FAAC Welding & Fabrication Nationwide

FAAC Welding & Fabrication: The Cleburne Owner’s Guide

If your FAAC gate has a cracked hinge, a snapped weld at the post, or a bracket that’s torn loose from years of wind loading across Johnson County, we can fabricate and weld the replacement, usually same-day for urgent failures. Most FAAC-specific welding and fabrication work in Cleburne runs between $180 and $650 installed, depending on whether we’re repairing the existing steel in place or building a new bracket, hinge plate, or gate frame section from scratch. Owners typically discover this kind of failure when the gate starts dragging on one corner, the opener strains audibly, or a weld pops with an unmistakable crack. We’re an independent gate company, not affiliated with FAAC, but we’ve welded and fabricated for FAAC systems across this area for decades.

Call (817) 961-9404

Key takeaways:

• FAAC gates live outdoors in Texas heat, and welds fail before motors do when steel flexes daily.
• We stock FAAC-compatible hinge plates and common bracket patterns, and we fabricate what we don’t stock.
• Victor Salinas grew up in Cleburne and learned welding and electrical work at Hill College in Hillsboro, so the metal and the motor both get treated with equal care.
• Every fabrication job is quoted and agreed on before we strike an arc. No surprises on the bill.

Which FAAC Models This Applies To

The welding and fabrication questions we see in Cleburne apply across the FAAC lineup, from the 400-series swing operators to the 700-series and the newer S418 and S450 models. The operator model matters less here than what the gate itself is made of and how the operator is mounted to it. FAAC swing arms bolt to steel brackets welded to the gate frame, and in Texas those brackets take more stress than the factory ever intended, because the heat drives steel to expand and contract daily, and wind gusts off open pasture load the gate like a sail.

If you’re trying to identify what failed, look at the weld point first. The part number on the gate’s information plate will tell you the operator series, but the bracket geometry matters just as much. We match bracket dimensions to the gate thickness, the post type, and the operator stroke length. For older FAAC units still running on original equipment, we often recommend fabricating a heavier mounting plate rather than patching the original, because the factory bracket was sized for a lighter gate than most Cleburne driveways actually hold. When a customer asks about OEM versus fabricated replacement, the honest answer is that for hinge pins and mounting brackets, a quality weld and the right steel thickness will outperform the original part in this climate, and it costs less.

Signs Your FAAC Welding & Fabrication Is Failing

• The gate sags or scrapes the driveway on the latch side. A hinge weld is cracking or the post has shifted. In Cleburne’s clay soil, posts move more in a wet spring than most homeowners realize, and the hinge carries the load every time the gate opens. When the hinge plate starts to tear, the gate drops and the opener works harder than it should.
• The gate shudders when it starts or stops. This usually means the operator bracket is loose at the weld. FAAC operators push and pull with significant force; a bracket that is only tack-welded or has a hairline crack will flex under that load, and the movement shows up as a shudder in the gate leaf.
• You hear a metallic pop or crack when the gate reverses direction. A weld has already failed. The gate may still operate, but the failure point is now taking dynamic stress, and it will tear further. Every cycle widens the fracture.
• Fresh rust blooms around a weld seam. Water got into the joint. In Texas, the real enemy is thermal cycling - the weld expands in August and contracts in a February cold snap, and any micro-crack opens the steel to moisture. Rust at a weld is a crack that hasn’t announced itself yet.
• The opener mounting bolts have ovaled the holes. The bracket was under-built for the gate’s weight or wind exposure. This is common on gates retrofitted from a lighter model, and it means the bracket isn’t holding the operator rigidly, so the whole system is working against loose steel.

Replacement Cost & What’s Included

In Cleburne, FAAC welding and fabrication work breaks down like this:

• Weld repair in place, no parts: $180 - $320. We grind the crack, prep the joint, and re-weld with the gate supported correctly.
• New hinge plate or bracket, fabricated and welded: $260 - $480. Includes steel matched to the job, cutting, drilling, welding, and paint or cold-galv treatment.
• Gate frame section rebuild or operator post reinforcement: $450 - $650. This is heavier work, usually involving gusset plates and re-squaring the gate so it doesn’t drag.

Every estimate includes labor, steel, welding consumables, and a weather-rated finish on the welds. We quote the price before any arc is struck, and that price is the price - no change orders because a weld “took longer than expected.” The job is covered by our 90-Day Done Right Promise, so if a weld moves or a bracket gives way inside ninety days, we come back and make it right, in writing, no argument.

DIY or Call Us?

What you can safely do yourself: check the welds visually, look for rust blooming around seams, and note where the gate sags or scrapes. You can also check that the operator bolts are snug. But we do not recommend welding your own gate brackets. A gate under tension, especially a FAAC with a torsion spring or a heavy leaf, can shift when a weld fails, and that moving steel injures people. Welding requires the gate braced, the post supported, and the operator disconnected so it can’t cycle while you’re under it. If you’re welding galvanized steel, the fumes are another hazard, and on top of that, a bad weld on a gate that opens over your family’s cars isn’t worth the risk. This is where the trade matters. Call us at (817) 961-9404 and we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s a weld, a bracket, or something else entirely.

FAQs

Call Ironworks Gate Co. for FAAC Welding & Fabrication in Cleburne

We’ve been a local company in Cleburne for over 42 years, and we plan to be here another forty. That’s why we stand behind every weld and every bracket with the 90-Day Done Right Promise, in writing. If your FAAC gate is cracked, sagging, or making noise it shouldn’t, call us at (817) 961-9404. A live person answers, day or night. We’ll talk through what you’re seeing, schedule a visit if it needs eyes on it, and give you a firm price before any work begins. We also stock and service parts for LiftMaster, Mighty Mule, and Ghost Controls, so whatever is on your driveway, we’re ready for it.

Written by Victor Salinas, Owner, Ironworks Gate Co. at Ironworks Gate Co., serving Cleburne and nearby areas.