Conduit Bangers of The World, Unite!

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 10:25 am

.....you have nothing to lose but your tarp clips.

One hundred and eighty-odd domebuilding days to go- How's it coming? Tomorrow I peel back the snowbound tarps, and "go for level two"....

Fun Dome Facts To Know And Yell, #1:

.....a stick of 3/4" EMT, or Electrical Metal Tubing, weighs 4.6 pounds and should NOT exceed 6 dollars in purchase price.

Martiansky · Post by **Martiansky** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 1:54 pm

I'm going with a 2V 3/4" conduit dome. And sadly....have not started the building process as of yet.

LostMachine · Post by **LostMachine** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 12:44 pm

I was gifted about 300 feet of 1.25” PVC pipe last year.

So I figure I should use it for something. Unless plans change I think I’m going to do a smaller (8’ radius) elliptical dome, with an eccentricity around 1.5-2. So the roof should be 12 to 16 feet tall. The frequency will be 3 or 4. Octahedron.

LM

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 5:30 am

How long are the struts in your plan? I've only just begun to experiment with PVC domes, and am curious about your design.....

LostMachine · Post by **LostMachine** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 12:56 pm

With the current division I have, the longest strut would be just over 5’ and the shortest would be around 3.5’. I want to play around with my method of division and try to get the strut lengths closer together. Sometimes I get into it and after a little while I go crazy, so I need to take breaks. It’s a long process.

I’m also thinking of making the base elliptical as well as the top. The problem with this is there are only 4 matching struts of each type. Virtually every strut would need to be cut at a different length, organized and transported this way. 26 different strut lengths and a total of 104 struts to build the dome.

For connectors I’m going to go with Tara Landry’s recommendations and sleeve the ends with EMT and press them flat. I think this is the best type of connection.

I’ve never built a dome out of PVC so this is a first for me. The nice thing is 2” PVC is around the same price as 1/2” conduit.

LM

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:49 am

Sounds great! I especially want to see the conduit-sleeved PVC concept in a working dome- I made a couple test struts before getting distracted by another project, but have dreamed of a 2V or 3V bicycle-based dome or sphere utilizing that technique.... You'll have to participate in the Parade Of Domes 2005. (see thread)

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:53 pm

Domes are pretty out-dated, actually. All that pounding, drilling, fastening, and what do you do when you want a bigger (or multple level) structure? You start over!

The newest technology is easier to assemble, completely modular, and looks better as well! Here is what I will be bringing in 2005;

http://www.thinkgeek.com/stuff/41/megamags.shtml

If several of us pooled multiple kits together, think what we could build!

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Sat Apr 02, 2005 7:56 am

BTW, last post was an attempt at april fool humor. Please return to banging conduit.

LostMachine · Post by **LostMachine** » Sat Apr 02, 2005 10:27 am

DragonFly,
I was deeply offended by your comments. Domes are not Out-dates. I like the drilling and fastening....

And if you are like Robotland when you want a bigger one you simply build it under your old one. In a few years he’ll have a 200 foot radius 20 level dome. It will look more like a cone from outer space.

J/K

-=; )

The funny thing about your post is that I’ve been thinking of a modular strut. I don’t think I’ll do it this year but it would be cool to build structures with Zome tools.

http://www.zometool.com/

I then would have scaled up conduit struts so that I could build a livable shade structure.

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Sat Apr 02, 2005 6:11 pm

A flaw with the survey...

Where's the wood? I like wood as it holds up, you can store it or burn it, and it's strong enough to build a platform or whatever.

BBS

kampkalamazoo · Post by **kampkalamazoo** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 9:12 am

I overlooked wood as an option because of its bulk and the necessity for lotsa hardware. There are a few notable exceptions, of course- I spent a LOT of time ogling the Kaliedosphere back in '03. Damn nice piece of work, although it required a crew to assemble and was not of itself load-bearing. You're right, though.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 8:09 am

...I second what KampKalamazoo said, adding that the second-floor deck of the Snowman is ALL WOOD....I designed it in seven wedge-shaped sections, that set in without any hardware except for some bolts for extra safety. A little forethought can prevent the necessity of bringing a cordless and figuring out where to get it recharged!
One advantage of wood for decking is that it doesn't get as hot as EMT or PVC.
One DISadvantage of wood is having to remove all the fasteners before burning...or else cleaning 'em out of the community pyre later.

LemonGod · Post by **LemonGod** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 7:19 pm

I'll be building my first dome this year. Has anyone had any luck sniffing out hydraulic presses to make the conduit-squishing easier on the person? I'm in LA and I'd loooooove to know if you know where to borrow time on such a device.

Thanks!

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 8:25 am

we've been discussing that over on the Geo Dome Construction Thread....it's kinda catch-as-catch can. Price of a piece of scrap rail from salvage yard: Coupla bucks. Price of a (cheap) 3-pound sledge: Ten Bucks. One powerfully-muscled arm: Priceless.
So? 2V? 3V? Do tell!

