How Do I Make an Equilateral Triangle from Copper Piping?

[Evastar]

I want to make an icosahedron from copper piping, approx 1.5 metres in diameter.

http://www.rogersconnection.com/triangles/images/icosahedron.jpg

An icosahedron is made from 20 equilateral triangles joined together, but i can't find any 120 degree elbow joints so need to find an alternative way to joint the copper.

Anyone any suggestions for me?

[gazz10]

get a pipe bender, not all that expensive, am sure pick one for the price u going to pay using connections, and then just solder the triangles together

[Evastar]

Thanks for the suggestion, but already thought of that. No way a pipe spring would bend it to that angle, it would get stuck in the joint. Plus the copper is likely to split.

[gazz10]

not a pipe spring a pipe bender, pipe bender can bend to that angle no problem, and a pipe spring could do the same 180 to 120 not all that much.

and why 120...equilateral triangle should be 60

[xant14]

Alright Eva, an interesting piece.
A pipe bender, or spring will bend it no problem, but you will struggle getting the right angle, as it is bent one way and then three dimensionally the other way too. and doing that with a spring, I reckon you'd make a mess.
The way I'd do it, is cut individual tubes, to the exact size, using a jig so none are even a millimetre different. Then you get big ball bearings to make your connection, big enough to take 5 tubes as your pic shows. Tack them on with solder or even glue to start. And work your way untill you have your shape, probably breaking some joints to get it right, then solder the whole thing up.

maybe not what u want, copper and chrome. What's it for? a garden ornament?

Have you ever seen the game magnatron I think it is? I bought my little one it last year, ball bearings and strong magnets, i have made that shape myself. although not 1.5m big.

[father ted]

does it have to be copper?get someone to mig or tig weld some pics of pipe you can notch out the tubing so that it will take the balls ,a good fabricator/welder can do that np

[Mjolinor]

Baking my noodle on this.
Take a ball of radius 1

If you draw an equalateral triangle on a bit of paper then look at it each angle is 60 degrees, if you have one of the points close to you and the opposite side horizontal (triangle upside down) then you rotate the top line away from you what you apparently see is the angle at the bottom getting bigger. When that angle gets to 72 degrees we need to know the apparent length of the other two sides.

Using trig, A/sin(A) = B/ sin(B) so we make the length 1 for easy arithmetic, 1/sin(72) = X/sin(54)

this means that X = 0.851

This is the radius of the circle where 5 of the equilateral triangle sides will fit.

Now we need to convert this to a height above centre on our ball, this is Pythagoras. sqrt(1^2 - 0.851^2) = Height above centre.

It works out at 0.526 above centre.

Where is my mistake as it doesn't seem to work.

[xant14]

yeah I was gonna say that...no I wasn't

[chroma]

Get brake pipe.
Its copper and extremely maleable.
Bend it all by hand ;)

[forntida]

Baking my noodle on this.
Take a ball of radius 1

If you draw an equalateral triangle on a bit of paper then look at it each angle is 60 degrees, if you have one of the points close to you and the opposite side horizontal (triangle upside down) then you rotate the top line away from you what you apparently see is the angle at the bottom getting bigger. When that angle gets to 72 degrees we need to know the apparent length of the other two sides.

Using trig, A/sin(A) = B/ sin(B) so we make the length 1 for easy arithmetic, 1/sin(72) = X/sin(54)

this means that X = 0.851

This is the radius of the circle where 5 of the equilateral triangle sides will fit.

Now we need to convert this to a height above centre on our ball, this is Pythagoras. sqrt(1^2 - 0.851^2) = Height above centre.

It works out at 0.526 above centre.

Where is my mistake as it doesn't seem to work.

You've been looking over Zaps' shoulder. That is plagiarism.:rofl:

[zaphodbb]

You've been looking over Zaps' shoulder. That is plagiarism.:rofl:

i agree deeyam cheek hmmm what are we talking about again ?

[Evastar]

Thanks for all the help everyone.

Yes, it has to be copper. I can't go for the lighter copper because it needs to be the size it is and wouldn't be rigid enough in the 10 mm copper.

