Portable Boom Arm mounted to MFT/ T-Track

Pancha

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Joined
Aug 27, 2015
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23
Hey Foggers!  Just made a Boom Arm Mft mount for my quick and dirty boom arm I've been using for about a year now.  My goal was to have a boom arm that was portable and would break down and fit inside a systainer.  Ultimately I was frustrated by how long it took to set up/take down and how many pieces there were.  This is my solution using as many scraps and pieces I had already laying around the house.  At this point, I don't use my mft for anything except cutting and scribing Ipe bison pavers.  So it's possible this solution wouldn't work for everybody.  I've just never understood why festool hasn't made a more portable version of their boom arm.  I would love to here peoples thoughts and criticisms.[attachthumb=1][attachthumb=2][attachthumb=3][attachthumb=4][attachthumb=5]

This is my previous set up and what I use it for[attachthumb=6][attachthumb=7][attachthumb=8]
 

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I love your Boom Arm!  [big grin]

How nice, and portable too! Is that a Sys-5?
 
This looks very nicely made and well thought out. I'll keep this in mind for when I need to make my own version.

Thanks for showing the images are especially useful!
 
I wonder if it could refined to the point where you use the actual tubing as a section of the hose? With rubber O rings or some removable seal when you put them together. It'd reduce the weight  [smile]

I know it's not required, what you've done there is amazing.
 
I like your idea. When i had my boom mounted to my CT 33, it was just way too cumbersome and with so low ceiling impossible to move around .  I am close to final sorting out of my shop space and your pics will be filed for my own considerations. I don't need to transport to other sites, so don't need to cut into short pieces to put into a sustainer, but i like the idea for attaching to an MFT. 
Tinker
 
I really like this!  It appears you have more tube then arm in the pictures.  I can't tell but it looks like something under the table when it is set up??

Do you get much deflection of the rail with that much leverage?  That's always been a concern, I would like to have it attach further down as well somehow.

 
I just took down my boom arm as I have very little space in my workshop and it prevented me from moving around the CT36 it was attached to. Just bungee corded it in 2 points to the ceiling. Works like a charme....
 
I think you should also make the top wood block engage/rest on the V-channel of the MFT in addition to T-track nobs. There is quite a bit of leverage if you tilt the boom from vertical and I'm afraid you could bend the T-track the way it is now.
 
I had thought of making a boom arm similar to yours but never got around to it. I might give it a go again based on your idea. Kind of Frankenstein yours and mine together.

I had an idea to put mine on the corner of my MFT. Use a dog hole to hold it to the MFT top and then some Velcro to wrap around one leg.

Does yours flex back and forth at all?

Great job!

Cheers. Bryan.
 
I made a similar "boom arm" approach a while back, mine was not as mobile as yours but the same principle applied.

It is made by 2" sewage pipe and I use the pipe for the dust collection and not just to support the hose.

 

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Hey Folks,  Thank you for the kind words, concerns and keen observations.  I'm considering posting a movie of it in action but that won't be until tomorrow night at the earliest.  In the mean time, I thought I would respond to a few of the comments.  I'll do it in chronological order. 

Wuffles-  I had considered making the boom arm part of the suction apparatus.  At the time, The boom arm had legs which you can kind of see in the photo with my full set up.  It's the second to last photo I believe.  It was fairly top heavy and it didn't swivel so i filled the legs with concrete to lower the center of gravity.  It worked but it really wasn't a very elegant solution.  Also If you look closely, each pvc member has holes drilled in it to receive 7 inch bolts.  I insert the bolts in the holes in order to help in twisting and pulling the pieces apart to put back in my sys-5.  None of those solutions to my problems boded well for running the suction through the arm itself.  Since then I have come to realize that I rather like being able to change the length of hose coming off the top of the arm.  When processing pavers I don't need a lot of hose but if I am processing sheet goods I need a lot more length.  This is less of an issue now that the arm swivels nicely.  Still, I like being able to modulate the length for the task at hand.  Having the hose plug into the top would mean I would need several different lengths of hose for different tasks which doesn't seem feasible for the things I use my track saw for.  I mostly use it for wood pavers but I'm hoping to get more into cabinets, built-ins and furniture.  I hope that makes sense.

