Making my own Ali sand ladders
 

I'm thinking about making my own set of sand ladders up as I have cheap access to all things made of Ali.

Other than buying a sheet of ali and cutting it up, what else would be needed to make them into effective sand ladders?

I take it they would need holes punched in them? I'm assuming this because all sand ladders seem to have them. Are the edges of the holes turned up to provide grip?

It may actually be better to turn them into bridging ladders as well with a bit of welding.

Any thoughts appreciated...

You need the 'edges' for stiffness. In the same way that if you fold a piece of paper, it will resist bending along the fold.

I suspect that by the time you have machined/pressed/formed your ladders, you would have been better off just buying some - but let us know how it goes!

Sam.

Nah, think it will work out quite cheaply. Can buy the ali at cost price, and have plenty of machinery at hand to play around, and a large junk pieces bin to rumage through.

Though I agree that the potential for shagging about is endless ;-)

Any idea what size Ali to get? 5mm?

If its for sand your after and maybe mud, and bridging is`nt a requirement, why not some 25mm waffles, light cheap and perfect for the job.

As for making your own, it would`nt be that hard, I would have thought some 125thou/3mm would be adequate, you would have to fold it for stength, and its not just a matter of cutting holes you also need to form the hole to add strength, if you can get you hands on some dies and a press to form the holes it should`nt be a problem.

As Sam & Col say you need to roll/bend the edges to give some stiffness and in addition when you punch the holes you should also roll/bend the edges on each hole to give additional stiffness.I had Mantec ones which were superb. Perhaps someone on this forum has some that you can have a look at?



[This message has been edited by ctc (edited 15 December 2004).]

Mine are 1.25m long and 37cm wide (after folding). Made of 3mm aluminium.
Pics at:

Good Luck

Ive got a set of Alli ones you can have a look at. They are US-made from Cairo, a bit short (about 1m long) but fine, though being alli they bend easily.

Yo Yak, check this out, I know you were after a set.

http://www.slimrick.com/forum/viewto...er=asc&start=0

I’ve used many over the years and the ones that held well were 4mm thick with 4 longitudinal ribs (bends) from top to bottom and 3 rows of holes with bent edges for strength. I can get you close-up pictures if you want.

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A.B.

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