The reason i say 120 degree angle instead of 60 is because most people making joints count from the outside of the angle, i was looking at 60 deg angles on the net and they were the wrong angle.

We are going to go looking for suitable parts today, so i will keep you all posted.

Any more ideas in the meantime would be great :)

[Evastar]

We did it!

Or should i say my hubby did it! After hours looking around the plumbers suppliers and B&Q he tried some 90 deg elbow joints, cut the 1/2 inch pipe to size and bent the 90's to 120's/60's by brute force. We had thought they would break or split, but surprisingly enough they didn't! So after making the correct shape he heated them at the joints to melt the solder, and it worked perfectly!

Now to join all the triangles together ;)

[zaphodbb]

We did it!

Or should i say my hubby did it! After hours looking around the plumbers suppliers and B&Q he tried some 90 deg elbow joints, cut the 1/2 inch pipe to size and bent the 90's to 120's/60's by brute force. We had thought they would break or split, but surprisingly enough they didn't! So after making the correct shape he heated them at the joints to melt the solder, and it worked perfectly!

Now to join all the triangles together ;)

well eva we are all waiting for pics of the ic icos hmmm ah the icosahedron ? so when your ready dear ???

[Evastar]

Well it's not finished yet zap, but all the triangles are made and welded, the middle section is put together and bolted with brass bolts, the top and bottom sections are bolted together, the top is just joined on with plastic ties at the moment, needs to be attached properly, and the base needs to be made.

I have a couple of pics of what's done so far, here they are:

Some of the triangles:

http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/3114/dscf0120.jpg (http://img256.imageshack.us/i/dscf0120.jpg/)

The base:

http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/2069/dscf0159q.jpg (http://img220.imageshack.us/i/dscf0159q.jpg/)

The middle and the top section:

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/8762/dscf0161b.jpg (http://img6.imageshack.us/i/dscf0161b.jpg/)

[zaphodbb]

hey nice job, plastic ties are great for holding stuff together till you fit it all together. so next pics will be you sitting in it wi a bicardi an coke the lol and the second pic you look a lot smaller than i imagined lol

[Evastar]

There's still a lot to be done before it's ready, the corner domes need to be made, he made a sample one and has given it to a sheet metal fabricator to copy, so they won't be back until next week, the base needs to be made and painted, he has a sheet of wbp ply for that, and i have to order other stuff for it as well. :)

That's my four year old niece zap lol

[cactikid]

hope no thunder or lightning near you lol,shocking eh

[xant14]

Looks brill so far eva, done a nice job.

[forntida]

Well it's not finished yet zap, but all the triangles are made and welded, the middle section is put together and bolted with brass bolts, the top and bottom sections are bolted together, the top is just joined on with plastic ties at the moment, needs to be attached properly, and the base needs to be made.

I have a couple of pics of what's done so far, here they are:

Some of the triangles:

http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/3114/dscf0120.jpg (http://img256.imageshack.us/i/dscf0120.jpg/)

The base:

http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/2069/dscf0159q.jpg (http://img220.imageshack.us/i/dscf0159q.jpg/)

The middle and the top section:

http://img6.imageshack.us/img6/8762/dscf0161b.jpg (http://img6.imageshack.us/i/dscf0161b.jpg/)That looks fantastic mate. Well done.:proud:

[cactikid]

hi luv what are your intentions with this new form of art.nice project.lol

[Evastar]

Well it has all been bolted together at this stage and the base/seat is under construction, 18mm wbp ply glued and screwed together, needs to be painted still. I also polished some of the copper pipes, i don't think i'll be doing that too often. So far it has taken my hubby 15 hours plus a helper (helper doesn't do that much good, but is needed to hold things and fetch and carry etc ;)).

The finished shape:

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/8035/dscf0166h.jpg (http://img39.imageshack.us/i/dscf0166h.jpg/)

With the base:

http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/1396/dscf0171.jpg (http://img291.imageshack.us/i/dscf0171.jpg/)

What it looks like from the top of the garden:

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/2489/dscf0172ola.jpg (http://img39.imageshack.us/i/dscf0172ola.jpg/)


You asked what it's going to be for cacti, it has two purposes, one to look nice in my garden, and two to sit in for meditating :)

By the way that is not a flowerbed on the left, it's my veg patch and i just dug the spuds out, that's why it's so bare looking lol

[sandiemag]

Eva, thats a fantastic job.

