WO1998051196A1

WO1998051196A1 - Portable welding equipment storage rack

Info

Publication number: WO1998051196A1
Application number: PCT/US1998/009565
Authority: WO
Inventors: Robert L. Argraves
Original assignee: Argraves Robert L
Priority date: 1997-05-12
Filing date: 1998-05-11
Publication date: 1998-11-19
Also published as: AU7479598A

Abstract

A portable rack (1) for storing and transporting welding equipment such as a welding hose (2B), gages, controls (2A) and a torch (2C), is configured so that the portable rack (1) can be easily removably mounted on a standard welding gas tank (3), such as an oxygen tank. The storage rack (1) includes a vertically extending rack body (10) with a hose support member (15) on which the welding hose (2B) can be coiled for storage, a mounting member (20) extending from the top of the rack body (10), and a support yoke (30) extending from the bottom of the rack body (10). The mounting member (20) is preferably a circular ring dimensioned to fit snugly, but removably on the neck (3B) at the top of the welding gas tank (3). The support yoke (30) is preferably an arc-shaped member dimensioned to rest fittingly against the side (3A) of the welding gas tank (3). A hanger bar (40) is provided at the top of the rack body (10) to hang the gages and controls (2A) therefrom, and a hook (50) is provided at the top of the rack body (10) to hang the torch (2C) therefrom. The welding hose (2B) and other accessories may be hung on the rack (1), and then the rack (1) may be easily carried from a storage location to a welding job site, where the rack (1) may then be lifted onto the welding gas tank (3) for neatly, safely, and conveniently managing great lengths of welding hose (2B) and other welding accessories.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION

PORTABLE WELDING EQUIPMENT STORAGE RACK

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims the priority under the Paris Convention of U. S. Patent Application No. 08/854,492, filed on May 12, 1997.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a portable rack, for conveniently hanging, storing and transporting various items of welding equipment, such as a welding gas hose, gages, controls, and torch.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Many welding methods use one or more gases that are delivered from a gas storage tank through a hose and to a suitable welding torch or other welding equipment. The most common or typical example is well known oxygen-acetylene welding, which uses oxygen provided from a first tank and acetylene provided from a second tank. The two gases are delivered through appropriate gages and controls, and then through a twin-hose, i.e. two hose chambers joined together, to a mixing head in a welding torch where the gases are combusted to form a flame of sufficient temperature to melt and weld metal. Many types of arc welding or plasma welding also utilize one or more gases, such as helium or argon, as a shielding gas or as a plasma orifice gas. Such welding equipment also uses a gas hose to deliver the gas from a gas cylinder to the welding torch. Example welding equipment of this type in- eludes "TIG" rig torches and "HELI-ARC" torches, which are typically used for fine detail welding.

The above mentioned types of welding equipment typically use gas hoses 50 to 100 feet in length, and may use even longer hoses when particular welding jobs require welding to be carried out at inaccessible locations, or for example high on scaffolding, or at a great distance from any location where a gas cylinder can conveniently and safely be positioned. The great lengtn of hose and several associated gages, controls, regulators, and torch cause many problems in the storage, transport and use of the welding equipment. Furthermore, when the welding equipment is not in use (e.g. overnight), OSHA regulations require torches, controls, and hoses to be removed from gas tanks and locked or otherwise secured to prevent unauthorized use, accidental gas - leaks, and the like.

Typically, the welding gas hose (along with the associated gages, controls and torch) is removed from the gas tanks, is then loosely coiled upon itself, and is carried by hand from the work site or location of the tanks to a storage location such as an equipment locker. In this typical manner of storage and transport of the hose and other equipment, the hose often becomes tangled, abraded or cut and the gages and other accessories can become damaged by catching or bumping against other tools, equipment, scaffolding or staging, or the like. Furthermore, it has been difficult to handle the hose and other equipment during use. The hose and torch must often be carried to different locations on a work site, while the gas tanks remain at a single convenient location. For example, the hose and torch may have to be carried up onto scaffolding or staging, or into locations that are difficult to access, such as underneath or within vehicles, large pieces of machinery, or physical plant installations. Typically, the hose becomes scattered across the floor of the work site and poses a danger of tripping to the workers in the area, and also subjects the hose to unnecessary wear and tear, which could result in dangerous gas leaks . Various configurations of storage racks for different types of equipment are known from the prior art. For example, there are known racks for storing sporting equipment, garden tools, work bench tools and equipment, vacuum cleaner and other floor cleaner equipment and accessories, and the like. It is also known in the prior art to provide a reel, which may be a portable reel, for storing a hose such as a garden hose or for electrical extension _ cords and the like. A supporting bracket or rack for mounting a gas cylinder such as an oxygen tank or a fire extinguisher onto a wall is also known. However, the prior art has not provided or suggested a solution to the above mentioned problems in the welding art, relating to the convenient and safe storage, transport, and use of a welding hose and related gages, controls, torch, etc.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above it is the aim of the invention to achieve the following objects singly or in combination:

