John Polak

Fabricator, Machinist, and Welder

 

polakmade@aol.com

John Polak is an experienced fabricator, machinist, and welder.

Credentials include:

  • 6 years design and project engineer working in precision machine shop building military test equipment and prototypes

  • 10 years experience with manual machining practices in commercial shop and home shop.  Home shop has a Smithy 1220 LTD high end 3 in 1 machine (lathe, mill, drill press), Hobart Ironman 250 welder, metal cutting saws, drill press, grinders

  • 5 years experience with MIG welding (steel)

  • 90 hours adult education training in MIG and fluxcore welding

  • 90 hours adult education training in maintenance welding (stick, oxyacetylene, brazing, torch cutting)

  • In current training for additional weld training to obtain certificate.  Now MIG, fluxcore, stick.  In fall 2010, will be stick and TIG.

  • Completed ESAB 12 book course in Welding Technology (processes, equipment and electrode selection, metallurgy, cost analysis)

  • Completed one year training (certificate) in automotive machining

Examples of fabricated products built by John Polak.  These items were built when I ran a business, Polak Made LLC.  All items were designed by John Polak with a number of unique features.

    

    

Power Rack, 3 x 3 x 7 gage tubing.  Adjustable height safety bars Barbell Saddle for Power Rack with rollers to allow easy side to side placement of barbell Competition Bench Press in Progress

                                                                                             

        

Two Station Pulley Machine.  Low pulley one side, high pulley on other side.

Competition 'In/out' 'Combo' Rack.  Remove bench to get squat rack.  Upright angle adjustable with vertical and two 'in' positions.  Notice pull pin handles for angle adjustment.  Jacking bars are used to raise and lower uprights.  Items in background are also Polak Made

  

2 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 7 gage tube jacking bar height adjust squat rack.  Lower saddles (requested by customer)  are to allow one to bench press by placing a bench in between the uprights. Shop picture is in older shop with a Hobart 180 welder.  I now use a Hobart Ironman 250 welder.

 

I am also an established automotive machinist with automotive machinist certification. 

  • Gasoline Engines:  Cylinder block boring and honing, rebuilding connecting rods, restoring crankshafts, cylinder head rebuilding, refurbishing valves.  High performance work including blue printing, air flow improvement, combustion chamber modifications, balancing of rotating assemblies, component selection.

  • Automotive transmissions: Rebuilding automatic and manual transmission including reworking internals to add clutch plates and improve shift response.

  • Automotive differentials:  Reworking differential housings to add limited slip units and to increase torque capacity.

  • Rebuilt and modified (for increased performance) Chevy small blocks, Ford small blocks, number of GM and Ford cylinder heads, GM TH350 automatic transmissions, GM differentials including installation of posi-traction unit.

 

 

  • Rebuilt and modified motorcycle and racing go-kart engines.  Work includes cylinder honing, porting, blue printing, cylinder head flow improvement, machining to install high performance components.

  • Harley Davidson, Yamaha, Honda

 

 
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