Well Done :top:

[chrismccabe]

looks brilliant well done approx how long did it take you:ahhhhh:

[chrismccabe]

approx 15 hours just amazed at it forgot to read message:giveup:

[cactikid]

bravo eva job well done,what flavour incense are you going to use.expect to see something like that in dr who lol.

[yorkslad]

what channels will that pick up lol, looks great well done 2 the hubby

[andy4]

well done to hubby eh eva you'll spend many a happy hour in there, bet you'll get in some cracking positions to lol

[yorkslad]

eva you'll spend many a happy hour in there, bet you'll get in some cracking positions to lol
yes bet we dont get to see them pics lol

[cactikid]

watch this space.

[Evastar]

Thanks very much for all the helpful comments guys, i'll keep you posted on the rest of the build :)

[Evastar]

Ok at this stage the base is finished and we are just waiting for other parts to be delivered. Hopefully they will arrive this week and we can get it finished at the weekend :)

http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/3416/dscf0174s.jpg (http://img245.imageshack.us/i/dscf0174s.jpg/)

http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/2177/dscf0175d.jpg (http://img411.imageshack.us/i/dscf0175d.jpg/)

[zaphodbb]

very good job eva, well made but in the first pick i think yer hubby has left his pork pie on the wall hmmm

[Evastar]

lol no zap, that's a terracotta thing my neighbour has on her house wall ;)

And thanks, i think he's doing a great job :)

[Evastar]

I only polished it once Jok, it rained yesterday so looks quite tarnished now. :( I might polish it once more when it's finished, but that's it lol

[forntida]

I only polished it once Jok, it rained yesterday so looks quite tarnished now. :( I might polish it once more when it's finished, but that's it lol

Can you not varnish(clear) after you have cleaned and polished it. Then it would not lose some of its magic.

[Evastar]

Thanks, but i think i'm going to let it turn green :)

[aftermath]

i didnt know you kept pigeons eva...

[daithi]

if you dont mind me asking whats it for it deadly looking well artistic looking it looks like it should be in a park or something

[lad-eng]

you should also be able to join the copper pipe together using gas torch and the solder.
if you do this from the inside you wouldn't be able to see the cable ties.

[Evastar]

@aftermath - i can't keep pigeons, the cat is partial to killing birds :(

The problem with using gas and solder was that we needed to make equilateral triangles, no way the pipe would bend that far without splitting. The cable ties were only temporarily attached to get the angles perfect before bolting the pipes together with brass bolts.

It's not finished yet, we are waiting for copper domes to be delivered that will fit on all the joints, there will be magnets attached under them and then crystals over the magnets, all pointing into the centre.

And as to what it is for, it's for raising your vibrational energy levels, so you sit in it and meditate :)

[daithi]

while your in there meditating try spare a few minute and really concentrate on cracking nagra 3 for everyone :laugh:

[Evastar]

So at this stage the copper discs and magnets arrived, and the discs have been polished, made into the proper shape and bolted to the icosahedron. The magnets have been attached with mastic. He's also filled all the pipes with mastic, to get rid of the hollow sound, so some of the bolts need to be reattached there, after i clean the excess mastic off.

The copper discs:

http://img44.imageshack.us/img44/1092/dscf0176f.jpg (http://img44.imageshack.us/i/dscf0176f.jpg/)

Bolting the top dome on:

http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/5072/dscf0181ppi.jpg (http://img269.imageshack.us/i/dscf0181ppi.jpg/)

One of the copper domes from the inside:

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/9729/dscf0185bgl.jpg (http://img27.imageshack.us/i/dscf0185bgl.jpg/)

All that needs to be done now is for the crystals to be attached when they arrive, (hopefully today or tomorrow) and then i will polish it once more, just to get a nice picture, and it's ready :)

[sandiemag]

great work eva, looks the biz :congrats:

[yorkslad]

wow its looking even better now Evastar, will we get to see a pic of you in it??

