This is a cheap and easy way to make heavy duty tent or tarp stakes. I'm using them for Burning Man to tie down my dome and stake a tarp from my truck to the playa. Reading Burning Man's playa tips I've learned that two foot long pieces of rebar seem to be the best way to go. I've also learned that rebar can be very dangerous if left exposed. I've added a cap to the top to give a slightly larger area to hammer and to make them safe.

UPDATE: I've redesigned the stakes for this year's burn. I think they are work better than the old design because they're more reliable. Maybe it's because I'm not the best welder, but some of the loops and caps have fallen off the old stakes. My new method seems like they will last longer without any problems. I've listed the new materials in the list of materials. I may weld a loop to the nut for holding rope and ratchet straps. It would be easier than using the carabiner. I used a grinder to sharper the end of the rebar a little to help it go into the ground with less resistance. Pulling them out of the ground was easy. I used a wrench to turn the stake while pulling. The washers help give extra grip. Use Loctite on the threads to keep the bolt from coming out (or weld it in place).

Step 1: Materials

The materials are cheap and easily found at most hardware stores.

New stake materials:

1. 1/2" x 24" rebar - $1.50

2. 5/8" x 2" nut - $1.20

3. 5/8" x 1" bolt - $0.70

4. 5/8" washers (2) - $0.20

Original stake design:

1. 1/2" x 24" rebar - $1.50

2. 3/8" x 2" steel rings - $0.95

3. 1/2" black pipe cap - $0.49

Step 2: Tools

1. Welder

2. Wire brush

3. Vise

4. Personal protection - Welding helmet, gloves and jacket

5. Hardibacker - I have a 1/2' piece to protect my concrete from welding burns.

Step 3: Welding

Clamp the rebar horizontally in the vise. It should be as level as possible so your cap and ring are straight. Wire brush the rebar clean before welding. Put the cap on the end of the rebar and tack weld. Once you have the cap in place you can weld it to the rebar from the back side. Turn the rebar 180 degrees so the tack weld is facing down. Place the ring against the bottom of the cap and tack weld it in place. Once the ring is tacked, you can finish welding it along the cap and the rebar. After the ring was welded, I turned the rebar back 180 degrees and filled in the hollow area inside the cap with the welder to make it as solid as possible.

Step 4: Rebar-rific

After you're done welding, clean the slag with your wire brush and you're done. You could grind the weld boogers and paint them bright colors, but I'm not going to do that.