2 D Folding mini tres

[jrock64]

Starting a new thread on this as it is more of a how to.

My mini trees are made out of a triangle of rewire that is hinged in the middle.
They are 4ft tall, and store flat in about 2in of space.
To install, set a rod at 70 degrees, fold the hinge to 90degrees and ziptie to the rod you set.
Seen from the front, it looks like a tree, seen from the sides, it still looks like a tree.

And here is what we are trying to make.
One is 3ft tall with a 1ft stand, and the other is 4ft tall.

MiniTrees Standing.JPG

The center hinge is formed by bending one wire down, and the second into a loop.
A 1/4 pipe will help with making the bends, I 1/2 in spacer will allow enough room for it to hinge.
The loop is formed by bending the second wire forward and across the vertical wire.
Make it large enough for the first wire to insert into the loop.

MiniTrees Hinge1.JPG

The sides are formed by tacking the vertical wire back to the point two higher and one right of the lower point.
Initially cut the vertical 2 1/2 segments long as you will need the extra to make up for the angle.
Here is the lower one
And a center one.
MiniTrees Side1.JPGMiniTrees Side2.JPG

Make sense how the angle is formed.
I used a welder to tack the wires into their new locations.

After that just hook the two halfs together and string with lights.
I use two strands of multis, and two strands of white zig zagged across the front of the frame.
The extra white is looped around the back to complete the illusion.

continued....


JOel

[jrock64]

Even with 4 strands of lights they are still less than 2 in thick.

MiniTrees Flat.JPG

Get all the angles right and from the front, or side, it still looks like a tree.
Add blinking lights in the dark, and the illusion is complete.

MiniTrees Stand front.JPGMiniTrees Stand side.JPG

A stack of eight stores in about 10 inches
I stand the small ones and hang the large ones in my shed.

MiniTrees.JPGMiniTrees Store.JPG

continued...

JOel

[jrock64]

Here is the forest all set up.
Even from the back they have all the right angles to look like a tree.
I always thought that tomato cages were too pointy without enough angle.

Tree-frame.jpg

Rewire can be found at farm and home, or home improvement type stores.
Around here a 150ft spool is about $70.
You can get 50ft spools, but it will cost almost as much.
An 18in bolt cutter comes in handy for all the cutting you will need to do.

And lastly the cutting pattern.
With the overlap, each one only takes 3.5ft of wire.

Mini Trees Pattern2.jpg

JOel

[budude]

I always look forward to the "new thing" posted by jrock! These look like they would store a bit easier than the traditional mini-trees as well. Nice work as always!

[bcadman]

Do you have any photos or videos with the 2D trees?

[jrock64]

Of course.
Take your pick.
The trees are on the right.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvfxIA6vsxA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=731BOIH7M3Y

Joel

[gocats7]

Don't have a welder, can this be done without one?

[jrock64]

You should be able to wrap the angled verticals by folding the horizontals back on themselves.
The wire is quite heavy.
Get yourself an 18in blot cutter.
A short length of 1/4in pipe will make it easier to make the sharp bends.

Joel