[maca]

great stuff eva when you've finished come to our house and install the new central heating lol

[cactikid]

i think she wants to hide in there from me, is the frame grounded with a cable to discharge lightning strikes lol.
well done

[Evastar]

Why would i want to hide from you cacti? lol

No, i discussed that with my hubby and he felt we didn't need a grounding cable?

[yorkslad]

Evastar how much as it cost to make ?

[Evastar]

I haven't got figures yet for the copper discs, but i guess around ?500, plus about 40 hours of his time, plus a helper for half of that, so not cheap lol

[yorkslad]

wow thats a lot of cash, and labour if you had to pay for it, so you could say well over 1000, hope you get your moneys worth out of it, i dont want to see it on e bay in 6 months time lol

[Evastar]

It definitely won't be going on ebay, for a start it would have to be totally taken apart to get it out of the garden, so would be easier to make a new one. It's stuck where it is, unless we move house lol

[Evastar]

So just to give an update, i have been waiting and waiting for the crystals i ordered to arrive, the guy says he definitely posted them, but today i have decided to give up and have ordered them from somewhere else, so hopefully will have them on tuesday.

[ruudvandan]

So just to give an update, i have been waiting and waiting for the crystals i ordered to arrive, the guy says he definitely posted them, but today i have decided to give up and have ordered them from somewhere else, so hopefully will have them on tuesday.

you got his address? I could easily arrange for a couple of guy to go round with baseball bats ;)

[Evastar]

I didn't pay for them lol He was supposed to be sending an invoice with the crystals. So all it's cost me is time. I guess they just wern't the right crystals for the job.

[ruudvandan]

ah well. it looks good at the mo anyway!

[anto1969]

Looks brill T, hope it gets plenty of use :D

[Evastar]

Thanks anto. I have a queue of people waiting to use it, if it ever gets finished :(

The guy that was to have crystals for me on tuesday said that his wholesaler didn't have what i wanted and has promised me them for next tuesday instead.

I have also heard that the english postal service has a backlog of 20 million parcels so am hoping that mine is one of them and will arrive soon, so i might end up with too many! Better than none!

[cactikid]

oh another newbie lol hi anto,hmm what crystals lol

[Evastar]

The amethyst and citrine crystals that are going to be attached in each of the points, one citrine in each of the lower six, and an amethyst in each of the top six. They will be attached over the magnets, to amplify the electromagnetic field :)

[manster]

you are looking at the ball and pipe as a 2d image . When really it is 3d . the only way to draw it out is using radial or parrallel line development

[Evastar]

You are confusing me here, draw what, they are photos of the finished article?

[manster]

sorry evastar I posted this wrongly I thought there was only 1 page of posts not 6 . Just ignore it. It was the way to mathematically do it.

[manster]

it should have followed mjalinor and Forntida 's post
Sorry

[Evastar]

Yeah, you wouldn't think it would have generated so many posts, and it's not finished yet lol

[Evastar]

Ok, this is starting to sound really unbelievable but i still don't have my crystals.

All i am looking for are rough amethyst and citrine points, around 3 - 4 inches long, they are relatively common and shouldn't have been too hard to get.

But the crystal seller in England i ordered them from well over a month ago swears he sent them and they never arrived, two of the best known crystal sellers in Ireland have been trying to get them for me and haven't been able to, and the one morning i went into a crystal shop looking for them they had just had a fire and weren't open for business!

So i thought i would get them this weekend, i have just spent the weekend at an angel workshop in Northern Ireland, and i knew there would be somebody there selling crystals. Guess what, they didn't have what i want either :(

Looks like i need to work on my patience.

[Pound 1]

Eva
Forgive me asking but what is it for ????????

[Evastar]

It's for sitting in and meditating. The combination of sacred geometry, copper, magnets and programmed crystals creates a powerful energy field that helps to raise your vibrational level. :)

[cactikid]

lightning rod comes to mind.

[Evastar]

Yeah you've said that before cacti, but it's not higher than the surrounding buildings, in fact it's much lower, and i always heard that lightning went to the highest point? So if a number of houses around us have aeriels, satellite dishes etc, surely they would be more likely to attract lightning than something 8 ft off the ground?

