very well. So was having both of them on a work bench. However, I had a problem here. I didn’t have a work bench which would be able to support a welding machine. The bench vise that I had was just fixed on a piece of brick wall, perhaps about 6 inches in width, not large enough to support a welding machine. And if I had to weld an object in the field which was not at ground level, I would certainly face a problem.
The reach of the incoming 230V power cables was not a problem. I could easily use an extension wire and socket for this. The problem was only the short welding cable. I think it would be quite costly to buy.
Stand for supporting welding machine which had a short wire. Height could be adjusted.
I happened to have fabricated a stand out of an old office chair for use as a portable umbrella shade previously. With a piece of steel plate taken from an old computer monitor housing, and some pieces of nuts and bolts, I was able to convert this to become a shelf which could be clamped at any height that I wanted along a vertical round rod.
The result as a variable height portable shelf which I could rest my lightweight portable welding machine. Now, if I had to weld an object several feet high from the ground, I simply move the welding machine to about that height and I could reach it for welding. If the welding was far away from the power switch socket outlet, I simply extended it with a normal portable switch socket outlet and plug.
The arrangement was workable, thanks to the light weight of the inverter welding machine.