I saw a YouTube video where a guy cut open and unrolled a 55 gallon drum https://youtu.be/bV1gRu6bc_w?t=207 and I decided to give that a try. Cut the ends off the barrel, unroll it, treat the sharp edges with rubber edging, and mount it to a lightweight frame.
But I bought a $20 barrel and $16 worth of rubber sheet metal edging.
I cut both ends off the barrel using a Milwaukee electric shear. I bought that for $10 at a flea market more than 5 years ago, and this is the second time I've used it. But for this job it was perfect.
Then I sliced the barrel lengthwise and cleaned the inside out.
The barrel contained some kind of water soluble emolient, and its only warning label was "harmful to aquatic life". So I had to be careful not to let any of it wash into the yard or down to the stream. So I had to go through a bunch of paper towels to mop it up and wipe it clean.
Then I uncurled it with my hands and toes. That worked but the ends were curlier than the middle. So I laid it on the floor and put a 2x4 on one curled up end and rested the full weight of my shop press/welding cabinet on the 2x4. Then flattened it downward. That made a huge difference.
It's starting to look ok.
So to install the canopy, you insert the hook pins and rotate the canopy upward and back until the downward-hanging 1/2" pin pops through the hole in the canopy peak. Then you insert the hairpin to lock it in place.
It takes just a few seconds to install or remove it, which is great for times where it needs to come down. I think I'll leave it installed almost all the time, but for storage or high-speed travel (on a trailer) it will make sense to just take the canopy off.
I would not rate it as looking as good as commercial models, but I'm pleased with how it turned out. Total cost was about $40. 20 for the barrel, 16 for the rubber edging trim.
