Creating Arches

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   Hi rmonty,
I made 8 arches this year.... needless to say, I had the method perfected (for me) after finishing all of those!! Richard Holdman made a good video ( http://holdman.com/christmas/projects.asp ) showing how he did it. I used a similar method, except I used a low speed drill. He doesn't really explain how he does the extension cord. What I did was:
1) Start wraping at the female end on one end of the pipe.
2) once wrapped, cut off the plug end of the string.
3) solder on cheap 18 gauge zip (lamp) cord. You can buy this for $40 /250' spool.
4) tape the zip cord to the pipe all the way to the opposite end of the pipe.
5) cut off the zip cord about 3 feet off the end of the pipe
6) solder the plug back on to the end of the zip cord (or you could use attachon plugs "G" - http://www.creativedisplays.com/siteresources/modules/webstore/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=472 )
7) rinse and repeat!!!

You could leave as much (or little) wire past the end of the pipe to reach your controller. I ended up putting my controller about 2' away from the base of the arches and plenty of cord available to reach.

I used saw horses to support the drill, middle of the arch, and "plug-in" end of the arch. You will also want to mark the pipe for the width of the sections of lights. This will ensure the sections will be evenly spaced. 

There has been much discussion on the length of pipe, number of lights, number of channels, etc. I decided on 15' pipe, 8 channels, and one 100ct mini incandecent string per section. They are not as bright as some I have seen, but I am happy with the way they turned out.

Let me know if you have more any questions. I could also snaps some pictures if you are interested.

Welcome to the forums!
Carey

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Comporder1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List DMX Joined: 11 Dec 2007 Location: Brookhaven, MS Online Status: Offline Posts: 163	Quote Reply Posted: 06 Dec 2008 at 12:30pm
	Hi rmonty, I made 8 arches this year.... needless to say, I had the method perfected (for me) after finishing all of those!! Richard Holdman made a good video ( http://holdman.com/christmas/projects.asp ) showing how he did it. I used a similar method, except I used a low speed drill. He doesn't really explain how he does the extension cord. What I did was: 1) Start wraping at the female end on one end of the pipe. 2) once wrapped, cut off the plug end of the string. 3) solder on cheap 18 gauge zip (lamp) cord. You can buy this for $40 /250' spool. 4) tape the zip cord to the pipe all the way to the opposite end of the pipe. 5) cut off the zip cord about 3 feet off the end of the pipe 6) solder the plug back on to the end of the zip cord (or you could use attachon plugs "G" - http://www.creativedisplays.com/siteresources/modules/webstore/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=472 ) 7) rinse and repeat!!! You could leave as much (or little) wire past the end of the pipe to reach your controller. I ended up putting my controller about 2' away from the base of the arches and plenty of cord available to reach. I used saw horses to support the drill, middle of the arch, and "plug-in" end of the arch. You will also want to mark the pipe for the width of the sections of lights. This will ensure the sections will be evenly spaced. There has been much discussion on the length of pipe, number of lights, number of channels, etc. I decided on 15' pipe, 8 channels, and one 100ct mini incandecent string per section. They are not as bright as some I have seen, but I am happy with the way they turned out. Let me know if you have more any questions. I could also snaps some pictures if you are interested. Welcome to the forums! Carey
	www.williamsonworkshop.com

rmonty Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 05 Nov 2008 Online Status: Offline Posts: 12	Quote Reply Posted: 06 Dec 2008 at 10:42am
	I'm new to this and am wondering what the best method is to create an arch. Also, how do you get away with not having to buy an outdoor extension cord for every channel? I have found that that is one of my biggest expenses at $7 a pop. Thanks for any help.