How to strengthen poles?
June 29, 2011 8:57 AM Subscribe
How can I stop my 2-section, snap together poles from breaking so easily?
I can't do anything about the general strength of the steel (it's 1.2mm powder coated steel), the material the pipes are made of, or the thickness of the pipe. It appears that these keep breaking due to a "paper clip effect" of pressure first one way then the other on this seam through normal usage. This eventually weakens the metal to the point it bends or breaks. These are pipes that snap together with a small metal spring button. One thought I had was to somehow fashion a rubber piece that could be collared around the extended part of the male portion of the pipe, thereby relieving some of the pressure placed directly on the metal. I'd probably have to remachine the hole in the female portion of the piping as it'd be higher due to the "collar" which I'm fine with doing... That said, I have no idea if this will work, just weaken the structure, or if there is a better way to do this I can't think of. Googling this (as far as how I'm positing the question) mainly reveals tips and tricks on HOW to bend poles or some equestrian type thing about "pole bending." Any help from people who are handy at this type of thing or have familiarity with strengthening joints especially in metal would be very greatly appreciated.
I can't do anything about the general strength of the steel (it's 1.2mm powder coated steel), the material the pipes are made of, or the thickness of the pipe. It appears that these keep breaking due to a "paper clip effect" of pressure first one way then the other on this seam through normal usage. This eventually weakens the metal to the point it bends or breaks. These are pipes that snap together with a small metal spring button. One thought I had was to somehow fashion a rubber piece that could be collared around the extended part of the male portion of the pipe, thereby relieving some of the pressure placed directly on the metal. I'd probably have to remachine the hole in the female portion of the piping as it'd be higher due to the "collar" which I'm fine with doing... That said, I have no idea if this will work, just weaken the structure, or if there is a better way to do this I can't think of. Googling this (as far as how I'm positing the question) mainly reveals tips and tricks on HOW to bend poles or some equestrian type thing about "pole bending." Any help from people who are handy at this type of thing or have familiarity with strengthening joints especially in metal would be very greatly appreciated.
More information / context would be helpful. "1.2mm powder coated steel" doesn't mean much. Is 1.2mm a wall thickness? A diameter? How long are these sections? What are they being used for? How much must they bend?
posted by jon1270 at 9:26 AM on June 29, 2011
posted by jon1270 at 9:26 AM on June 29, 2011
Response by poster: Yes... the 1.2mm is the thickness. Each section is about 5 feet long. The are holding up a net that is an entranceway, so as people pass through there is slight tension on the net, but over time I think this creates the damage. I can't increase the length of the ferrule, or change anything to do with the specifications of the metal, it's a VERY specific pipe that I have to use. I have several sections of this piping that I've been using, but they just simply keep breaking. I've tried adjusting the tension on the net to make it slacker, but this just creates entanglement issues and defeats the purpose. Tried using elastic bands for the netting, widening the doorway, etc. etc.
posted by Debaser626 at 9:42 AM on June 29, 2011
posted by Debaser626 at 9:42 AM on June 29, 2011
There are still an awful lot of unknown variables here -- pipe diameter, material ("steel" is a very broad category), bend diameter, stresses, etc. Plus, IANAMechanicalEngineer.
I don't think that padding the joint with a rubber part will help at all, especially given that you'd have to remove metal to make room for the rubber part. Given all the restrictions you're applying - no change in pipe, no change in ferrule, etc. I'm not sure you're going to find a solution. If the material isn't up to the job, it isn't up to the job.
posted by jon1270 at 10:16 AM on June 29, 2011
I don't think that padding the joint with a rubber part will help at all, especially given that you'd have to remove metal to make room for the rubber part. Given all the restrictions you're applying - no change in pipe, no change in ferrule, etc. I'm not sure you're going to find a solution. If the material isn't up to the job, it isn't up to the job.
posted by jon1270 at 10:16 AM on June 29, 2011
Picture of joint, pole, and where the damage is occurring?
Sounds like a bad design: the leverage created by the long pole is simply too much for the narrow joint.
Can you sleeve the ferrule with a tube of metal of the same length?
posted by mosk at 11:35 PM on June 29, 2011
Sounds like a bad design: the leverage created by the long pole is simply too much for the narrow joint.
Can you sleeve the ferrule with a tube of metal of the same length?
posted by mosk at 11:35 PM on June 29, 2011
What I am picturing is something like a really wide hammock, where there is a rod on either end supporting the weight of the people walking on it. And each rod is in two pieces, and they break at the connection?
The solution is that your metal just isn't strong enough to support the weight/stress being asked of it. If it was one piece, it would just bend I would imagine. Answer is stronger pipe, or stronger netting that is "braced" more so that a footstep in the middle of the net doesn't transfer all the weight directly to the sides of the poles, but will spread the weight out more. Like a trampoline.
(Think of a bridge, or floor joists. If each joist is unconnected to the others and floating in the air, it will deflect according to the weight put on it. But if you brace each joist to the one next to it, the weight will be spread both along the length of the joist, but also perpendicular to the joists next to it.)
posted by gjc at 8:22 AM on June 30, 2011
The solution is that your metal just isn't strong enough to support the weight/stress being asked of it. If it was one piece, it would just bend I would imagine. Answer is stronger pipe, or stronger netting that is "braced" more so that a footstep in the middle of the net doesn't transfer all the weight directly to the sides of the poles, but will spread the weight out more. Like a trampoline.
(Think of a bridge, or floor joists. If each joist is unconnected to the others and floating in the air, it will deflect according to the weight put on it. But if you brace each joist to the one next to it, the weight will be spread both along the length of the joist, but also perpendicular to the joists next to it.)
posted by gjc at 8:22 AM on June 30, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by IvyMike at 9:15 AM on June 29, 2011