Windjammer - Umbrella Holder
December 4th, 2005My complexion demands the belt-and-suspenders approach to sun protection: SPF 30+ & shade. Since New England beaches are blustery on the best of days, I spent more time clutching my umbrella than enjoying the surf-sounds. None of those wimpy plastic screws could hold the umbrella fast in the face of the wind. Windjammer is a simple metal fabrication project that solved a problem that I experienced all summer–beach umbrella blow-down.
To make Windjammer
- cut two dorsal fin-shaped blades from a mid-gauge sheet metal (I used 10 gauge steel) using a plasma cutter (as I did), a bandsaw, or cutting torch.
- heat the blades using an oxy-acetylene torch (as I did), a smithing forge, or maybe even a propane torch. [heavier hammer work could substitute for heating]
- hammer the blades into a propeller-like, curvy shape that presents the tip of the fin as opposing points (make them mirror images rather than identical — [hint: flip one over]).
- cut a 2.5-foot section of steel tube or pipe with something like a 3/4″ - 1″ interior diameter (this needs to be big enough admit the shaft of your umbrella). I used tubing from a chopped-up bicycle.
- cut a 3-foot section of 1/4″ steel rod or bar stock (maybe a piece of rebar?)
- drill a 1/4″ hole about 2-inches from one end of the tube. (make sure that the hole does not weaken the tube structure significantly but allows the bar stock to enter easily).
- now drill & tap a smaller hole through the tube about 2-inches below the first hole to allow you to screw in wing-capped screws (recommend drilling them through east-west if you view the first hole as north-south) [if the tube is too thin to tap effectively, you can also weld on a nut to the outside of the hole]
- weld the flats of both blades at the other end of the tube on opposing sides. Position them so that the tips of both will engage the sand at something like a 30-degree angle.