I will be attaching some copper wire to the bottom and burying the end in the earth, but to get a grounding connection for the energy, not because i'm afraid it'll get hit by lightning!

[DJSimo]

Yeah you've said that before cacti, but it's not higher than the surrounding buildings, in fact it's much lower, and i always heard that lightning went to the highest point? So if a number of houses around us have aeriels, satellite dishes etc, surely they would be more likely to attract lightning than something 8 ft off the ground?

I will be attaching some copper wire to the bottom and burying the end in the earth, but to get a grounding connection for the energy, not because i'm afraid it'll get hit by lightning!

You just need a Mesh Faraday Shield around it now to protect you from all the RF waves attracted by those dishes and aerials around you.

[Evastar]

Good idea DJ, thanks, but i think i'll be ok. There aren't that many ariels lol ;)

[cactikid]

think of what is in an electric cable- copper,clap of thunder run like hell lol.

[DJSimo]

Good idea DJ, thanks, but i think i'll be ok. There aren't that many ariels lol ;)

lol But seriously read this :- Protection and shielding EMF and RF radiation (http://www.radiationtalk.com/info/radiation_protection.php)

You will be surprised, I have done a college project on this and more, Those RF waves in some circumstances can be really harmfull, and affect sleep something which meditating can cure, not sure why you meditate but something to bear in mind or another perspective to look at.

[Evastar]

At this stage i have contacted practically every crystal shop/seller in Ireland and still haven't found what i'm looking for, i have now ordered the citrine from a seller in the US and am waiting to hear back from somebody else about the amethyst.

I have also started using the icosahedron, after all the crystals are only part of it and it works very well without them. Two of my friends have been in it meditating and so have i, and it has a very powerful energy :)

So i am very pleased with the way it has turned out :)

[cactikid]

i am shocked to hear that lol

[Evastar]

Yeah, and we haven't been hit by lightning yet cacti ;)

[cactikid]

save the best for last,add a few blinking lights and take a photo late at night et has landed lol

[Evastar]

Ok cacti, you'll be pleased to hear that i got my hubby to put a grounding rod in and attach it to the icosahedron with a grounding cable.

Or maybe not? lmao

[cactikid]

ok thunder storm on its way over lol

[Evastar]

So i finally got an email from the original crystal seller, the parcel he sent me in August has been returned to him with the address label missing. At least he got it back and knows i wasn't trying to rip him off.

He will be in Ireland for the Mind Body Spirit show at the end of October, so will bring the crystals i need with him.

At this stage i am waiting on crystals that i hope are suitable to be delivered from America too, so looks like i will have lots to choose from in another couple of weeks! :)

[Evastar]

Well my friend and i activated the icosahedron thursday before last, and i haven't had a decent nights sleep since! I guess it will take me a while to get used to the energy levels. That must be why the crystals haven't arrived for me, i needed to get used to it first, before making the energy field stronger. :)

[cactikid]

i see the Bermuda triangle has moved lol

[Evastar]

I had some relations around for dinner today, none of whom would be interested in my kind of stuff, so was interesting to have someone to try the icosahedron that isn't used to energy work.

So my cousin had an amazing experience, she saw colours and lights and felt like she was underwater, she was only in it for about ten minutes before dinner lol

[Evastar]

The crystals i ordered from America arrived yesterday, they are nice, but not exactly what i want, so i am going to wait until the mind, body, spirit and get the other set, then decide which ones to use :)

[Evastar]

So i got my crystals on sunday, buried them overnight, then gave them a sea salt bath and programmed them on monday, we put them in on monday, and the energy is amazing now :)

Not sure whether i need to give it one final polish for taking pics, what do you guys think?

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/1901/dscf0318k.jpg (http://img27.imageshack.us/i/dscf0318k.jpg/)

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/1741/dscf0319u.jpg (http://img27.imageshack.us/i/dscf0318k.jpg/)

[Raff]

Here is an additional add on :) well impressed with your meditation idea


The InnerPulse system comes with ultra bright green glasses that have been specially selected for meditation and relaxation. The green lights provide extremely soothing visual stimulation and are very restful - even for people with sensitive eyes.

