"Matt Brown" (superfastmatt)
10/31/2016 at 13:20 • Filed to: DIY, Matt Brown, Making medical devices in the comfort and safety of your home
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"Matt Brown" (superfastmatt)
10/31/2016 at 13:20 • Filed to: DIY, Matt Brown, Making medical devices in the comfort and safety of your home | 42
| 27 |
When confronted with the opportunity to buy something for twenty dollars, I always think “I bet I could build that for free,” and then proceed to spend a hundred dollars in tools so that I can build it for free. Then I spend twenty dollars on beer to celebrate the money I saved. So when my doctor said “You’ll need to buy a walking cane,” I thought,
Buy? I have a pile of metal and a welder
. So I bought twenty dollars of beer and got to work.
Before getting started, I needed to find some inspiration. A brief web search of canes confirms that cane users fall into one of two categories: Grandma, and Fedora Guy. Grandma has the aluminum adjustable cane with the four separate feet and, sometimes, tennis balls on the bottom. Fedora guy doesn’t need a cane any more than he needs a goblin holding a crystal ball, but for some reason has decided to purchase both of these items attached to each other.
You know what, forget about getting ideas, let’s just see what I have in my garage. I have tubes of metal, sheets of metal, some nuts and bolts, and oh, what is this? A Hurst pistol grip shift handle? Jackpot.
Before getting started, I pulled up my CAD software and did a full 3D model and ran both a modal and non-linear Finite Element Analy-no not really, I just drew it on a piece of paper. The cane’s ability to not collapse under my weight is a function of intuition and a huge safety factor.
Bonus Engineering Fact: The emblem of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers contains the latin phrase “ non loqui sed facere ” which means “intuition and a huge safety factor.”
I draw gud
After getting a design that I liked, the next step was to make a scale drawing and use it to trace out the metal to cut. I needed to weld an aluminum extension onto the shifter handle, and a stainless extension onto the shaft, so I cut those out of some scrap metal I had.
After those were cut out, I mashed the tube with a vice, placing the extension I had just cut into the middle of the part I was squishing to prevent it from collapsing too far in like a figure eight. Once that was flattened, I welded the extensions onto their respective parts and cleaned them up with a file.
I weld gud
The next step was to cut out the aluminum pieces that would connect the handle to the shaft. This would be a breeze with a waterjet, but if I go to the waterjet guy at work and say “Hey man, can you slip this in with your next job,” he will respond, “Dude, you haven’t worked here for two years; how did you even get in the building?”
Whatever, I have a bandsaw.
So I bansawed out the pattern, drilled the holes, and then used my favorite tool ever of the week to deburr the holes.
Once those pieces were made, it was just a matter of lining everything up, clamping it down, and drilling the holes for the fasteners. Once that was done, I bolted everything together, cut the shaft to the correct height, added the rubber bumper thing, and bam! Walking cane.
You know what? I don’t love that. It’s too… Flowy? Swoopy? It needs more angles. More… Metal.
Fortunately, I have more metal. Back to the drawing board.
I’m getting better at drawing
Once I had a good 1:1 drawing that I liked, I cut out the middle connecting piece and used it as a pattern to cut some 1” wide steel bar. I then welded the bar together, drilled the holes, and used my favorite tool ever of the week again
After that was done and cleaned up, I put the fasteners back in and bam! Walking cane.
The end.
Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:26 |
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Let’s be clear: you fabricated a $300 cane in order to avoid spending twenty bucks. I approve.
Future next gen S2000 owner
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:28 |
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Speed holes make everything better. It’s science.
iSureWilll
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:30 |
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Badass cane. +1 for fabrication skills.
The Crazy Kanuck; RIP Oppositelock
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:30 |
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Enginnering: Looking simple thing, then making an overly complex solution.
functionoverfashion
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:34 |
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Tell me there’s a tennis ball on the bottom
Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street.
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:36 |
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On the plus side, when you hit someone with your cane, the mofo is going down!
MonkeePuzzle
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:39 |
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we never saw the base of the cane, so i assume it spreads into four legs and has tennis balls attached.
KeedyT
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:40 |
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“my favorite tool ever of the week” - this is perfect and shall be reused in conversation until someone tells me to stop!
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MonkeePuzzle
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:40 |
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pistol grip and long tube, please go to an airport and get a TSA impression on it. for science
uofime-2
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 13:48 |
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The emblem of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers contains the latin phrase “non loqui sed facere” which means “intuition and a huge safety factor.”
You’ve mixed up the mottos of the ASME and ASCE
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Matt Brown
> uofime-2
10/31/2016 at 13:49 |
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I thought ASCE was “Just look it up in the book.”
shop-teacher
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 14:15 |
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Nicely done!
Phyrxes once again has a wagon!
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 14:38 |
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Nicely done, -1 Internet point for not using this an excuse to buy a plasma cutter though.
Tripper
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 15:32 |
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“I always think “I bet I could build that for free,” and then proceed to spend a hundred dollars in tools so that I can build it for free.”
Story of my life. Neat cane by the way!
davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 15:50 |
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So, you’re pretty much a pimp now, right?
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Matt Brown
> davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/31/2016 at 16:03 |
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Pistol grip pimp™
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davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 16:27 |
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I’m guessing you could make some money selling these...
Is the cane a temporary thing, or will you have it for some time?
just-a-scratch
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 18:53 |
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That’s a neck of a stick. Good work there.
“pistol grip” makes me think of using an actual pistol frame as the cane grip. Then find a way to insert a pocket knife or multitool in place of the magazine. getting the mag release to work would be difficult, but really neat.
Funktheduck
> davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
10/31/2016 at 19:57 |
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I saw a girl with “pimp” tattooed in big letters across her upper back yesterday.
wafflesnfalafel
> Matt Brown
10/31/2016 at 23:26 |
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This is like easy top 5 best oppo posts ever... (And if anybody messes with you that thing will leave a nice mark upside the head.)
Svart Smart, traded in his Smart
> Matt Brown
11/01/2016 at 00:33 |
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Beautiful work.
Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast.
> Matt Brown
11/01/2016 at 01:34 |
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As someone who was recently in need of a cane, but has managed to Physical Therapy myself out of it, I admire this a lot. I have a cane and only need it occasionally, but it is not nearly funky enough for my tastes. Any shot I could get a quote from you on something like this only with a 5-6 speed shifter ball on there?
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Matt Brown
> davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
11/01/2016 at 02:14 |
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About a month
Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig
> Matt Brown
11/01/2016 at 08:40 |
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This is FP material, right here.
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davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> Matt Brown
11/01/2016 at 08:49 |
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Glad to hear it’s just a short time.
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Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
> Matt Brown
11/01/2016 at 15:18 |
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Did you consider grinding the weld beads flush?
Tac
> Matt Brown
11/17/2016 at 15:34 |
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does it cost more then cheap china imports? of course but shit,
its the spirit of the DYI and creativity that is respect with projects like these