to provide a rack on which a welding hose and other accesso^¬ ries such as gages, regulators, torch, etc. can be conveniently and safely stored and transported, and from which the welding equipment can be conveniently and safely used;

to provide such a rack with a hose support member on which the welding hose can be coiled or wound, and several accessory hangers, such as a hanger bar and hooks on which the gages, regulators, and torch may be hung; to configure such a rack so that the rack can oe hung or supported on a standard welding gas cylinder while the welding equipment is in use, and so that the rack can be easily lifted off of the gas cylinder and carried away with the welding hose and accessories thereon when the welding equipment is to be stored;

to configure such a rack so that it can stand stably on its own on the floor, when the rack is not mounted on a gas cylinder tank;

to provide such a rack with a specialized configuration that fits a particular standardized size of gas cylinder, or a univer^¬ sal configuration that fits onto several different standardized sizes of gas cylinders; and

to improve the safety and appearance of welding work sites, to improve the convenience of storing and using welding equipment, to protect the welding equipment from damage, and to improve the convenience of complying with OSHA regulations, by using such a rack.

SUM1LARY OF THE INVENTION

The above objects have been achieved in a portable welding equipment storage rack that is configured to receive welding equipment including a welding hose supported thereon, and that is configured to be mounted and supported on a welding gas tank. The storage rack includes a vertically extending rack body including a hose support member that receives the welding hose coiled thereon. The storage rack further includes a mounting member that extends from an upper portion of the rack body and that is configured to be mountable on an upper portion of a standard welding gas tank. The storage rack further includes a support yoke that extends from a lower portion of the rack body and that is configured to contact the side of the welding gas tank.

More particularly, the rack body especially includes first and second vertical bars that extend spaced apart from one another and substantially parallel to one another, with upper and lower horizontal bars extending spaced apart and substantially parallel to each other between the first and second vertical bars. Thereby, the upper and lower horizontal bars form the hose support member onto which the welding hose can be coiled. A circular ring-shaped mounting member extends laterally from an upper end of the first vertical bar of the rack body. The ring-shaped mounting member has a diameter that is adapted to fit onto an upper portion of the welding gas tank, and most particularly onto the neck at the top of the welding gas tank. The support yoke preferably is a partial circular arc-shaped member that has a radius of curvature adapted to fit the curvature of the side of the welding tank. The storage rack preferably further includes at least one equipment hanger such as a hanger bar or a hook configured to receive a gage assembly or a torch.

To use the present storage rack, the welding hose is coiled onto the hose support member formed by the two horizontal bars. When the welding equipment is not in use, the gage assemblies can be hung on the hanger bar, and the torch can be hung on the torch hook. The storage rack can be easily lifted onto or off of the gas tank simply by lifting the upper ring-shaped mounting member off of the neck of the tank and over the tank gas outlet nozzle. The rack with the welding equipment thereon can be conveniently carried to and from a storage location and the location of the gas tanks as required. When the welding equipment is to be used, the gage assemblies are connected to the respective gas outlets of the gas tanks, such as an oxygen tank and an acetylene tank. - The required length of welding hose can then be uncoiled from the hose support member and extended to the welding site, while the excess length of hose remains coiled on the rack.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the invention may be clearly understood, it will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the present storage rack as mounted on a standard welding oxygen tank (shown with dashed lines);

Fig. 2 is a perspective view similar to that of Fig. 1, but showing further features of the present storage rack in another embodiment;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail perspective view of the accessory hanger bar of the present storage rack, as seen generally from the top of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a further variation of the present storage rack mounted on a standard welding oxygen tank (shown in dashed lines);

Fig. 5A is a side view of another embodiment of the rack ac- cording to the invention, having three vertical members arranged in a triangular pattern; and

Fig. 5B is a top view of the storage rack of Fig. 5A.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS AND OF THE BEST MODE OF THE INVENTION

