We now move unto making the frame. The measurement above in designing will be used in the fabric stage and are not critical at this time. So lets get our hands dirty and make some sawdust. Shown here is a scale model of the framing package, showing positioning of the spokes and center pole and the different hubs. Please keep in mind that all the weight of the tent is going to be transposed to the center, and in short all the load weight of the canvas, wind load and moisture load is going to exert pressure on the ground. If the center pole is to small a diameter, it can do two things, BREAK due to stress loads, or SINK if the base is to small to support the weight on the ground. Manufacturing, a 10 inch disk, this would transfer the weight of the tent though to the ground over a larger area, and prevent the center pole from sinking into the ground, and to add further protection in stabilization of the tent frame. The diameter of the center pole from the tinker toy down to the base is 3 inches while the top center pole is 1 ½ inches diameter.
The material package.
Use straight and clear lumber. The better the grade of lumber and species of lumber the stronger it will be. In such a structure, unless using larger diameters, and now that brings us to weight, and volume, it is possible to use pine or spruce. If you do not mind the cost and if available maple or oak would be the superior, but that also brings on the handing weight issue. I had found that Douglas fir would probably be the best, both cost, strength and weight. Below is a list of materials that one would need. I have included Canadian Supplies and where they might be available for a reasonable cost. Some of these suppliers may not exist in your location, but there are box stores that may carry the same product for around the same cost.
This is not all the materials, but is roughly 3/4 of the materials required. I had my supplier for the dowels cut them to size. The center pole 7 ft. length and the 7 spoke of the 12 – the remainder still to come for Jan 2011 at 6 ft 6 inches. I also included a banner pole to go on top of the pavilion in setup for the heraldic device.
Quantity Materials Approx Cost Supplier
12 – approx 7ft 1 5/16 dia. fir dowel 1.36 to 1.80/ ft Builder’s Mart, Rona
Home Depot, Home
Hardware.
Note – you may be able to save money by order 6 13ft lengths and cut in half for the 20ft diameter pavilion.
7 to 8 ft 1 ½ inch dia dowel 2.10 to 2.28/ft Builder’s Mart, Rona
Home Depot, Home
Hardware.
3 to 4 ft 1 or 1 5/16 dowel 1.00 to 1.80/ft Builder’s Mart, Rona
Optional *(banner pole) Home Depot, Home
Hardware.
12 Finales varies 1.75 to 5.00 ea Fabricland – or
Drapery Shops.
Tip - I have found Fabricland to be the least expensive for this item.
13 pc. ¼ inch long threaded inserts 0.89 ea Home Hardware
part no 40-6207
Tip: Have found these inserts available in a package of 4 with the tool to screw in the insert. Average cost per package is 2.60 each. They are available from most Builders’ Marts. Richelieu ¼ - 20 (724636 03652)
4 pks (4 package per unit) ¼ inch lag, and bolt ¼ x 20 Home Hardware
connectors 3.00 pk.
1 liter stains or paint (exterior) approx 20.00 your option
I myself prefer Cloverdale Paints or Flecto
1 roll natural fiber twine approx 10.00 your option
1 small bottle white (good quality) glue approx 8.00 your option
½ sheet ¾ or 5/8 exterior grade ply approx 15.00 Builder’s Mart,
Windsor Plywood
24 pc. 1 ¾ inch no 8 Robinson Screws 2.50 Any lumber shed
12 inches 1 ½ ID if possible otherwise 1 ½ OD Minus Muffler
Steel tubing. 1 ½ Exhaust pipe works well
Tools required (basic)
Robinson no 2 screwdriver – tinker toy assembly
Sandpaper 80 grit up to fine grit
Miter box and saw - cutting of dowels to size
Plane - used to shave down one end of dowel to fit loosely into tinker toy
Scroll saw, or saber saw, or band saw, or a router with radius cutter – tinker toy
Drill – 1 ¼ and 1-½ drill bits (tinker toy) 3/16 inch for screws – 5/16 inch drill and 3/8 drill for inserts for dowels and finales
Paintbrush
Clamps and hammer
9/16 wrench
Before starting the frame, make sure to have materials on hand, as sometimes the harder to find materials are not easy to obtained.
