Sleeve or cover for threaded rod

[freeradical426]

Total n00b here, and just barely getting into DIY woodworking and minimal metal work in the last few months. Hoping this question is at least located in the right subforum ...

So I've got a metal power rack (for weightlifting) in my garage. I wanted to add another pin to store some lightweight plates, so I drilled a new hole and mounted a 1/2" threaded steel rod, and cranked it down securely with nuts and washers. Only extending out a few inches from the square tube frame, it's plenty strong and could probably hold several of me, much less a few 5 and 10# plates. So far so good.

My question is simple: I'm trying to figure out what relatively soft material (such as wood or plastic) I could slide or screw over the 1/2" threaded rod in order to add some thickness and make the pin more of a natural fit for my olympic size weight plates. I'm trying to bring the final O.D. to something like 1.5" or 2", something in that neighborhood -- not fussy about the precise result. Would happily consider layering multiple different-sized pipe(s) over it, if that's the right way to build up the diameter.

I looked into PVC, but from what I can see there isn't anything with an I.D. that's super close to 0.5 inches, save for Sch 80 pipe ... which seemingly has to be ordered in bulk from my local big box store -- so not suitable for this application; I'm going to add a few more pins, but only a few feet of pipe would be required overall.

Anybody have any ideas? My only other thought is to get a wood dowel and drill 1/2" down about 6" into the end of it. But I don't have a drill press or a jig for this sort of thing so I'm unlikely to make a properly straight hole as required.

Thanks for any thoughts, and please feel free to let me know if I should be asking this in a different subforum ..... or ... a different forum altogether

 

[Neighbor]

Carlon ENT flexible conduit

about $0.30 / ft

 

[Fender1325]

Youre fine to post that here.

Id go the wood route. Find somebody with a drill press on craigslist thats willing to drill them out for you, or if youre impatient like me, just use a regular drill and do your best. Once theyve got a hole id squirt in some liquid nails or some kind of epoxy to permanently bind it.

Or, this is a perfect excuse to acquire a tool. A drill press! Buy the best you can afford on craigslist - not a little $75 cheapie but something heavier.

Good luck. Experiment, make mistakes, and learn.

 

[freeradical426]

Haha, thanks Fender, you are enabling my acquisitive habit
(maybe I shouldn't listen too closely)

Neighbor, thanks for your suggestion. I had previously skipped over non-metallic conduit deliberately, just because it's going to result in a rough outer surface ... kind of defeats the purpose here since I'm going to be sliding weights on and off this thing on a regular basis. And, trying to create something that looks more properly "clean" and finished. While the 1/2" Carlon appears to have an I.D. that's pretty close (0.56"), I think I'd end up with a loose fit, and I'd still be trying to figure out what to cover *it* with, once I covered the threaded rod with it.

 

[jwith68]

If Schedule 80 PVC gets you where you want to be, you can order it in single 5' or 10' lengths from McMaster-Carr quite reasonably.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#plastic-pipe-fittings/=y1c6id

 

[ehaines]

If you are looking for shorter pieces, try looking in the Schedule 80 PVC fitting area for the pipe *******.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_56127-1815-205120RMC_1z10xvj__?productId=3381496&pl=1

 

[gungatim]

slip a piece of 1/2" hose over it and call it a day.

 

[MoonRise]

My take:

A piece of 1-1/2" steel pipe is 1.900" in OD. Sounds just about perfect to act as a shaft/axle for a 2" hole.

Too 'tight' for you? Use a piece of 1-1/4" steel pipe. 1.660" OD.

To attach to the gym frame, either use some 'bushings' to fit in the end of the pipe and 'over' the threaded rod, or ditch the threaded rod and attach the pipe (pipe threaded on one end with pipe threads ) to a "floor flange" that is attached to the gym frame.

The 'bushings' could be as simple as some epoxy putty or anything else you can buy/modify/make to slip a pipe of pipe over a threaded rod and hold it in place. Some wooden 'doughnuts' or rings with an OD to fit inside the metal pipe and an ID to fit over the threaded rod, all held in place with some epoxy.

Or you can buy a welder and a lathe and have at it. Don't quite 'need' a mill for this job. Well, OK, get the mill and a drill press too.

 

[hammlm]

I once assembled some long hanging chrome rods for my wife's closet. I used threaded rod to hang them and knew I had to do something.

I found clear vinyl tubing that was close (I didn't use 1/2" all thread) to the right ID. I heated it up just a bit in the dryer (what a racket) and then used my air gun to expand it as I pushed it on. The result looked better than I hoped, and it feels fine when you brush it. My lengths were about 36". Take a piece of all-thread to the box store and see what kind of tubing they have.

 

[HammerMechanic]

UHMW Tubing from Mcmaster Carr.
1 1/2" O.D. x 1/2" I.D. about $9.00 a foot.
Sold by the foot. Buy how ever much you need and just saw to length.
Done.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#8705k49/=y1du6m

 

[MJD1]

Nylon air brake tubing, very strong and cheap. Napa should have it. 5/8" size should work well.

 

[freeradical426]

Man ... you guys are just full of great ideas. Thanks to all! This has given me plenty to explore. I'm sure one or several of these will work fine. Much appreciated.

 

[SteveH-CO]

You may want to use soapy water to get the tubing to slide on a bit easier, if it's a tight fit. There will be a lot of friction with all-thread, so it won't slide in like a handlebar grip, if you're using a tight-fitting tubing.

 

[freeradical426]

Thanks Steve, good call about the soap. I may use that or WD-40, +/- my heat gun to make the tubing a little more cooperative.

Just had another idea, would like feedback if anyone has some. Not sure if this is the *best* solution but it's an interesting one. Since I'm using threaded rod, I could very easily take a bunch of fender washers (maybe 1.5" OD) and position them tightly at regular intervals along the length of the rod. Each rod is only going to stick out from the post about 4" - 5". I figure I could just put a washer every 1/2" or so, secured tightly with a pair of nuts ...

(... don't say it ...)

Then, I could just slide a 1.5" rigid PVC pipe over the whole assembly. I figure the fender washers, spaced at that frequency and very tightly fixed, would be rigid enough. The force from weight plates hung on the PVC outer pipe would be distributed somewhat amongst all the fender washers.

Thoughts on that?

My only head-scratcher would then be how to keep the PVC from wobbling around constantly. Maybe just get an even larger OD washer (maybe 1/8" or 1/4" larger) and use it as a cap on the end, with a final nut to cinch it tight.