[dkard]

The thread on the low cost 12" DIY stabilizer got to me start working on mine. I picked up 2 Graphite Golf Club shafts at a garage sale for $.50 a couple years back. I thought I would machine a tapered cylinder with a threaded hole down the center. Doing a taper on the lathe I have access to is not feasible. I can't get a smooth finish on a straight cylinder as their is so much play in the lathe.

So I decided a finished stab even if not "elegant" was better than no stab.

Off to Fastenal to pick up 5/16x24 bolts. Got 3 for $.93.

Put the bolt in the lathe and got a file, This could be done with a drill and a grinding wheel too.


I rounded the bolt head, put a slight taper on it. I continued til the head would slide down the shaft and snug up against the walls of the head leaving the proper amount of thread exposed.
I also snaded the shaft lightly so epoxy could grab better.

 

[dkard]

After grinding the head, I checked to see how far it fits in the shaft



Always was concerned about getting the bold to come out straight So i drilled and tapped a hole for the 5/16" bolt in a piece of aluminum. The shaft had a even cut. If the head is contacting the inside surface and the plate is flat on the end of the shaft. I should be perpendicular adn centered.

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[dkard]

I put a plastic washer under the plate to keep the plate from getting glued to the stab.

Lightly sanded the inside of the shaft, wiped it down with 91% alcohol and let dry. I also put a small piece if foam in the shaft so the JB Weld would not all run down to the bottom of the shaft.

Mixed up the JB Weld, partially filled the end of the shaft, put the bolt in, and sort of with an up and down motion got some JB under the bolt and then filled in above the bolt head. Made sure the plate was flush with the end of the shaft and then duct taped the plate down while the JB hardened.

This is the finished end. Now I need to decide how long a Stab I want and cut the shaft to length and epoxy in the 1/4 X 20 road. The shaft is about 43" long, I am thinking maybe a 10" and a 30" stab. The last few inches are solid and thin,



Total cost,

$.25 for the shaft
$.31 for the bolt
$4.50 for the JB
$1.50 for the 1/4" all thread but I should get at least 4 stabs out of that.
Washer was in a bunch of stuff laying around.

So less than $7 total. No machine tools really necessary.

Time into is so far, About 20 minutes filing the bolt heads. I did 3 though.
About 10 minutes drilling and tapping the plate. Took longer to find the tap then to do.

Gluing about 10 minutes. Took longer than expected because the JB was more viscous than I remembered and I when I put the bolt in, the foam was pushed down like a piston and I had to mix up more JB to top off the bolt.

I did all the work in short spurts between teaching classes.

If you go this route, since the corners on the bolt head are what keep the polt from sliding in, a slight file goes from not going in at all to going in pretty far. The first bolt I filed, will slide all the way in and not snug up against the shaft with threads extended. I figure if I cut the shaft to 12" or so, I will be able to use that bolt on the remaining shaft and make another stab

It took longer to get to Walmart and Fastenal to get the pieces than it did to actually do the project.

 

[kenn1320]

Looking forward to this. Something to ponder, supporting the tube internally induces hoop stress.

 

[dkard]

I have to pick my daughter up from golf team practice after work. I am going to see if the Pro Shop can cut the shafts to length. They must do it to shorten people's clubs for that custom fit.

They should be able to get a square cut, probably a better one than I can get with my arrow saw.

 

[dkard]

I figure as long as I do not force the bolt in and I get enough epoxy around and behind the bolt head I should be ok, I have 3" or so of bolt in the shaft surrounded by epoxy.

I figure if the shaft can hold up to repeated 100mph swings into the ball and the ground, it should handle the weight on the end.

Worse case scenario, the shaft cracks and I am out $7.

 

[Unkle Bond]

Hello
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Made a few stabilizers. [ Later