DIY Ledger Stems
Posted: Thu Dec 31 2015 19:21
Simple, cheap, strong and quick to make. This was passed down to me by my old pal Poachmiester.
Using john roberts "rigid rig tube" you get 3 x 20inch lengths for £2.60 I made two stems from one length or 3 small, what ever takes your fancy.
Dont need pics to describe this but Im bored so here we go.
what you need:
rigid rig tube
popup ball/foam
curtain rings
knife/hacksaw
pliers
nail varnish (optional)
Cut tube to required length and get a shallow mug of boiling water. place one end of the tube in to the boiling water for 1-2 minutes. we dont want to melt the plastic, just soften it. thats why I wouldnt use a lighter.
Take your tube out and gently grip it with your pliers near the heated end and screw in your curtain ring by hand as far as it will go. by not using pliers you cant really get a good grip. try not to damage the tube with pliers. if its
hard to screw in put it back in the boiling water.
Important(im certain): cool the plastic down running it under a cold tap. I cant explain it but im sure this makes it shrink faster making a better mating
I never asked I just asumed.
slide on a popup of your choice, before pusing it to the top I blob on a little bit of nail varnish just to keep it at the top and push the popup far enough that it masks the bottom of the curtain ring (keeps line away from it, probably overkill)
take it out and secure the last curtian ring the same as before
Job done, total cost about a quid each.........or less
I tested them just to check when they would actually break.
I attached split rings to either end and incremenetally increasing the weight and each time I would slowly lift weight, shake weight, jerk up, and yank up of the floor quickly.
doing the above with each weight
11lb
16lb
22lb
30lb
As I lifted 30lb it held, so I shook it, jerked it up and down and it still held together so sat it down on the floor yanked it hard up of the floor and thats when it broke at the top of the ledger but not before actaully getting 30lb of weight up off the deck.
No big deal though ill just reheat and screw back in the curtain ring
When I mentioned these a while ago I got a pm from someone who tried it but the curtain rings were too big and even the JRbeads would pass through it. must be pretty big rings them. the ones I got were off those wooden curtain pole hoop thingies. ive accumulated a carrier bag full oif them over the years and are an ideal size and havnt had a problem with beads.
Using john roberts "rigid rig tube" you get 3 x 20inch lengths for £2.60 I made two stems from one length or 3 small, what ever takes your fancy.
Dont need pics to describe this but Im bored so here we go.
what you need:
rigid rig tube
popup ball/foam
curtain rings
knife/hacksaw
pliers
nail varnish (optional)
Cut tube to required length and get a shallow mug of boiling water. place one end of the tube in to the boiling water for 1-2 minutes. we dont want to melt the plastic, just soften it. thats why I wouldnt use a lighter.
Take your tube out and gently grip it with your pliers near the heated end and screw in your curtain ring by hand as far as it will go. by not using pliers you cant really get a good grip. try not to damage the tube with pliers. if its
hard to screw in put it back in the boiling water.
Important(im certain): cool the plastic down running it under a cold tap. I cant explain it but im sure this makes it shrink faster making a better mating
I never asked I just asumed.slide on a popup of your choice, before pusing it to the top I blob on a little bit of nail varnish just to keep it at the top and push the popup far enough that it masks the bottom of the curtain ring (keeps line away from it, probably overkill)
take it out and secure the last curtian ring the same as before
Job done, total cost about a quid each.........or less
I tested them just to check when they would actually break.
I attached split rings to either end and incremenetally increasing the weight and each time I would slowly lift weight, shake weight, jerk up, and yank up of the floor quickly.
doing the above with each weight
11lb
16lb
22lb
30lb
As I lifted 30lb it held, so I shook it, jerked it up and down and it still held together so sat it down on the floor yanked it hard up of the floor and thats when it broke at the top of the ledger but not before actaully getting 30lb of weight up off the deck.
No big deal though ill just reheat and screw back in the curtain ring
When I mentioned these a while ago I got a pm from someone who tried it but the curtain rings were too big and even the JRbeads would pass through it. must be pretty big rings them. the ones I got were off those wooden curtain pole hoop thingies. ive accumulated a carrier bag full oif them over the years and are an ideal size and havnt had a problem with beads.