Fig. 1 shows a first embodiment of the welding equipment storage rack 1 according to the invention. Welding equipment 2 (shown in dashed lines) including a gage and control assembly 2A, a hose 2B, and a torch 2C can be conveniently hung on the rack 1, which in turn is hung or temporarily mounted on a standard welding oxygen tank 3. It should be understood herein that reference to a "hose" also covers electrical cables used for the above-discussed types of arc or plasma welding that also use gases. The oxygen tank 3 has a cylindrical tank body 3A, a neck 3B and a cover or safety cap 3C installed over the gas outlet. Standard welding oxygen tanks have an outer diameter of either seven inches or eight inches. The neck 3B of the tank has a standard diameter of about four and a half inches.

The rack 1 includes a rack body 10, with a mounting member 20 extending from an upper portion of the rack body 10 and config- ured to fit onto an upper portion of the oxygen tank 3, and a support yoke 30 extending from a lower portion of the rack body 10 and configured to rest against or contact the side 3A of the oxygen tank 3. In the present embodiment of Fig. 1, the rack body 10 includes a first vertical bar 11 and second vertical bar 12 that extend in parallel and spaced apart from one another, with an upper horizontal bar 13 and a lower horizontal bar 14 extending therebetween. The upper and lower horizontal bars 13, 14 form a hose support member 15, onto which the hose 2B may be _ coiled or wound. The upper mounting member 20 is preferably a circular ring that has an inner diameter dimensioned to fit snugly over the collar or neck 3B of the oxygen tank 3. The circular ring mounting member 20 should thus easily slide onto and off of the neck 3B, but should not be so loose as to rattle once it is properly seated on the neck 3B. The support yoke 30 is preferably a partial circular arc-shaped member, that extends, for example, over a half of a circle, but may alternatively extend over a shorter arc less than half of a circle. The radius of curvature of the arc-shaped support yoke 30 is preferably dimensioned to match the outer radius of the tank body 3A of the tank 3. The upper end 17 and the lower end 16 of the second vertical bar 12 are preferably bent away from the straight axis of the second vertical bar 12 to form an obtuse angle therebetween. The end portions 16 and 17 are preferably provided with cushioning tip covers, for example made of rubber or plastic.

The storage rack 1 preferably further includes an accessory hanger bar 40 attached to the top of the first vertical bar 11, for example on a neck 20A connecting the ring-shaped mounting member 20 to the top of the first vertical bar 11. The detailed features of the accessory hanger bar 40 will be described below with reference to Fig. 3. The storage rack 1 also includes a torch hanger hook 50 that may be a simple hook configured to receive the intended welding torch therein, or may be a spring pressure clip, or a hook with a detent bail. Various possible configurations of such a hook will be apparent to a person of ordinary skill. The tip of the hook is preferably provided with a rubber cushioning cover.

To fit onto a standardized seven inch diameter welding oxygen gas tank, the welding equipment storage rack 1 preferably has the following dimensions. It should be understood that other dimen- sions can be readily selected to fit other standardized sizes of gas tanks. The two vertical bars 11 and 12 preferably have an overall length of 34 inches, with the horizontal bars 13 and 14 spaced 12 inches apart, and uniformly 11 inches from the upper and lower ends of the vertical bars 11 and 12. The horizontal bars are preferably 5 inches long. The ring-shaped mounting member 20 preferably has an inner diameter of 4 1/2 inches and is connected to the upper end of the first vertical bar 11 by a neck 20A that is 2 inches long. The semicircular arc-shaped support yoke 30 preferably has an inner radius of 3 1/2 inches, i.e. fits an outer diameter of the gas tank of 7 inches. An alternative size to fit different tanks has a support yoke 30 with a 4 inch radius. The upper and lower ends 16 and 17 of the second vertical bar 12 are, for example bent at an angle in the range of 5 to 10° from the vertical, but could be bent at a greater angle such as 30 or 45° or even at 90° from the vertical.

Two smaller sizes of the rack are also preferred for welding rigs with shorter lengths of hose, or for home-owner use, for example. In one of these smaller sizes the overall vertical height is 20 inches, and m the other of these smaller sizes the overall vertical height is 10 inches. In the smallest size (10" length), the horizontal bars 13 and 14 are 5 inches long and are spaced 3 inches apart and respectively 3 1/2 inches from the top and bottom ends of the vertical bars 11 and 12.