Tinker Toy – The heart and main support of the pavilion
In preparing the framework, I begun with the tinker toy, as I had the materials on hand. Cutting the 5/8 spruce plywood to 22 inch squares, and drawing diagonal lines from corner to corner to find center, I used a ½ in router with a circle jig to make the tinker toy. Once the pieces were made, I had taken one of the four pieces, drew the locations of the spokes and made a small saw mark as to aid in keeping the drill in line perpendicular to the circumference. Once completed I place this disk with the marks of the saw blade pointing to the outside edge and attacked a second disk. With the other two disk of the four I made I glue this to the face covering the saw marks. The saw mark ends should be visual in the middle of the four layers. Clamp all disk together drill the 3/16-inch holes between each of the spacing between the spoke hole placing. Use a 1-¾ inch Robinson screw from both sides. Allow the glue to set, before drilling the 1-¼ inch holes on the edge of the tinker toy. Once set drill these holes where the end of the saw marks are to a depth of 2-inch min. Also at the center of the tinker toy drill a 1-½ inch hole through all 4 layers. This will be used for the center pole.
Once holes are drilled, finish with sandpaper and finish with your choice of finish.
The tinker toy, a major assembly for the medieval tent, is shown here finish with a stain and waterproof coat of liquid plastic. On the edge are located the holes for installation of the spokes, and the center hole to receive the vertical pole. The diameter of this tinker toy is 22 inches, and is made of 4 layers of 5/8 plywood, screwed and glued together. This will be the heaviest piece of this style of tent.
The spokes:
In keeping the tent eve diameter to 14 feet, and with the aspects of the tinker toy now made, the final measurement for the spokes of been 6 ft 4 inches. I decided to leave mine at 6 ft 6 inches thus giving me 4 more inches of roof to the already 14 ft diameter. The spokes, and some of the tents in this style I had seen were made of 1 ½ diameter dowel or 2x2 with the edges milled at 45 degrees making them eight sided in profile. I myself choose 1 5/16 dowel, to keep the weight issue down. Once cut to length either paint or stain them before going to the next step.
One will need to have patience for the next step. As wood is a natural product, and the grains may have a tendency to split after time, I borrow an idea from the era of the Romans and that was to use natural fiber twine to add in the strength of the dowels. At either end I wrap and glued the twine around the dowel to give extra strength. At one end before wrapping twine, taper the dowel down so as to fit loosely in the tinker toy. You do not want this to be a tight fit, as wood may swell in damp conditions when set up making it nearly impossible to disassemble. When wrapping twine on the taper end start back the depth of the hole and work back leaving the taper exposed. The end that holds the canvas can be wrapped right at the end. Once the glue is set on the twine, drill a 3/8-inch hole at least 1 ¾ deep and insert the long insert into the dowel. This will is where the finale is attached and will aid in supporting the canvas to stay on the ¼ inch x 3-inch thread rod pin. To cut these pins use a fine tooth metal cutting blade. Make sure to have a ¼ inch nut on each of these pins to aid in threading the rod. You may have to use a file to clean off any burrs that may be on these threaded rods. Check these rod pins to make sure they thread easily. Place pins aside once tested. You made also at this stage insert the inserts into the finales once a 3/8-inch x 1 ½ depth hole is drilled. Be careful, as most finales are only 2 inches in diameter at their larges diameter and are anywhere from 3 to 4 inches long.
From left to right – the center base pole, less the 9-inch steel insert that will aid in supporting the tinker toy and upper center pole. Next to the center base pole is the upper center pole, center is the banner pole, and the 2 dowels to right are the spokes with the finales shown in the bottom right hand corner. On all poles and spokes is shown the twine wrapping for extra strength and optional features for hanging lamps, and to secure the spokes to the tinker toy.
The center pole – base and upper center pole.
The base shown above is constructed of two 2 x 3 s glued together than milled with 45 degree corners to both reduce weight, and to give an artist appearance. This pole is made to a length of 6 ft 6 inches for ease in set up, as my height is 5 ft 9 inch. You may change the heights to suit your needs for the base center pole. The center pole will have a 9-inch length of thin wall 1 ½ steel tubing inserted and glued 3 inches into the center pole at one end, and a 1-½ dowel inserted and glued at the bottom end to be able to insert into the 10-inch disk. This disk is to spread the weight on contact with the ground and to aid in stabilization of the tent.
