Spin Hoppers

March 3, 2022 Heath Gerlock

The Spin Hopper obstacles were engineered and fabricated for Louis & Kellie Amaro of the Midwest Warrior Academy. They contacted Solvers Manufacturing to design and fabricate unique obstacles for their gym. As we dialogued about their needs a number of important constraints were highlighted:

Project Constraints

Safe to use
Unique to their business
Well constructed
Easy to secure to their gym truss system
Easy to disassemble and transport
All surfaces and edges should be smooth
They should have a durable, bright red finish

Engineering

Louis provided links to pictures and YouTube videos to guide the design process. Solvers designed a 3D model, determined dimensions, and selected materials.

Estimation & Procurement

Estimation

With the Spin Hopper design finalized Solvers worked with suppliers to get quotes on materials. These quotes were used to finalize an estimate that was shared and accepted by Louis & Kellie Amaro.

Procurement

Supply chain constraints and escalating material costs were major factors in material selection. Material quality was also crucial. A few different types and dimensions of steel pipe and tube were selected during the design and engineering phase of the project. The 3-1/2" Schedule 40 pipe was sourced locally, but was freighted in from Texas where the oil and gas industry has extremely high standards for steel quality. Pillow blocks and 1" cold-rolled solid round bar were sourced from other suppliers.

Fabrication

As the materials arrived fabrication began. The following pictures show how the process for the Spin Hopper obstacles unfolded.

The 3-1/2" Schedule 40 pipe used for the spin hoppers needed to be perfectly smooth. To accomplish this the pipe was cut to length then machined to be perfectly concentric. The ends were chamfered to provide room for a heavy seam weld.

3-1/2" Schedule 40 Pipe before and after machining on the lathe

The steel dome caps were fully seam welded to the end of each pipe.

Steel dome caps welded to the ends of the pipe.

The weld seams were ground perfectly smooth and blended into the rest of the pipe.

Steel dome cap seam welds grounds smooth to blend with the pipe

1" holes were center drilled perpendicular to the pipe in order for the 1" solid cold-rolled steel round bar to be inserted. The 1" holes were chamfered as were the ends of the 1" shafts. This provided space for a heavy weld seam.

Shaft holes drilled through the center of each pipe and shafts fitted.

The shafts were welded on the top and bottom to the pipes. The top welds were ground flush to the pipe. The bottom welds were wire brushed to clean off a bit of weld spatter.

Top Dog Powder Coating did a brilliant job with the powder coating. They baked all the parts to degass them. Then they sandblasted all the surfaces for a uniform finish. They applied primer, color, and clear powder coat and baked the parts after each application. The results were outstanding!