Swing Set Help

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I know I know.....since a fabricator can design anything and build anything.....BUT BUT do to the lack of time in my life....Does anyone have a kool swing set (Steel) plan I can build for my 9 year old.....maybe a combo play house swing set??????  There was a post of forum member that builds commercial swing sets......any help?????Thanks!!!!Miller Big Blue Air PakMiller 350P, Python GunHyperthermsSpool gunsMetabo GrindersWe "dooit" as a family...."a family that sleds together stays together"......from sleddin to campin to 4 wheelin to workin.....gotta enjoy life somewhere!
Reply:Build it heavy and high enough to use as a gantry. A good place a hang a chainfall from.
Reply:Put it on wheels!(Home)Miller Maxstar 152 (sold)MM211/spool gunLincoln AC 225C(Work)Dynasty 350Powcon 300STLincoln SP-175TWeldlodgic AWS150sWeldlodgic AWS300Custom Resistance seam weldersCambridge Vacuum EB weldersI smell something burning.
Reply:Not steel, but here's a wooden one that I copied from a buddy and made some modifications to.  It's go two arms that stick off of opposite corners - one has a swing and the other has a trapeeze on it now.  The decking is supposed to be real deck boards and it's supposed to have railings on the sides, but we haven't gotten to that yet.  Also, that green truck cap that's on the mini mower shed in the background is now on top of the jungle gym.  And yes, the ladder is a pallet (another item I need to make a real one of).  I had to put a lateral brace on the arm that the swing is on cause it would flex back and forth.  If I had to do it again, I'd make the arms longer and terminate them with A-frames to the ground.  If you make the platform high enough too, you can put a sandbox or play house under there.  I think the main thing is to build the central frame/platform/roof and then you can just bring whatever you want off of that. Attached Images
Reply:Here's my brother and me swinging on our old jungle gym before we helped my Dad take it down back in 2005.  Built in Maryland and moved to NJ, it got plenty of use by three kids and all of our friends.  Platform was pretty tall, so plenty of room to play in the sand box underneath.  Beam had two swings between the platform and the A-frame and then a rope swing and later a trapeeze on the part of the beam that stuck past the A-frame.  Used to have a rope ladder next to the back ladder and there was a slide on the other side of the platform (sides of the slide were 4x4s and the sliding surface was sheet metal).P.S.  One of those two tire swings that my Dad made back in the day is now on my kid's jungle gym.
Reply:And commercial swing hangers are the bomb.  I ordered two sets of these for ours:[ame]http://www.amazon.com/Commercial-swing-hanger-galvanized-attach/dp/B000PXVWK4[/ame]They make ones too that clamp around tubes.
Reply:This publication is intended for safety, but there is a lot of good information that can be used to get a new design fleshed out, or bring life to a classic.http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Media/Documen...nd-Safety/325/
Reply:Just copy the one at costco but in metal. We've got that one in the back yard and the kids love it. fairly well built and fairly easy to put together. done in steel you'll save yourself a lot of headaches wasting time putting in redundant bolts in the middle of a span connecting nothing to the beam. just there to help prevent checking. PITA if you ask me.There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Make it as tall as possible! Short swings are no fun! I'm a fan of the classic tall A frame so even the big kids and adults can ride.
Reply:Originally Posted by forhireMake it as tall as possible! Short swings are no fun! I'm a fan of the classic tall A frame so even the big kids and adults can ride.
Reply:Yes use metal and I second the traditional A-frame.  You really don't need plans, except your own.    If I were to make it, id use galvanized "schedule 80" steel pipe.   Whatever size you decide on (ie 10' apex), you MUST set the legs of the set in concrete and account for your overall apex length to shrink.  Example:   Let's say you want a  "10' "  high swing set.   You should make the legs 12' (from apex to bottom tip of each leg.  The additional 2' will be set in concrete below ground, thus giving you a true 10' above ground.  I'd also coat the bottom 2 1/2' of each leg in "Henry" water proofing formula (many types to choose from) prior to setting those legs in concrete.  I haven't constructed a swingset, but I have made several large antenna towers set in concrete.  That's much more complex and involved however.  Please read this attched link about wood vs steel swingsets.... It's short and very informative.  Also, there is a 40 second YouTube video showing why wood swingsets suck.  https://www.componentplaygrounds.com...den-Swing-SetsLincoln Power Mig 216Lincoln AC/DC-225/125Miller  625 X-Treme PlasmaMiller 211 Forney 95FI-A 301HF 91110Victor Journeyman O/PMilwaukee DaytonMakita  Baileigh NRA Life Member
Reply:Watch this 5 minute hilarious video and you'll see some shots of why wood swingsets (as well as plastic), just suck when compared to good quality steel sets.