LemonGod · Post by **LemonGod** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 9:44 am

Oh I'm planning on a something like 20ft diameter 3V dome. We're using it as out communal living space. I'm quite excited about it.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 10:38 am

Elemental666 is planning something very similar.....(again, more on other DOMES thread.) Don't forget to participate in the Parade of Domes 2005!

preburnkentucky · Post by **preburnkentucky** » Wed Apr 06, 2005 4:07 pm

I got a nice one from Harbor Freight less than 80 bucks.

LemonGod wrote:I'll be building my first dome this year. Has anyone had any luck sniffing out hydraulic presses to make the conduit-squishing easier on the person? I'm in LA and I'd loooooove to know if you know where to borrow time on such a device.

Thanks!

Elemental666 · Post by **Elemental666** » Wed Apr 06, 2005 8:42 pm

Harbor Freight has a 6ton Hydraulic Press for under 100$, but it will take up some space. They also have a 1ton arbor press, non-hydraulic, that has been used successfully by several other people (according to their tales on the web) for around $50. But, BadDawg was kind enough to send me a pic of his home made hydraulice jobber, which I'm prolly going to copy for my own use. Basically its a 4ton bottle jack (cheap as snot from any hardware/automotive) framed in steel. Like this:

These images were posted with bad's permission, if he wants me to remove em, I will...[/img]

BadDawg · Post by **BadDawg** » Wed Apr 06, 2005 9:31 pm

Thanks for posting those up, i wasn't sure on how to.
It's a very easy to make tool that can be portable
My next version will have holes drilled in the
bottom plate so i can bolt it to an attatchment
that slides into a receiver hitch on a truck bumper.

Elemental666 · Post by **Elemental666** » Wed Apr 06, 2005 9:42 pm

no sweat, thanks for sharing them with me...

This little do dad is gonna save me money and time, you da man!

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Apr 07, 2005 5:35 am

Nice results on the squasher!! One of these days my paws are gonna quit on me, and I'll give up my romantic attachment to the hammer-and-anvil method.....My pipe dream (!) is a die that squashes and leaves a nice, round edge like BadDawg's fine example BUT also shears the end of in a similar curve AND either punches a hole or makes a dimple for starting a drillpoint. The shear part would take some tinkering, but the dimple could be made with a little piece of rod set in a hole in the die or plate.

BadDawg · Post by **BadDawg** » Thu Apr 07, 2005 7:02 am

I've been debating adding a small punch piece
to it, so it leaves a nice little indentation for
a drill guide. Drill a hole in one side of the die
and weld a small piece of a punch in it so the
point of the punch is just barely sticking out
so it make a nice neat mark.
The hammer & anvil method is
fun, but this is a lot easier to move around
than the 110 lb. anvil I have.
As for the task of rounding the ends I just plan
on using a hand grinder or bench grinder
for that job.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Apr 07, 2005 7:57 am

Kudos for rounding the corners AT ALL....Years later, I'm STILL telling myself that I'll do that "Next time it's apart".....

chineseobelisk · Post by **chineseobelisk** » Fri Apr 08, 2005 2:03 am

we rented a log splitter for four hours, welded jigs on and cut them off after. two guys pressed all 500 some peices for a 40' dome with time to spare to return it.

Kinetic IV · Post by **Kinetic IV** » Fri Apr 08, 2005 2:31 am

I have access to a log splitter and a welder to make jigs and I never thought of that one. And it should have enough power to work on 3/4 and 1 inch conduit too. Thank you for sharing that tip...I can use that.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Fri Apr 08, 2005 8:28 am

chineseobelisk wrote:we rented a log splitter for four hours, welded jigs on and cut them off after. two guys pressed all 500 some peices for a 40' dome with time to spare to return it.

Freakin' BRILLIANT.

500 pieces? What's the frequency, Kenneth?

chineseobelisk · Post by **chineseobelisk** » Sat Apr 09, 2005 8:22 am

Five. It's a 5/8 5V 38'-er. It took seven of us about ten hours one weekend to fabricate all the parts and about four hours to erect it, although we could have used another person for the last lift. (we built it from the top down)
I have to credit my friend Josh's dad (an engineer) for the log splitter idea, which we all considered brilliant as well.
The cover however was a different story, many hours of dedicated sewing by our friend Heather, with four of us hauling yards of fabric around the studio. About 32 hours X five people =160 man hours, but it fits like a glove. thanks to Sean's good math.
It hosted a kick ass new years party and will be on the playa this year.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Mon Apr 11, 2005 5:19 am

You should post the location (in BRC) in the Parade Of Domes thread....we need stops for the tour! Sound like a kickass structure.

chineseobelisk · Post by **chineseobelisk** » Mon Apr 11, 2005 10:01 pm

So first I was gonna try an' make a funny about how do you get all those domes to roll down main street throwing candy and then I thought -Ohmigod! How cool would that be? To have a dome on big pneumatic casters? 5V=21 vertices, x about $40 ea. $800 some? Hmmmm....

Elemental666 · Post by **Elemental666** » Mon Apr 11, 2005 10:04 pm

mobile dome might blow away on you, no?

Conduit Bangers of The World, Unite!

To DOME, or Not To DOME?

Conduit Bangers of The World, Unite!

My First Dome

Re: My First Dome finding a press