Building tripod stands

[alan camby]

Every time someone starts a Jack stand thread, a member on here named Monte posts a picture of some Ac Hydraulics tripod stands that are adjustable with a Acme style thread. Makes me so mad ,...... we can't get that stand here in the states. So thought I would just build them.

Warning: This thread is for entertainment purposes only. Please do not build anything like this as it is very dangerous. Please assume that i am a ***** and don't have a clue as to what i am doing. This is designed to be a camera tripod only.

I have a bunch of pictures of the build to share with you guys. This thread will be a work in progress as I add them and details of the build.

Planning 4 stands so far. Two will be 13" to about 21" height and the other 2 will be about 19" to 31". Jig took so long to build, might end up making a few more.

The stands are going to be a cross between the Esco/Ac hydrualics and AC's current jack stands.

Here are all of the feet cut out of .340" thick sheet plate. About 3-1/4"OD.
Yes I know, should have cut the slugs in a way that did not waste so much steel.

Here is a mock up with 1.75" round tube. . My angles for the 1"x2"x.120" are 60degrees at the top and 30degrees at the bottom.

1.5" ACME threaded rod. That is a 1/2"-13 nut below it for scale. The platform is 2.5"x4"x1" thick.

Here you can see all the parts so far. (Have 6' of 1.5" ACME in total) The coupling nuts are 5/8-11 and are 2" long

Here is the attached bed mat rubber pad. The 5/8" bolts are for pad hold down and to prevent cameras and such from slipping off the stand. I will make the other short stand like this. My new design for the tall stands will just be bolts threaded into the 1" block, no welded coupling nuts.

The foot pads bolt to the top to hold them in place during welding. The DOM tube in the middle of the jig is firmly bolted down. The DOM is very tight with the ACME holding it up vertically. The ACME will hold the upper main frame in alignment.

Notice that the jig is fixed to a engine stand. I can hold the stand at a horizontal angle to weld it. No need for vertical welds. The jig can be rotated 360 degrees in the engine stand.

I will be drilling more holes in the jig base for the feet on the taller stands. BTW the cast ground flat jig weights 300lbs

More to come

 

[alan camby]

steel tacked in jig


Love how the Jig rotates in the engine stand. Makes welding so easy.








This stand weights 22.5lbs




Materials used
- 1"x2"x.120" rectangle tubing for legs, sourced at steel yard. (AC/Esco uses aprox. 20x40mm or .78"x1.55" unsure about the thickness)

- 2" x .219" wall DOM tubing for the main stand body, sourced from Alro steel but also found at http://www.discountsteel.com/items/DrawnOverMandrel_DOM_Steel_Round_Tube.cfm?item_id=200&size_no=186 (AC/Esco uses aprox. 1.65" OD and 1.20" ID)

- 1-1/2"x.250 flat bar for holding all 3 legs together at the base, sourced from steel yard. ( AC/Esco uses .8" x .2" thick flat bar)

- 1-1/2" 4tpi Acme threaded rod and nuts, sourced from Enco. (AC/Esco uses a solid round bar that is 30mm)

Update 1-26-13
Had some time today to work on the stands. Decided to figure out the tall stands. Ended up with a foot print of 19.5" from bottom leg pad to leg pad ( the small stands were 13"). The leg length is 18.75" (small stand legs are 11-7/8")
Cut all 6 legs and modified my jig for the larger spacing of the feet. Finished up tapping the rest of the leg feet to 5/16-18tpi for the jig attachment.
This picture is were i stopped tonight. Notice the holes where the small stands bolted down.


Update 1-27-13




Update 1-28-13


Update 2-2-13 Notice the change in the design of the top pad area. Look farther in the thread for more detail.

 

[alan camby]

Finished, 2-12-13

 

[ilovevocs]

Very nice piece. Thanks for sharing.

 

[alan camby]

Very nice piece. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks, I will be adding details of all the parts to build this heavy duty camera tripod.

 

[franzdom]

Brilliant!
Thanks for sharing, this camera tripod is the bomb!

 

[ImportTuner]

Jack stand is definitely stronger looking then the AC Hydraulics or Esco stands at 22.5 lbs. Outstanding job

 

[alan camby]

Brilliant!
Thanks for sharing, this camera tripod is the bomb!

Jack stand is definitely stronger looking then the AC Hydraulics or Esco stands at 22.5 lbs. Outstanding job

Thanks guys.

A Big thanks goes out to both Franzdom and ImportTuner . They both helped me by taking measurements from their AC/Esco stands. I used this info to find materials that were comparable with a proven design.

