Mechanical Tubing Connectors
Mechanical Tubing Connectors
(OP)
I have been given the task of taking one of our machines (10foot long) and making it packable (5 foot sections). The design problem is the 10 foot long mechanical tubing square and round, steel and aluminum. I am wanting to cut the tubes and the reconnect them. We cannot use internal threads (that would be too easy!) I am trying an insert in the pipes that will use a cam lock style connector to draw the tube ends together and compress them to create a strong joint. This way I only have to drill holes in the tubes and insert the cam (like cheap furniture). Any ideas? Anybody know of any cam lock manufacturers?





RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
Based on your description, I'm guessing that there are both tension and moment loads on the assembled joints, and that something has to slide over them, so misalignment and looseness would not be acceptable.
If that's true, I'd lean toward something with spring pins that pop out into drilled holes in the tubes, and a screw- jacked draw wedge to pull the tube ends together.
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
The typical furniture cams have a pressure angle such that they're just barely self-locking in wood, and don't produce a lot of draw force for the torque applied. Don't be sucked into just scaling up the geometry of someone else's design for a different problem, building it, and testing it 'to see if it works'.
Instead, analyze how it works, yes with numbers, adapt that math model to work your particular problem, optimize it, and then generate the geometry you need from the numbers.
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
Stu
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors
Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
RE: Mechanical Tubing Connectors