DIY ARTICULATING HELPER ARM!!!

**Bony** · Jan 28, 2022, 07:25 PM

I made one of these about 12 months ago and used a female threaded plastic knob in place of the nut which squeezes the ball bearings together. This very conveniently allows the tightness to be hand adjusted.
Also if ball bearings are placed in a slow combustion wood heater for a few hours and the fire is allowed to die down to hot ashes overnight the bearings will become soft enough to drill and if drilled in a lathe the hole will be dead centre of the sphere. If the hole is just a whisker undersized the shaft can be press fit into place. This not only saves welding but allows a neater joint free of weld metal.
I found a hole size about 10% larger than ball bearing provided the best fit and level of grip whilst allowing maximum movement within the side brackets.
The addition of a large switchable magnet as the base also adds a very significant improvement in usability.
Hope this helps anyone intending to make one.

**neilg4dbn** · Feb 1, 2022, 02:38 PM

I like the idea of making the rods a press fit. I wondered about trying to anneal some balls then drilling and tapping them, but a simple press fit should work better. Thanks.