 

[trbomax]

You can buy those in the states. A company in port clinton ,ohio makes them in several different sizes . They are actually intended for shoreing boats in storage. When I had the marina I had a couple hundred of them. I have 8 down in the shop right now. Tomorrow I can take some pics and maybe find a sticker on one from the mfgr.Gogle "boat stands",you will get 3 pages of hits.Those are really nice looking stands you made,but probably cost more than the $40 you can buy one for.

 

[Monte]

beautiful work !!!

when will the mass production start ? What´s the MSRP ?

 

[alan camby]

beautiful work !!!

when will the mass production start ? What´s the MSRP ?

Sorry but I can't ship to Germany
Anyhow, can't you pick the Ac stands up at every autoparts store.

Thanks
Alan

 

[1/2 Cup]

Well done...........

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

I like it!

 

[kbs2244]

Only improvement I can see is maybe wings on the nut?
They will hold up anything I have.

 

[alan camby]

Only improvement I can see is maybe wings on the nut?
They will hold up anything I have.

I have thought about that, and it works great for the tall under lift stands.
My only concern is that the wing would be something to hit my head on while maneuvering a creeper under the lifted item. If there is something to hit my head on, I will be the one to do it
I assume that is why the Ac units don't have the wing???

 

[ToddGrossman]

Nice welds. May I ask if your profession involves welding?

 

[Sureshot]

Very nice job.
A person could drill and tap for a set screw or put a little weld on the threads to prevent overextension. Or maybe tap the bottom and put a washer the same od as the tubing.

 

[alan camby]

Very nice job.
A person could drill and tap for a set screw or put a little weld on the threads to prevent overextension. Or maybe tap the bottom and put a washer the same od as the tubing.

The washer idea is what AC seems to be doing. I plan to just put a small tack weld in the thread at 3 inches from the end. That way i can swap posts quickly if i want

 

[neonnblack]

I wouldnt trust myself under those, you need WAY more supports welded in, are you retarded? WINK.

 

[alan camby]

I wouldnt trust myself under those, you need WAY more supports welded in, are you retarded? WINK.

That is why it is for a camera only

 

[hypnolobster]

I really like these. I've been searching for good screw jacks for a while.

I think the only thing I'd change if I built my own would be to use a thicker pad and mill it deeper. I'd hate to offset the weight and have the weld break, although your design looks deep enough to accomplish the same thing.
I have an overbuilding problem (you appear to have similar overbuilding problems). 1 1/2 rod is pretty impressive.

 

[alan camby]

Nice welds. May I ask if your profession involves welding?

Thanks, I think I am a average welder. I worked 12 years in a factory maintenance department where I would weld from time to time, Maybe a 15min project every month.
I quit there about a year ago. Have been selling maint supplies with my dad since then.

Alan



I updated post #2 with todays progress.

 

[alan camby]

I really like these. I've been searching for good screw jacks for a while.

I think the only thing I'd change if I built my own would be to use a thicker pad and mill it deeper. I'd hate to offset the weight and have the weld break, although your design looks deep enough to accomplish the same thing.
I have an overbuilding problem (you appear to have similar overbuilding problems). 1 1/2 rod is pretty impressive.

Thank you sir.
I don't think you will find a stand with a pad thicker then 1".
I drilled into the pad about .7" deep with the 1.5 inch diameter saw. I then drilled in the other side with a 1" diameter hole. Changed out the wire in my machine from the .030 to .035" and turned the welder up all the way (rated for 3/8") and plug welded the 1" diameter hole. This is a .300" thick x 1" diameter plug weld, a very hot plug weld. I then went back to .030" and welded the bottom of the pad to the rod. Wanted to keep the bottom weld small since a large weld would limit more of the nut travel.

Even before i welded...the pad made a socket connection with the rod, think it would have been fine without the weld.

When i first started the project, I considered using 2" acme. There is quite a price jump from 1.5 to 2" though for both the rod and nuts. If someone wanted to use 1.25" rod, it is about 1/2 the price of the 1.5. I paid about $90 for the 6 foot of 1.5" and $10 for each nut. Source was Enco. I searched around and found a 13% off code for January.

 

[machine_punk]

Those are fabulous stands. But even more than that, I appreciate the thought that went into, 'how am I going to actually built these things?' I like the idea of using an engine stand as a positioner. Very cool ideas about assembling those monster stands.