Reply:Many thanks for the replies and advice!!!!!!Miller Big Blue Air PakMiller 350P, Python GunHyperthermsSpool gunsMetabo GrindersWe "dooit" as a family...."a family that sleds together stays together"......from sleddin to campin to 4 wheelin to workin.....gotta enjoy life somewhere!
Reply:Make sure you integrate a helicopter into the design:http://www.travelswithclara.com/2010...swing-set.html
Reply:omgosh a space ship?????!!!!!!  a helicopter?????!!!!!   omg my 9 year old would go to heaven!!!!!  that is way 2 kool of an idea!!!!!Miller Big Blue Air PakMiller 350P, Python GunHyperthermsSpool gunsMetabo GrindersWe "dooit" as a family...."a family that sleds together stays together"......from sleddin to campin to 4 wheelin to workin.....gotta enjoy life somewhere!
Reply:I was the member that made a lot of commercial playgrounds.  I get all my parts from Superior International (SII) the division is child works. I am not sure if they sell to the general public, but I think they do.  There is a huge difference between comercial and residential designs, especially on spacing.  Most components are made to mount to pipe, 2 3/8" OD or 3 1/2" OD.  I can help on sources if you need something.  Rainbow play structures is a comprimise between residential and commercial, they will send you a catalog if you want ideas, although their designs are wood.   Even my basic swingset, for commercial applications is about $1000 for a 4-6 swing set.
Reply:Sch 40 2" pipe is plenty strong enough even for commercial. For my basic commercial set I buy 4 sticks. They are actually available in 24' out here. I use a cheapo Harbour frieght bender to put  two 75 degree bends about 2' apart. The top is 12' span. The ends splay about 15 degrees out. This design has at least a 10' height.  I can hang 6 swings from it. If you use 21' sticks you can hang 4. They make clamp on hangers for 2" pipe about $4 each.
Reply:Good luck with the swing set bud. I just started this one with some 2" pipe and Im kinda freestylin with plans to add a platform and a slide as I go. You can buy the slide, and swings from Lowes seperate. I will post more pictures later but I am going to do a tire swing in the middle.Shake and Bake
Reply:The first pic is half a set, center legs are plumb, end legs are splayed.  The second picture is a second design I had to make compact to send to an orphanage in Cambodia.  They were 2 1/2" sch 40 so 2" sch 40 would slide in. Attached Images
Reply:Don't make it 20 feet high.  Our swingset when I was a kid was in the 20' range as metal working family... It doesn't work good.  A kid doesn't weigh enough to keep that much chain taught when you swing,  I would probably go 10' if I was building one today.
Reply:Here is a different design, still comercial. The arches are 2" sch 40 and the legs are 1 1/2" sch 40, still plenty strong.  The main play structure is almost all 2" sch 40.  The main difference between commercial designs and residential besides strength is the spacing of the  play components. I wish I had some residential designs for you, but most of my sets are commercial.  Unfortunately I hardly ever make money on them, they are hard case's like small churches, mission trips, small town schools etc. The are fun to design and make, but don't underestimate the destructive power of kids  They can break an anvil. Attached Images
Reply:WOW   thank you for the ideas!!!!! AND web links!!!!!Miller Big Blue Air PakMiller 350P, Python GunHyperthermsSpool gunsMetabo GrindersWe "dooit" as a family...."a family that sleds together stays together"......from sleddin to campin to 4 wheelin to workin.....gotta enjoy life somewhere!