The storage rack is preferably fabricated from 3/8" diameter plain steel rod stock, and flat stock where necessary, formed and welded together as necessary. Aluminum can be used instead of steel. A person of ordinary skill in the art will readily under- stand how to fabricate the present storage rack. The rack is preferably coated with a plastic coating that improves one's grip and comfort when handling or carrying the rack, and helps prevent the rack from scratching tools and surfaces that it comes in contact with. Good results have been achieved by a process of pre-heatmg the metal rack, dipping the heated rack in a plastic solution or molten bath, and then baking the coating onto the rack.

Alternatively, the storage rack may be made substantially entirely of plastic, and especially a flber-remforced plastic composite material, such as various fiber-filled resins that may be molded by various methods into the configuration of the present storage rack. In this context, the entire storage rack may be molded as one integral unit. The particular dimensions and configurations of the storage rack components would be adjusted to provide proper strength and performance depending upon the material being used, as would be understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art. For example, the vertical bar members 11 and 12 could be replaced by ribbed or hollow section girders, and the horizontal oar memoers 13 and 14 could be replaced by a single continuous panel of composite material, with appropriate ribbing if desired, filling the space between the horizontal bars 13 and 14 shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 2 shows alternative features of a storage rack according to the invention. It should be understood that any of the features _ shown and described with reference to any one of Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4 may be used interchangeably together with other features shown in the various figures, to construct a storage rack according to the invention. Namely, the invention is not limited to the specific combinations of features shown as particular embodiments in Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4. Most of the components of the storage rack 1' shown in Fig. 2 are the same as the corresponding components of the storage rack 1 shown in Fig. 1, and the above description will not be duplicated here. In contrast to the storage rack 1 of Fig. 1, the storage rack 1' of Fig. 2 has an angular support yoke 31 rather than the arc-shaped support yoke 30, has a pedestal foot 18 on the bottom end of the second vertical bar 12 rather than the bent tip 16, and additionally has a strap assembly 60 attached to the first vertical bar 11 for securing the storage rack 1' onto the oxygen tank 3, and a hand grip 12A provided on the second vertical bar member for comfortably carrying the rack.

The support yoke 31 includes two linear arms 31A and 3 IB that extend relative to each other at an angle, for example a right angle or an obtuse angle. The present support yoke 31 will fit against the sides of various diameters of tank bodies 3A. Namely, the cylindrical tank will contact each of the linear support arms 31A and 3 IB at a respective contact point, whereby the contact point simply moves outward along the arms 31A and 31B for a larger diameter tank. With such a construction, it is unnecessary to provide different sizes of support yokes for different sizes of tanks.

While the weight of the storage rack and the welding equipment _ supported thereon is generally sufficient to firmly seat the storage rack 1, 1' against the tank 3 without wobbling or rat^¬ tling, it may desired to securely fix the storage rack 1' to the tank 3. This is achieved by the strap assembly 60 including a chain or strap 61, and a buckle or other fastening device 62, which may include hook-and-loop fasteners and conventional lever- action strap buckles. The strap 61 may be secured to the first vertical bar 11 by a rivet, for example.

When the storage rack 1, or the storage rack 1' is removed from the tank 3, it can be placed on the floor or the ground, and it will stand stably on its lower end components. Namely, the storage rack 1 will stand stably on the support yoke 30 and the bent lower tip 16 of the second vertical bar 12, forming a tripod-like pedestal base. Similarly, the storage rack 1' will stand stably on the support yoke 31 and the pedestal foot 18. The pedestal foot 18 provides increased side-to-side stability.

For improved carrying comfort and convenience, a handle grip 12A may be provided on the second vertical bar 12. The handle grip 12A may be a plastic molded grip, or simply a larger diameter pipe or sleeve section welded onto the vertical bar 12 to provide a larger hand grip. Even without such a handle grip 12A, it should be understood that the rack 1, 1' with the welding equip- ment thereon can be conveniently lifted off the gas tank 3 and then carried from location to location as necessary to transport the welding equipment, by gripping and holding tne central portion of the second vertical bar 12.

