Wood Magazine (July 2022) Boom Arm build

[krudawg]

Just flipping thru the latest Wood Magazine and came across a Boom Arm Build.  Has anyone built the Boom Arm?  I'm thinking about building it after I finish my current project (garage cabinets).

 

[guybo]

Hi, I always liked this build

 

[krudawg]

Holy Cow.  That is very unique and quite functional.  Did you design it?

 

[4nthony]

Just flipping thru the latest Wood Magazine and came across a Boom Arm Build. 

For those wondering about the boom in the mag. It looks kinda cool, though not as fancy as guybo's version. The integrated air line is a nice touch.

 

[guybo]

Holy Cow.  That is very unique and quite functional.  Did you design it?

I wish I was that talented ,thats from some of the great talent on this forum here is the linkhttps://www.festoolownersgroup.com/workshops-and-mobile-vehicle-based-shops/shop-use-consideration-of-ct-boom-arm-for-dust-extractors reply#12

 

[Packard]

That is going to cost as much as the Manfrotto boom arm without the flexibility.  I must be missing something.  But this seems silly to me.

 

[Kpp80202]

There is an earlier thread here where someone made a boom arm using electrical conduit off a simple wall mount. Inexpensive and relatively fast to construct.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I like the idea of a boom arm, but haven't worked it out exactly for my space. I found one that I liked on Amazon, at a good price too, but I waited too long. Now they are out of stock.
I think the one I found was intended to be for a dock-light, for shining up inside a semi truck? Maybe it will come back by the time I figure out how to mount it? My workspace is nowhere near an actual wall.
I have a backing wall, behind my Sysport cabinets, but it is very short. Less than 5ft IIRC, 54-56 inches? It's fine as a backdrop, but I would need a column of some sort, going higher.

 

[Peter_C]

I like the idea of a boom arm, but haven't worked it out exactly for my space. I found one that I liked on Amazon, at a good price too, but I waited too long. Now they are out of stock.
I think the one I found was intended to be for a dock-light, for shining up inside a semi truck? Maybe it will come back by the time I figure out how to mount it? My workspace is nowhere near an actual wall.
I have a backing wall, behind my Sysport cabinets, but it is very short. Less than 5ft IIRC, 54-56 inches? It's fine as a backdrop, but I would need a column of some sort, going higher.

Bolt a plate to the floor with a "bearing" of some kind welded to a bent tube. Trailer hubs and spindles are super cheap, or old car parts. If the tubing is sized correctly it could function for the air to pass thru with a 36mm hose plugged into the boom. Quick removal might be necessary for some projects to clear.

I have the Festool boom arm which works well in my situation, as I couldn't have a permanent boom arm.

 

[4nthony]

This guy got creative with the range of motion on his boom arm:

 

[ChuckM]

Among all the boom arms I've seen in this forum or on the web, the Wood Magazine's version is one of the more cumbersome in terms of building in my book. Many have accomplished the same job with hinges, tubes, or simple hardware like the one 4nthony shares above.

If one enjoys building for the sake of building (or wants to make the boom arm for skill building or experience), of course, that's a different story.

 

[FestitaMakool]

Hi, I always liked this build

Thanks Guy, now Stig do too!  [big grin]

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Bolt a plate to the floor with a "bearing" of some kind welded to a bent tube. Trailer hubs and spindles are super cheap, or old car parts. If the tubing is sized correctly it could function for the air to pass thru with a 36mm hose plugged into the boom. Quick removal might be necessary for some projects to clear.

I have the Festool boom arm which works well in my situation, as I couldn't have a permanent boom arm.

I am thinking more along the lines of bolting some kind of tubing to the end of the back wall itself.
That would put it close to where I keep the CT 99% of the time.

I didn't realize how bad my bench looked in this shot. It has changed quite a bit in the last few weeks.

 

[ChuckM]

Talking to a woodworker neighbor, and he shared this image he came across years ago:

[attachimg=1]

May look ugly, but does the job (in a simple way)...and doesn't cost over $600 Cdn. [tongue]

 

[Mini Me]

Does anyone recall or know what happened with the boom arm that was being developed by two different people from this forum a few years ago IIRC. It had bearings in the extension part and was quite complex in some ways but it definitely looked solid.

 

[afish]

posted this before but this is made from 1.375 fence rail and gate hardware. its around 30 bucks of material and the tube could act as part of the hose. plus the gate hardware would allow it to be lifted off easily if it was in the way. the only bad part is putting the two 45 degree bends but that is easy with a HF tube bender. If I had the room I would make one for sure but my space is way too tight for it.

if you didnt want to wall mount it you can add a leg out of the same material since they flare the ends to slip together and should pivot as well at the joint. if it was tight a little grinder work should make a nice slip fit

 

[Peter_C]

I am thinking more along the lines of bolting some kind of tubing to the end of the back wall itself.
That would put it close to where I keep the CT 99% of the time.

I didn't realize how bad my bench looked in this shot. It has changed quite a bit in the last few weeks.

Since the wall is a decent distance to the far end of the big work bench, going with an articulating arm with a lot of movement would probably be the only way. What is the distance of the wall to far side of work bench?

Either pay the big bucks are copy the design and build one yourself. You got fabrication skills. A TIG might be ideal though for aluminum bearing cups to an extrusion. A strong plywood design cut on the CNC could work for a shorter boom, but not 15ft. The wall behind the CT needs to be solid or floor and wall mount with a vertical steel beam.

Mostly semantics and/or verbiage but there is a difference between tubing and pipe. HF benders are for pipe; think black pipe at Home Depot, which kinks/crushes on tight radius turns. Tubing includes things like DOM (Drawn over mandrel) which takes a lot of force to bend. I use a hydro bender and a single bend can be 90* in 6" on 1 3/4" tubing. This is the die I use for roll cage fabrication (Dang they went up like double since 2005).https://pro-tools.com/products/round-tube-bending-die-1-3-4-in-odx6-in-clr-180-degrees-b-105-sd-hd/

 

[MikeGE]

Does anyone recall or know what happened with the boom arm that was being developed by two different people from this forum a few years ago IIRC. It had bearings in the extension part and was quite complex in some ways but it definitely looked solid.

The two examples I remember are these threads:

Prometheus Boom Arm by Rick Christopherson (RTS Engineering)

DIY Fully Articulating Boom Arm by Martin Felder

 

[afish]

Talking to a woodworker neighbor, and he shared this image he came across years ago:

[attachimg=1]

May look ugly, but does the job (in a simple way)...and doesn't cost over $600 Cdn. [tongue]

I just noticed it looks like that boom arm is using the CT as a base.  I dont know how that thing doesnt flip over without some sort of bracing. 

 

[Mini Me]

Does anyone recall or know what happened with the boom arm that was being developed by two different people from this forum a few years ago IIRC. It had bearings in the extension part and was quite complex in some ways but it definitely looked solid.

The two examples I remember are these threads:

Prometheus Boom Arm by Rick Christopherson (RTS Engineering)

DIY Fully Articulating Boom Arm by Martin Felder

Thanks Mike, they are what I was thinking of.