Reply:If you can't buy directly from childworks, they probobaly have a retail center.  Unfortunately slides etc get pricey.  Home depot and other stores sell them though.  Actualy I remember a couple "residential home playset" books at Lowes and Home depot that had a lot of good ideas in it for home owners. The gov has two free publications, one for commercial and one for residential that gives lots of recommended measurements and such.  I think it's CSPC 325 or something like that, just google residential playground codes. They are informative, mainly to prevent strangling kids.  Here is a pic of bending and squashing pipe.  The squasher is homemade, fits on the cheapo bender.  I added the air over hydraulic pump so I didn't have to do all those bends by hand. The third pic is a set a sent to an orphanage in Cambodia with a mission group in suitcases of 75 LBS each.  The long pipe was available locally. Another high paying ($0) job! Attached ImagesLast edited by blackbart; 06-10-2013 at 02:58 PM.
Reply:Whats with the welded on bolts on the cambodia set? set screw to prevent rotation maybe? I'd love to build a real swingset for my kids and have been thinking about it for a while. Great ideas here.
Reply:Yes, they are set screws, actually 5/8" long allen bolts to prevent snag points from sweat shirts, necklaces etc.  I suppose the vertical ones could be ommited if I was sure the legs were going into solid concrete. But I sent that set over with a bunch of smililng teenagers, crossed fingers,no mechanical experience, and very strict instructions. Everyone of them had a 75LB suitcaice full of seats, chain, and hangers.  I was amazed they got through customs.  It was interesting, since the pipe over there is metric, but it is very close to the same size.  Getting someone over there to accurately measure it literally took several months. ( even though all our pipe in the US say's "Vietnam" on it)   I guess it could be put together without set screws, but it woul be harder to assemble.  Also the top set screw help gaurentee the beam won't fall out. Have you ever seen six swings in full motion? The whole world shakes.    With all my designs I have settled on legs being 75 degrees and the ends being splayed out 15 degrees.  It seems to be the most solid design.    My experience with all footings over seas, is they don't exist.  If it looks good above ground, It's good.  So I was not convinced they would bury the legs as I specified.     The reason there are no screws in the other set is the legs are bent out of on length of 24' sch 40 2" pipe.  There are set screws for the horizontal beams.Hi All,Attached are some pictures of a swing set I made for my wife and daughter. They wanted an adult-sided swing set, but I did not want the traditional A-frame style for the yard.The posts are all 1/4 inch steel 4 x 6 inch square tubing (?). I bought 20 foot lengths and they weighed about 290 pounds each. The vertical posts are buried 7 feet into the ground, to make an above ground height of 13 feet. The two vertical posts are set in concrete blocks each measuring 4 ft L x 4 ft W x 2 ft H, which starts about 8 inched below the grass. It took about forty-five 80 lb. bags of cement to fill each hole.There actually is some welding, but most of it is buried in the concrete blocks. Each vertical post had four 1/4 steel triangle shaped fins welded to the center of each flat portion of the post. Since each triangle fin had about 1.5 ft of attachment area that was welded on both sides, this amounted to about 12 feet of welding for one post. I used 1/8 inch 70-S2 to button up this portion of the project. When I was welding the fins on the 20-ft posts, a neighbor said they looked like Titan missles (if you can imagine what they look like).The only other welding was on the 14 foot horizontal beam at the top. I basically welded plates at the ends, which amounted to about 20 inches of bead on each end. Before I secured them, I welded on a 3/4 inch nut to the inside.As you can see the vertical/horizontal pieces are bolted together. This seemed like a good way to go, since every post/beam was really heavy. Believe it or not it took me from 8-10 minutes to drill each 3/4 inch hole in the plates and the posts/beam, with a drill press. The bolts are really galvanized all-thread cut to fit (you can see the rust forming on the tips).The swing chains are 1/4 inch, which is on the heavy side; but once you get it going (swinging) they really develop some momentum of their own. When in use it does have a slight deflection at the top beam of about 1/2 inch, which seems acceptable. Hangers and swings were just bought from swing-set suppliers...nothing special. I did add some brush-on primer and paint, but as you can see it received some scratches during the installation phase. I need to do some touch-up to the paint and do a better job protecting the exposed steel.I really have to thank one of your forum members, K-B. K-B gave me advice and encouragement all along the way. He help me buy the metal from Alco, he transported it in his racing trailer to my house, he engineered the lifting of the structure, etc. He is a master welder and I am very thankful for all his assistance. I have appreciated learning from the members of this forum over the last year, or so. Attached Images