thedude306-  Astute observation!  The picture with my full set up was before I made the mount.  As I described to Wuffles, the initial design had legs and was free standing.  It was made before I owned an MFT.  It was cumbersome, didn't swivel, and needed three times as many pieces of pvc which took time to attach and break down as well as making it annoying to fit back into my sys-5.  A few people have asked about deflection in the track from pulling on the hose.  This was a concern for me.  Hopefully I can respond to many of the other related comments and questions regarding this topic here.
            The mount is made of 1/4'' flat steel.  That combined with the Ipe (also not light), and the fact that the majority of the mount hangs below the table means that you would have to yank unnaturally on the hose to get it to deflect enough to where it would become an issue.  I guess time will tell.  That being said, because of my previous set up which was prone to tipping, I have always been cognizant as to how much pull I place on the hose when using a tool.  I always let out the right amount of hose from the top so I'm not pulling on the arm itself.  My larger concern has been that over time, the bolt heads will begin to mar and disfigure the inside of the track.  If I do anything more to ameliorate this issue, it would be to make a plastic or aluminum "washer" that spans the two t-track bolts and makes for a more displaced pressure on the inside of the track.  I would hope this would also help to prevent deflection of the mount and be less harmful to the track.  I hope someone else makes their own version of this and can either disagree or confirm my findings.  Different people treat their tools differently,  I happen to be very delicate with all my tools(especially the green ones [wink]) minus rough framing hand tools.

Svar-  I hope aspects of your concerns were addressed in my response above.  I had initially intended to build a groove for fitting in the v-groove as well as a plate for the underside of the track.  I still may do it but ultimately I wanted to spark imaginations for people who may not have the MFT profile and maybe just have a basic T-track like Timothy Wilmots MFT-C or other people who have used an 80-20 extrusion.  Ultimately I'm not sure if I need anything more.  I'll know more when I get to use it in the field for a few months.  Eventually, I plan to build my own MFT tables with an 80-20 perimeter and didn't want to have to make a new mount to fit a different profile.  I think it's more universal and simpler this way.  It's definitely a legitimate concern.

Again, thank you all for your engagement and comments.  I truly enjoy these discussions.
 


Here I am yanking on the hose in a situation that would never happen with regular use. I wanted people to see the level of deflection that occurs just on the mount itself with both regular use and abnormal pulling.  The boom arm itself actually deflects more than the mount because of all the couplers in the arm. 

I show what happens when I just move the track saw around the table and you see the pvc simply turning in the mount.  Then I pull on the hose from one direction and repeat the process.
 
WARNING:  I didn't edit the sound and it was windy. You should probably hit mute before playing.  Also, the goofy face at the end is because the morning sun is glaring in my face as I turn around to turn off the camera.


This is part two of the test where I show you me actually tugging on the hose and moving the saw around the table.  You can see that the majority of the deflection is in the arm itself which you can feel. 

I wouldn't hang a swing from the arm but it feels sturdy enough for how I use it.  My only concern is if a chord got caught on my tool bags and pulled the saw off the table.  Then again,  in most cases, the saw would hit the ground before it pulled hard enough on the arm to permanently mangle the t-track.  Maybe that will be my third test :(
 
[member=57374]Pancha[/member], Thanks for the vids.  I am going to be trying your idea of clamping the the corner of the table using my boom arm that was formerly clamped to my CT33.  I will be setting up with the arm clamped to the back out feed side of my MFT3 table.  I think that will work better in my shop.  Even tho you show the deflexion in your tube, I will try to make some sort of bracing to take advantage of more that just the T-track.  I am less used to hand tool bracketing than with more heavy staging and form bracing involved with masonry construction; so am more apt to over brace than a bare minimum of bracing. 

Tinker
 
My question is where did you get the green hose holders that are on the pvc pipe?

Rusty
 
thanks for the video.  Looks great and my concerns about the flex are not warranted at all.

 
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