Pipe Couplers for Tilt-Up Tower

[bzrqmy]

I have been offered up to 120' of 6" I.D. pipe. (Free)  The sections are in approximately 12' lengths that have been torch cut.  They used to hold up the awning on an old fashioned drive in restaruant.  I am planning on building a 60 foot tilt-up tower similar to my 42 foot tower that my 10 footer fleis on.

http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2009/4/13/44910/0356

The new tower will host a 17 footer some day.

What I need is a reliable mechanical coupler or some kind of sleeve that is 6.625" I.D. that can be welded.  I am sure that someone has already been down this road.

Any ideas?

[tanner0441]

Hi

You don't have a problem cutting accuratly and welding, couldn't you make flanges with gussets to share the load along the pipe?

Or split sections of pipe to sleeve the joints, you don't mention the wall thickness.

Definatly too good an oportunity to miss out on.

[scorman]

here is a link to some pics of what I consider a really slick pipe coupler design.

Included is the fixture for setup for welding.

The only adder is that I would run two 3/8 inch bolts through the two tower pipe sections and coupler for alignment purposes.

http://www.greenpowertalk.org/showpost.php?p=6003&postcount=48

Stew Corman from sunny Endicott

[freejuice]

If you get in a pinch, try these folks...the have a location just about in every state: http://www.ryerson.com/products-services/carbon-alloy.asp

 Give them a call, they have about every kind of wall thickness; I.D. O.D. combinations imaginable. If you need less than a full length, ask to see if they have a "drop" ( A cut piece from a former customer's order lying around) that they threw back into the steel rack....sometimes with a drop you can get lucky with a good price.

 Good luck,

 Gavin

[freejuice]

Oh, I found thier stock list....just scroll down the page listed previously and click on "Stock List"...just a quick glance at schedule 40 I found 6.625 ID:

http://www.ryerson.com/stocklist/StocklistServlet?COM=GetTable&ID=1562

[freejuice]

Doh, my boo-boo, I gave you schedule 40 with a 6.625 OD,...anyway I looked again It appears they have 6.625 ID, in schedule 80 ( thick stuff, around 1/2 inch wall thickness)....the mechanical tubing they have listed for 6.625 ID has a little bit less wall thickness.

 Gavin

[fabricator]

Wow! That is really one slick way to put a tower together!

[imsmooth]

I built some couplers for my 3"OD pipe.

http://mindchallenger.com/wind/axial2.html