Fig. 3 shows the detailed construction of an accessory nanger bar - 40 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The accessory hanger oar 40 includes a bar body 41, with two respective end portions 42, which may be flat in the plane of the bar body 41 or may be bent upward as indicated along the dashed lines 44. Each end 42 is provided with a notch 43 configured to receive a welding gas gage and control assembly 2A therein, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. To secure the gage and control assembly 2A in the notch 3 once it is positioned there, a spring retainer clip or pin 46 can be pushed through tube or sleeve members 45 provided at the outer ends of the bar end portions 42, as shown at the bottom of Fig. 3. The spring retainer clips or pins 46 are connected to the accessory hanger bar 40 by chains 47 to prevent loss of the clips or pins 46. The accessory hanger bar 40 is preferably fabricateα from 1/8" thick steel flat stock, HV' -ong x IV wide. The slots 43 provided in the ends of the hanger bar are preferably 1" long and 3/4" wide to receive standard welding gage and control assemblies. If the end portions 42 are to be bent upwards, tne initial length of the flat stock is 14", to provide a finished length of 11V, with a bend angle of 15°, for example.

Fig. 4 shows another one of many possible different variations of the basic welding accessory storage rack according to the invention. The storage rack 1" of Fig. 4 has been simplified as compared to the above discussed embodiments, by eliminating the second vertical bar 12 and the lower horizontal bar 14. In this configuration, the welding hose 2B simply hangs from the upper horizontal bar 13. While it is easier to remove the complete coil of hose 2B from this storage rack 1" by simply lifting the coil of hose 2B from the upper horizontal bar 13, this rack configuration does not provide as secure, neat, and uncluttered a storage of the hose 2B as the above discussed storage racks 1 and 1 ' .

Another alternative feature shown in Fig. 4 is a larger ring- shaped mounting emoer 22, which has an inner diameter dimensioned to fit around the outer diameter of the tank body 3A. Furthermore, the lower support yoke is now embodied as a circular support ring or sleeve 32 that has an inner diameter dimensioned to fit around the outer diameter of the tank body 3A. In this configuration, the storage rack 1'' passes completely down over the gas tank 3 so that the ring-shaped support yoke 32 rests on the floor. In this manner, the entire weight of the storage rack 1 ' ' and the welding equipment 2 hanging on the rack is directly supported on the floor, rather than on the tank 3. An extension foot 33 at the bottom of the single vertical bar 11 can even further improve the stability. To achieve this, the support yoke extends m a plane that is generally perpendicular to the vertical plane of the storage rack body, to form a stand foot. While the weight and stability of a standard gas tank 3 is gener- ally sufficient to stably support the weight of the storage rack 1, 1' hanging on the tank 3, without any wobbling or significantly increased danger of tipping, it may be desired to support the weight of the welding equipment 2 and storage rack 1'' directly on the floor as shown in Fig. 4. It should be understood that the alternative enlarged mounting member 22 and the ring- shaped supporting yoke 32 can also be used in connection with the storage rack body 10 as shown in Figs. 1 or 2.

Figs. 5A and 5B show another embodiment, wherein the rack has a single front vertical bar 11, but two rear vertical bars 12' and __ 12'' respectively connected to the front vertical bar 11 by two upper horizontal bars 13', 13'' and two lower horizontal bars 14', 14''. Thus, the rack has a triangular configuration when seen in the top view of Fig. 5B. This configuration improves the standing stability of the rack, and increases the storage capacity of welding hose that is wound around the four horizontal bars 13 ' , 13 ' ' , 14 ' and 14 ' ' . The two rear vertical bars 12 ' and 12 ' ' provide two hand grips, and thus improve the ease of handling the rack and placing it onto the welding gas tank. Other components of this embodiment are similar to those discussed above. In a preferred size and configuration, the bars 11, 12' and 12'' each have an overall length of 20 inches, the bars 13', 13'', 14' and 14'' each have a length of 5 inches, the collar 20 has an inner diameter of 4 1/2 inches, the yoke 30 has a radius of curvature of 4 inches, and the angle between the bars 13', 14' and the bars 13'', 14'' is 45 degrees.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specific example embodiments, it will be appreciated that it is intended to cover all modifications and equivalents within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

l A welding equipment storage rack configured to receive welding ? equipment including a welding hose supported thereon and config-

3 ured to be supportedly mountable on a welding gas tank, said storage rack comprising a vertically extending rack body including a hose support member configured to receive the welding hose

6 coiled thereon, a mounting member extending from an upper portion

' of said rack body and configured to be mountable on an upper portion of the welding gas tank, and a support yoke extending

9 from a lower portion of said rack body and configured to support-

Ό ingly contact a side of the welding gas tank.