The InnerPulse uses sine wave light which which pulses light waves that start dim and gradually increase until full illumination. The light then gradually decreases in intensity until it is dim again. This minimises eye strain and produces a very relaxing effect.

[cactikid]

hard to see eva,if it needs a polish send hubby out with duraglit lol.

[Evastar]

I might just leave it, it's an awful lot of work for something that only lasts a couple of days. :)

[Evastar]

well haven't been hit by lightning yet, the copper is turning a dark brown colour, and have had lots of my friends and students/clients using it. some have had amazing experiences, some just find it really peaceful and relaxing. i bought a yoga seat for it and it's really comfortable :)

i tend not to use it much in winter, but when the weather is nice can sit out there with a meditation cd on, or just in silence, and find it great :)

[Jasper1992]

Nice building :)

[Meat-Head]

So i got my crystals on sunday, buried them overnight, then gave them a sea salt bath and programmed them on monday, we put them in on monday, and the energy is amazing now :)



Awesome - never see this thread first time around - looks cool, but bet is now gone up in value due to copper prices and lead etc.

Good job the pikey's didn't see this thread.

Hope you charge people money to use it - otherwise not worth doing.

The crystals do you programme via USB, bluefish, RS232 serial, Eithernet, infra red or by pushing buttons on an lcd display?

[Evastar]

Awesome - never see this thread first time around - looks cool, but bet is now gone up in value due to copper prices and lead etc.

Good job the pikey's didn't see this thread.

Hope you charge people money to use it - otherwise not worth doing.

The crystals do you programme via USB, bluefish, RS232 serial, Eithernet, infra red or by pushing buttons on an lcd display?

lol no i don't charge people money to use it, if anyone wants to make a donation i have a box for the hospice.

and the crystals are programmed with unconditional love and the power of intention :)

[daithi]

im blind as i cant see the crystals lol
ive been looking at the pic for ages

[Evastar]

http://www.digital-kaos.co.uk/forums/f4/how-do-i-make-equilateral-triangle-copper-piping-49284/index6.html#post322926

if you look at the pics in the post i linked they are in the centre of the copper circles, purple amethyst ones on top and yellow citrine ones in the bottom half :)

[Meat-Head]

http://www.digital-kaos.co.uk/forums/f4/how-do-i-make-equilateral-triangle-copper-piping-49284/index6.html#post322926

if you look at the pics in the post i linked they are in the centre of the copper circles, purple amethyst ones on top and yellow citrine ones in the bottom half :)

Oh thanks, was expecting something that looks like a crystal chandler hanging, rather than some "bath salts" on it.

You mentioned not been able to sleep after using for the first time
'why'? (apart from the bill lol)

[Evastar]

because i could feel a very strong energy vibration from it and took a while to adjust to it :)

and those crystals are actually quite large, you just can't see them very well in the pic, this is what they would look like out of it:

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/3785/pointamethyst.jpg (http://img14.imageshack.us/i/pointamethyst.jpg/)

http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/1418/citrinepoint.jpg (http://img228.imageshack.us/i/citrinepoint.jpg/)

[daithi]

ah i see now i though tey were the nuts and bolts holding it together lol

[Meat-Head]

because i could feel a very strong energy vibration from it and took a while to adjust to it :)



Weird - if you put a bucket of water in it, does it ripple?

[Evastar]

lol never tried it, will give it a go tomorrow and let you know. don't see why it would.

it's a platonic solid, don't know if you ever heard of them: Platonic solid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platonic_solid)

[cactikid]

if it works wow.
YouTube - The beach boys -good vibrations
another earthquake lol,green with envy soon

[Meat-Head]

lol never tried it, will give it a go tomorrow and let you know. don't see why it would.

it's a platonic solid, don't know if you ever heard of them: Platonic solid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platonic_solid)

*CONFUSED* Ok so try a bucket of hot water, then if it's "PlaNtonic" - try a flower vase? - see if that ripples.

Still think should have power and internet connection - so you can view DK when in it.