Hole drill in top of lower center column, ready to receive 1 ½ OD steel pipe. Use either epoxy or polyurethane glues to hold the pipe in the column. Make hole the size of pipe OD so that the pipe will be tight fitting. You may have to use a wooden mallet to set pipe in hole been careful not to break the glue seam of the two 2x3s that are glued together to form the column.
The final fitting of the metal tube within the base column: finish the steel tubing with a waterproof finish to prevent rusting. Check for fit with other parts required for this assembly
Drill hole at least one inch into bas of column to receive a short piece of 1 1/2 inch dowel on the base end. The dowel should not extend past the column base anymore than the thickness of the column base disk. Make the hole a tight fit in the base column and glue the dowel within. Tip: finish the dowel with a waterproof finish, as this will prevent the wood from absorbing moisture from the ground. Tip 2: Twine is also used at both ends of the column to help reinforce the column from splitting, from torquing in the wind and in the handling of setting up the tent.
Fit the base plate to the column base; make sure that it is not a tight fit, as this disk will help to spread the weight of the frame and tent evenly over the surface area.
Shown is the ten inch ground base disk, the base support to the base center column pole. The hole in the center is a positioning hole to center the base center column: made of 5/8 inch spruce plywood. If you are using a 1 1/2 inch dowel on the column base, drill a two inch hole in the center of the ten inch disk. Finish with a good waterproof finish on all sides
On the bottom end of the upper center pole, in this case a 1 1/2 inch dowel mill to thickness of the ID measurement of the steel tube the distance of the length of the steel tube insert of the base column. This area of milling on the dowel should not be tight, but not excessively loose. When the tinker toy is inserted through the center hole, and the tube will accept the upper center pole, no screws or bolts will be required to hold the pole assembly together. Gravity is what will hold this assembly together when set up vertically within the pavilion.
On the other end of the 1 1/2 dowel of the upper pole drill a 5/16 inch pilot hole, than a 3/8 inch hole 3/4 inch in depth to receive the insert as shown above. This will accept a finale or the banner pole. Keep in mind that the bolt the will run from the finale to the center pole must be long enough to accept the guild rope disk. This disk will be used to secure the guild ropes that help stabilize the center pole while setting up the pavilion.
Here we are checking the fit of all the parts for the center column. Shown here are the base column, the tinker toy and the upper center pole.
The guild rope disk; as in most cases I am usually the only one that is setting up the tent for myself at anachronism events, and require some shore of device that aids me in setting up the tent. Tied a rope to each of the eye screws (these screws should be at least 1 inch long and a ¼ in the thread part) shown here and run out at 120 degrees approx. These ropes should be long enough so as not to hamper in the setup of the tent. Min. length since the tents overall height is 14 ft high would be at least 25 feet long per rope.
The disk is made of 2 5/8-inch plywood, finished with an exterior finish, and because of the thickness of the two layers drill one of the disk with a 1-1/2 inch hole. The other would be drilled with a 5/16-inch hole. See section on setup for more details. You may wish to make a round disk, but in my case I wishes to keep the diameter overall to 6 inches. Tip if finishing with a finale, do not drill a 1-½ inch hole in the first layer. Only drill a 5/16- inch hole through both layers.
Check fit of the rope disk. In this case the fit is checked with the banner pole been attached.
The final product when all parts are put together for the center column. Here we are looking from the base to the top. This photo also shows the banner pole assembly as well.
The upper center pole contains at one end and insert and rod to support the banner pole and to aid in keeping the roof and inner roof fabric in place. No bolts or tools will be required to set this arrangement up. For more information of setup please go to set up of a 12 spoke center pole pavilion for detail photos.
Hardware for frame
Not much hardware will be needed and the beauty of this method of construction, after been made, the only tool needed will be a hammer and that is to set tent pins. The hardware required will be 13 inserts and 13 bolts with a screw thread on one end and a bolt thread on the other.
To set hardware lets begin with the inserts. I used the ¼ inch ID threaded insert that will require a 3/8-drill bit. Drill a single hole 5/16 inch first to a depth of 2 inches at one end; center on the dowel spokes. This is where the twine that is wrapped on the ends will help to prevent splitting. Follow this with a 3/8 hole roughly ¾ inch depth. That a 2 inch ¼ inch bolt and thread two ¼ inch nuts on to machine bolt and thread roughly ¾ down the bolt, and jamb the nuts against each other. Thread into insert and than thread the insert carefully into the dowel to the insert is slightly below the surface of the dowel end. You will need a 9/16 wrench to thread the insert. Once installed loosen the bolt; the jamb nuts will usually free up when loosing, thus eliminating much of the chance of threading the insert out. Tip: use a bit of Weldbond Glue on the outer threads of the insert as a lubricate and when set, will prevent the insert from accidentally been thread out when disassemble begins. Repeat process 12 times for spokes and once for top of upper center pole.
