DIY spreader bar

[Hawkward]

So last week, I ordered a spreader bar from Bondage Boutique, pretty steep purchase, though because the order would take so long to deliver when ordered on a Saturday, my fiancée decided to display her first ever attempt of DIY kink (I'm proud Next I'll convince her into kink trips to B&Q )

Anyway, to help explain as best I can, here's the materials we used.....
- A rug from B&M
- Something to puncture the wood, like a screwdriver or something
- Rope!

So uhh, a rug, eh? In reality it's not the rug you need, but the thick cardboard tube that was at the centre of the rug. What surprised us most was how sturdy it was, and the length is very acceptable (I believe the rug was along the lines of 80cm x 160 cm, so about 80cm for the tube?). The rug itself was £20, for decorating the new place and stuff.

Anyways, this is where things get rather complicated, and my describing of it becomes more difficult (as mentioned, this was my fiancée's work, I wasn't permitted to look at what she was doing, and only knew the end result and got to appreciate her work).

You will want to poke two holes at either end of the tube, so that in this example, the screwdriver can poke from one hole, through to the other at each end. Using these holes, you string through the rope. I believe the reason for two holes, was to allow it to be more stable, and to even the pressure applied to the tube at either side when tugged on - like pitching a tent, in a ways.


I'll try simplify it with using MS Paint.....


But yeah, the end result worked like a charm, I'll try upload an image at some point. In comparison to a real spreader bar, I can confirm that the expensive spreader bar is far better, however the DIY spreader bar has a lot of charm to it, and is something that can be cheap, depending on what you are looking for.

[lj]

a nice simple and cheap idea using a free item

next time you are in B&Q buy a broom handle and some metal screw eyelets, total cost around £2 IIRC - cut the broom-handle to the required length, then you will need a drill to make a couple of "starter" holes in the ends of the broom-handle and then screw in the eyelets (this stops the wood splitting as the screw goes in).

You can get adventurous and put a couple of eyelets in the sides of the broom-handle, get a couple of broom-handles and make four spreaders of different lengths, then you can fix the victim to a T-bar, an "H" frame, clip to a collar to make a yoke, a "scavangers daughter" and all manner of uncomfortable restraints

not that I have ever done that sort of thing...

[teather]

next time you are in B&Q buy a broom handle and some metal screw eyelets

Or jewson (usually much cheaper than b&q for wood) for 50mm diameter mopstick in 5m lengths - I can't remember the price but at the time it was surprisingly cheap - I have a few sturdy spreader bars made from it

[Sir Cumference]

Isn't 50 mm "mopstick" overdoing it a bit?

A normal size is more like 25-30 mm. 50 is the stuff you'd use for handrail on a stair.

When I go for a walk, I like to cut me a walking stick (more like a quarter staff). Hazel is plentiful around here.

They are quite useful, and some of them have been converted to spreader bars.

[teather]

Isn't 50 mm "mopstick" overdoing it a bit?
A normal size is more like 25-30 mm. 50 is the stuff you'd use for handrail on a stair.

Exactly. And when I'd finished the handrails on the stair I used the off cuts to make a few spreader bars

[lj]

When I go for a walk, I like to cut me a walking stick (more like a quarter staff). Hazel is plentiful around here.

.

and you can make a very effective hitty thing out of thin branches - shave the bark and small branches off first - they will dry out and break so use when fresh for a nice whippy action

[bound_jenny]

you can make a very effective hitty thing out of thin branches

Plenty of fun with natural materials!

Several years ago, I made a cheap coat stand (portemanteau) using 1-1/4 inch x 6 feet wood dowel ($3) and a cheap plastic Christmas tree stand ($5). Very sturdy - it takes several heavy winter coats with very little swaying under the load (and no bending of the dowel).

I used the same kind of dowel as a spreader bar. Plenty sturdy for just about any kind of struggling.

Hooray for the hardware store - everything for the kinkster and more!

Jenny.