BYOB.... (bring your own boulder?)

i would be outside working in my hideous yard right now ...but because i am currently working the graveyard shift i just woke up. boo. trust me, nothing kills your climbing life like the noc-shift. so since i am all groggy and cranky i think ill work on the designs for the bouldering wall.

i did the initial drawings at work then did some refining today. the idea is that the bouldering wall will be mounted on the back side of the SHED. but that's not all, i wish it to be transportable and free standing when i want to. WHY? um, like i said earlier BYOB ...it makes the party! it will also have a hinge system allowing the wall to move from near vertical to 45 degrees overhanging. ill be honest i still hanvent worked out that part but it will come. what i have done is finished the design for the panels. you know how i like things to come apart. so, youll see how i fixed that problem and worked out the stability issues. by the way, i highly recommend being friends with an engineer. they come in handy when you need a design reviewed. so lets see what ive got.......


this give us the basic front view and jumping off point. the wall should be noted will be 12ft tall and 8ft wide. the different volumes, which i pencilled in, will be moveable giving the wall some variation. that along with the ability to change the angle will stay off stagnation and boredom....i think.

so on the left side of this "blueprint?" you see some cross section drawings. these illustrate the beams i will use to connect the six panels. this modular design will allow me to move the wall (again hence BYOB.... i dont understand why i need to keep explaining myself!) and it will also make it so that in the future i can add additional panels and make a 12x16ft wall like i really want! anyway these beam drawings will make more sense in the end the noted part would be that the continuous beam will have a 2x4 nailed to it to create more rigidity and strength. like and I-beam... only more of a T-beam. i dont know why this works exactly but it was strongly suggested by josh the engineer of the vulgarian gang! next note the bolt }----{ looking thing. that is in fact the concept, and how each panel will be framed and then bolted to the center and side beams! cool huh?


dont worry this picture should start to become clearer as we go. either that or you can do your own design and to hell with ya!

this next picture shows us a few things. first let me point out that we are now looking at the back side of the wall (opposite where the holds go). also note that the 2x6's framing the panel edges are certainly not drawn to scale. i know... i let us both down, but im not drawing it a fourth time just cause you have a hard time thinking abstractly! mindless ranting aside, we see here that the T-nut placements will be 6in. apart, starting 3in. from the edge. you see the bolt concept again.

what you dont see here is the I-beam concept i point out in the first drawing... but trust me ill still be using it. also you dont see that i plan to use either 3/4in or 1in marine grade plywood for the panels. now the reason i chose marine plywood, even though it is ridiculously expensive, is simple... and if you have read my other posts you know i live in the pacific northwest where weather ....RAIN! likes to destroy the glued layers of plywood. lastly i want it noted that the plywood panel will be screwed into the inner framing 2x6's then those will bolt to the outer continuous framing beams.


so this is the final zoom. i like how we kept getting closer to the wall. its a nice approach dont you think? hey! i even did this one to scale.

first off note that the framing in the center is recessed 3/4in so that the center continuous beam will be hidden at the front. again, we see how the the T-nuts are evenly spaced at 6in. even accrossed the seam between to panels. When i build these i plan to first cut the plywood, then drill the holes, next frame the panels on all four side with 2x6's. these will ofcourse be up on end like in the cross section view we saw before. i expect to use large deck screws. also note the inner frames will be reinforced with angle pieces at the corners.

so this is the basic plan for the wall. i still need to figure out how i will mount the hinges for changing the angle. Josh and i have been trying to figure out if hinges from the hardware store will do or if the weight will be to much for them. i also plan to work out the way it attaches to the SHED after i figure out exactly where in my yard it will be built. ultimately i am sure it will involve some kind of a kicker starting panel. but how that will look is still up in the air. details...


i almost forgot but this is the basic concept i am working from for when the wall is not mobile and attached to the SHED.

yes, i did steal this picture as well. we all know at this point that i am an internet clepto! so you can disregard the measurements, just think about the basics of the design and you'll see where im going with this. the main thing i really want to avoid is legs at the top of the wall. thats why this "foot" design strikes my fancy! (is fancy a hetero word?... never mind!)