Simple frame

Here's a simple frame I came up with. It is made out of Unistrut (also called Superstrut) which is basically a over-sized erector sets used for commercial applications. I used Unistrut because it is very strong (made of steel), relatively cheap ($24 for the frame), easily adjustable/upgradeable, and requires no welding.
Frame dimensions are: Base: 30" X 20". Height 16".

I still have to install the spool, shield, rope guide and put some wheels on it... I'll post some pictures when I finish.

Simple and cheap, two words I like. Looks nice. Hope the build continues to go well.

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-Big Red... If you ain't chewin it... then f@#$ you-

what type of unistrut did you use. i went to their website and got confused with all the options, this frame looks solid, and i like the zero welding and cheapness.

I used 1-5/8" x 13/16", Slotted. I'm not sure if I used 12 or 14 gauge... but for the application I'm sure either would do. Here's the link for 14 gauge: http://www.unistrut.com/Browse/cat_detail.php?S=S02&P=P4100T . I purchased mine at Home Depot for just $12.00/ 10 feet... and I used almost exactly 20 feet for the frame. As for the fittings, unistrut sells fittings that will make putting the frame together a piece of cake... What I actually used was a combination of corner and tee braces that I bought from a hardware store. If the holes didn't match, I drilled new ones in the strut.

On a side note, I order some rope (which got back-ordered) a long while back, but supposedly is coming in soon- I'll post some pics of the finished product.

thanks a ton. can't wait to see it finished.

A couple of people were interested in some of the details...

Here are the pieces of unistrut I used:
3 20" For the base+engine mounts (width)
2 30" For the base (length)
2 16" For the vertical strut (height)
2 34" To support vertical component (hypotenuse)

Other pieces I used I purchased from Ace Hardware
6 4"X3/4" Corner braces For base/vertical
2 4"X4" Tee braces For base/engine mount
2 12" Strait braces For support/bearing mount
Lots of washers/nuts/bolts To hold it all together.

For most of the moving parts, I purchased them from www.bmikarts.com, which had good deals on most of the parts I needed:

1" Live axle $20
3/4" Bore clutch $20 If you are doing deep water starts, you should probably go with the torq-a-verter
Unihub sprocket mount $15 I used two, one for spool, one for sprocket
sprocket #35, 60 teeth $13
1" Bearing kit (2 hole) $20 Includes 2 bearings, bearing mounts, hardware and some welding metal (which i didn't use)
Also Chain+links+1"lock collars

I took a couple pics that will hopefully explain a couple of things.

The next two pictures show how I mounted the 20" base struts to the 30" length. I basically took the corner/tee braces and bent them at 90 degree angles, and attached them to the frame. You can purchase unistrut hardware that will do the same thing, but more professionally.

I used two corner braces for the vertical strut and base, drilling holes where needed.

For mounting the bearings, I used the 12" straight brace, then attached it to the two hole bearing mount I purchased from bmikarts. I drilled holes where needed. I also used lots of washers to account for the space between.

For the support beam I just used a large bolt.

Any other questions feel free to ask or pm

make sure you use lock-tight on all those bolts. you don't want them rattling loose.

_________________
-Big Red... If you ain't chewin it... then f@#$ you-

How much did that frame cost you without the engine?

are the 1"lock collars to keep the axle in place? or something completely different?

also should chain length matter too much ?

	dpowe11 wrote:
	are the 1"lock collars to keep the axle in place? or something completely different? also should chain length matter too much ?

they are called pillow block bearings

milkman- Lock-tight is a definite requirement. After some skateboard-beta-testing I replaced a couple key nuts with nylon lock nuts/ used lock tight
blkbltII- The frame and the hardware I used was cheap, around 35 bucks total. I think I spent around 180 bucks for all the moving componets, then another 90 bucks for 600 ft of rope.
dpowell11- yes, the lock collars keep the axle in place. I found out they wernt entirely necessary because the axles have grub screws. Also, I used about 5 feet of chain. I was lazy and just bought 10 feet of chain, which was way too much. But at least I have an extra chain...

So anyways after doing some testing we took this thing to the beach with our skim boards. It was epic. And I just want to finish this post so I can go out again. Here's some pics:

What kind of engine did you use? Also whats the cheapest you can get a spool

Hey im going to build one like this. How much does it wiehg? And how did you make the spool? Im only 13 so its hard for me to get a hold of these things.

Thanks,
Spencer

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Life is a garden...dig it!

fairlead?