The tool I made for inserting the threaded inserts into the spokes and the upper center pole. Shown here is the bolt, the two jamb nuts and the threaded insert. Some suppliers may even supply the tool to install these inserts.
Shown is the connector bolt inserted into the finale and the dowel with the insert. You may wish at this time glue a rubber O ring to the finale to prevent leaks into the tent in rain events.
The next step will be to take the 13 finales if not using a banner pole otherwise 12 finales and the banner pole. These type of connectors are ¼ inch bolt thread on one end and lag screw thread on the other end. For ease of installation of these connectors, drill a 3/16 hole about 1-½ inches deep. These holes will act as pilot’s holes to guild the lag screw end of the connector. Do not thread these right down to the bolt thread end, as you will need a little excess to allow for the recession within the finale, which is about a ¼ inch deep, and for the grommets - two for sure, but if choosing the optional liner add an extra 2 which can use up to ¾ inch in thickness. The combined would be 1 inch, and these connectors overall size is roughly 2 ½ inches long. Tip: For instillation of these connectors use two ¼ nuts and thread onto the bolt end of the connector. You only need to flush the last ¼ inch bolt on the connector. The first nut, jamb it against the second thus creating a head to use the 9/16 wrench to thread the connector into the finale. Use glue to lubricate the lag screw end, been careful not to get glue of the thread end. The same method if you are using the banner pole instead of the 13th finale.
Banner Pole - Optional
This adds a nice touch, but it is optional. You will need one piece roughly between 3 and 4 feet in length and roughly 1 5/16 diameter or better. Glue a bit of twine on either end to prevent splitting, but with the top end before gluing, halfway on the length of twine – roughly 3 feet in length make a loop, big enough to accept a snap ring. Do so with the other length of twine that will be roughly 5 inches up from the bottom of the base of the banner pole. At the top of banner pole you may want to add a finale to give it the finishing touch.
Packaging and handling of frame – this includes the optional banner pole
When completed there should be at least 12 spokes, and 2 center poles, along with the tinker toy, and ground base disk if choosing the option the banner pole, along with 12 finales. In short this packs down into a bag 7 ft long x 6-½ inch square. This means less lumberyard to carry verse the star pavilions. If making a bag, it is suggested to place plywood ends –at least of ¼ inch plywood to prevent the dowels from projecting if one hits the brakes. This now becomes a stable package, and is easy to load. Approx. weight should be around 20 lbs. The disk somewhere around 10 lbs.
With the finales, make a box that will fit 12 units complete with the bolt attachment
Shown is the bag that contains the framework of the medieval center pole tent less the tinker toy and base. The finales shown to the right will go into another box, with the threaded rods, and tie ropes measuring approx 7 inches x 12 inches and 6 inches high.
Finishing
This is where your taste can vary. I myself like the appearance of wood grain brought out by dark stain, but it is a must, because these frames are subject to weather changes, be it temperature or and moisture. Even though the frame may not be exposed to rain or snow, it is subject to humidity in the air, and to stabilize the wood it is a very good idea to seal the wood, either through stains and vanishes or through a good quality exterior paint. With varnishes it has an advantage over paint, as it can take a bit more abuse, and does allow for the warn tones of the natural materials to show. It also acts as a further bonding agent on the twine that is wrapped on the dowels for reinforcing.
Finishing of the frame should be done before setting the frame up for the first time to finalize the fabric pattern. Allow at least a few days to past for the finish to set, before handing and setting up. If the finish is not completely set or dried, it is easy to damage.
Now that the frame is complete we now move onto the fabric canvas covering for the tent. Here is shown the bag containing the bundle of spokes and columns, and the required disks, along with the tinker toy and the box that contains the 12 finales. For an idea of the size the bag shown the measurements are 7 feet long with the end been 6 1/2 inches square. The tinker toy is 22 inches in diameter and 2 inches thick.