ι The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said mounting member com- ? prises a circular ring dimensioned to fit closely around a major 3 diameter of the welding gas tank.

l The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said mounting member com- ? prises a circular ring dimensioned to fit snugly on an upper neck

3 of the welding gas tank. The storage rack of claim 3, wherein said support yoke comprises a partial circular arc-shaped member extending over not more than half of a circle and having a radius of curvature dimensioned to fittingly contact the side of the welding gas tank.

i The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said support yoke comprises 2 a partial circular arc-shaped member extending over not more than half of a circle and having a radius of curvature dimensioned to L fittingly contact the side of the welding gas tank.

l The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said support yoke comprises ? a circular ring dimensioned to fit closely around a major diame- ter of the welding gas tank.

The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said support yoke comprises a support bracket having two linear legs extending at an angle

3 from one another away from said rack body and dimensioned to fittingly contact the side of the welding gas tank with said linear legs . 1 The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said mounting member pro- ?. trudes laterally from an upper end of said rack body, and said

3 support yoke protrudes laterally from a lower end of said rack

L body and extends in a plane substantially perpendicular to a plane of said rack body to form a supporting stand foot.

1 The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said rack body comprises a

? first vertical bar extending between and interconnecting said mounting member and said support yoke, and said hose support member extends substantially horizontally from a central portion of said vertical bar.

10

The storage rack of claim 9, wherein said rack body further comprises a second vertical bar extending substantially parallel to said first vertical bar, and said hose support member comprises an upper horizontal bar and a lower horizontal bar respectively extending between and interconnecting said first and second vertical bars.

11

1 The storage rack of claim 10, wherein upper and lower end portions of said second vertical bar are bent to form respective obtuse angles between said end portions and a major portion of said second vertical bar.

12

i The storage rack of claim 10, further comprising a handle grip arranged on said second vertical bar between said upper and lower horizontal bars.

13

The storage rack of claim 10, wherein said rack body further ? comprises a third vertical bar extending substantially parallel

3 to said first and second vertical bars, and said hose support <. member further comprises a second upper horizontal bar and a s second lower horizontal bar respectively extending between and interconnecting said first and third vertical bars.

14

The storage rack of claim 1, further comprising an equipment hanger bar connected to and extending substantially horizontally from an upper end of said rack body adjacent said mounting member, wherein the welding equipment further includes at least one pressure gage assembly and at least one torch, and wherein at least one end of said hanger bar has a slot therein dimensioned to supportingly receive at least one of the gage assembly and the torch. 15

The storage rack of claim 14, wherein said at least one end portion of said hanger bar is bent upward to form an obtuse angle between a major body of said hanger bar and said end portion of said hanger bar, and wherein said end portion of said hanger bar further comprises tubular loops adjacent said slot, and a spring clip safety pin that is selectively fixable in said tubular loops to selectively close an end opening of said slot.

16

The storage rack of claim 1, wherein the welding equipment further includes at least one pressure gage assembly and at least one torch, further comprising a hook connected to and extending from an upper portion of said rack body on a side opposite said mounting member, wherein said hook is configured and dimensioned to supportingly receive at least one of the gage assembly and the torch .

17

The storage rack of claim 1, further comprising a securing strap and a strap fixing device, wherein said strap is connected to a central portion of said rack body between said mounting member and said support yoke, and is dimensioned with a length to encir- cle a major diameter of the welding gas tank. The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said rack body, said mounting member, and said support yoke are fabricated of steel rod stock that s formed and welded together.

19

The storage rack of claim 1, wherein said rack body, said mount^¬ ing member and said support yoke are fabricated as an integral component of a fiber reinforced plastic composite material.

20

1 A welding equipment storage rack configured to receive welding ? equipment including a hose, a gage assembly and a torch thereon, z and to be supportedly mountable on a welding gas tank, said storage racK comprising first and second vertical bars extending spaced apart and parallel to each other, upper and lower horizontal bars extending spaced apart and parallel to eacn other and interconnecting said first and second vertical bars, a circular » ring-shaped mounting member extending laterally from an upper end > of said first vertical bar and configured to fittingly encircle

^•o an upper portion of the welding gas tank, a support yoke extend- -1 ing laterally from a lower end of said first vertical bar and i2 configured to supportingly contact a side of the welding gas '3 tank, and an equipment hanger extending from an upper portion of 'i* one of said first and second vertical bars and configured to receive at least one of the gage assembly and the torch.