And who doesn't love ACME thread? I've been thinking about building some adjustable stools with acme thread.

Coolness.

Kev

 

[alan camby]

This was not intentional but thought it was pretty cool how I can stack the stands for storage.

Did some testing on some welds tonight. The weld was stronger then the .120" thick steel. One piece is 1.5x1.5" and the other is the 1x2" used in the stands.
You can see my small tacks that were placed to hold the metal. I only welded one of the 4 sides for the strength test.

I have updated post #2 with some more pictures.
Thanks for looking
Alan

 

[alan camby]

Finished all 4 Acme posts for the stands. Ended up making the sides of the tops adjustable. I can have safety sides on the pad or go flat top.


Just loosen two bolts and spin the ends to the desired setting.

One side up and one side down.

 

[Garage5.9]

That is why it is for a camera only

what does the camera weigh ? 10 tons

 

[Hesketh]

That there Sir is a very well thought out system of holding your car off the deck.

 

[neonnblack]

camera off the deck, camera.

 

[Outlander]

Please show us a picture with your camera supported in the stnd. Nice work

 

[alan camby]

Please show us a picture with your camera supported in the stnd. Nice work

Can someone help with the photo shop? My big camera is at my other home in the Hamptons

The camera is a real Cannon.. or is that Canon.

 

[alan camby]

I must say this is an incredible piece of art, but I am worried about this stand weight. I think it would be very difficult to carry this tripod around.

Thanks for the compliment

Small tripod complete Stand each 22.5lbs
Just the acme top assembly each 11lbs
Just the base tripod each 11.6

Large tripod complete Stand each 30.6lbs
Just the acme top assembly each 13.2lbs
Just the base tripod each 17.8lbs

yes i realise the numbers don't add up perfectly. I used a digital bathroom scale, weighted me with the item then subtracted my weight. The scale is a Walmart special.
I could have saved a bunch of weight by going with hollow tube and pins for the stand pedestal instead of the acme thread. Thought i would go all out though.
If for some reason I had to carry them a great distance, I could carry the base and top separately.

I have had a weight problem for years these stands will be lightweights compared to my ramps.

 

[alan camby]

I just checked out AC Hydraulics 450mm(17.7") to 725mm(28.5") spindle screw jack stands Model #ABS12-450. These are a 4 post stand that weight 14Kg each or 30.8lbs

 

[Richard D]

I was thinking about this part:

If it was taller, you could drill and thread on either side. That would make for handy welding fabrication jigs, to use the screws for precision adjustments, for building car frames, etc.

 

[alan camby]

I was thinking about this part:

If it was taller, you could drill and thread on either side. That would make for handy welding fabrication jigs, to use the screws for precision adjustments, for building car frames, etc.

I still have about 6 foot of this c-channel used for the sides. I could make custom ends as needed since they just bolt on.

Yes, the acme is going to be great for leveling out projects
It is so much easier to fabricate something if you can have the object level first.

Check out the last picture of post #2

 

[alan camby]

Here I am testing the small stand. Tried to find a press with a pressure gauge to confirm my pressures but could not find a friend with one.

Here is a maxxed out 20 ton (40,000lbs) bottle jack that is in my homemade press. The press is in my basement were it is quiet. Never heard a pop or groan as I loaded the stand up. I am rating these for 6000lbs per stand. That gives me over a 6:1 safety margin.

 

[Richard D]

Strong as a garlic milkshake.

 

[PinkLinc]

Very impressive Sir! It's threads like this that make me love GJ.

 

[metalhead212121]

outstanding work!! stupid question for you guys.... what are ACME threaded rods? Im looking to build something simliar to this and I need to buy threaded rods. The threaded rods I need will need to support A LOT of weight (1000-1500 lbs.)

EDIT: is it safe to say this wiki page would answer my question??

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acme_thread_form

 

[Twitchr]

outstanding work!! stupid question for you guys.... what are ACME threaded rods? Im looking to build something simliar to this and I need to buy threaded rods. The threaded rods I need will need to support A LOT of weight (1000-1500 lbs.)

From Wikipedia

The Acme thread form has a 29° thread angle with a thread height half of the pitch; the apex and valley are flat. This shape is easier to machine (faster cutting, longer tool life) than is a square thread. The tooth shape also has a wider base which means it is stronger (thus, the screw can carry a greater load) than a similarly sized square thread. This thread form also allows for the use of a split nut, which can compensate for nut wear.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but these threads are commonly found is C-Clamps, some pipe clamps, and I have seen them in bearing presses.