PVC Series Disc + Socket Screws Only — No Drilling Jig

The hub that refused to die.

For years, the best lumber-strut dome hub you could buy was a thermoformed PVC disc with a molded center socket that the strut ends screwed straight into. Then the company vanished — and nothing replaced it. Our proof dome was built with the originals in 2016. It's still standing. So we put the design back into production.

Kits & pricing How it works
Inside the proof dome frame: white scalloped PVC hub discs at every joint, color-coded strut ends visible
The original hubs on the proof dome — build day, 2016still standing
SHT 03

Two parts. Three screws. Done.

[ EXPLODED DIAGRAM — flared top disc over a center socket hub, 2×4 strut sliding in underneath; screw positions called out (2 down through the disc, 1 through the socket into the end grain). ]
  • Top disc¼″ PVC Type I, formed 12° flare
  • Center socket hubmolded 4-, 5-, or 6-way to match the hub position
  • Fasteners per strut end3 × #10 exterior deck screws (yours)
  • Compression path2×4 end bears in its socket
  • Tension pathend-grain screw through the socket
  • Bending & shear2 screws down through the disc flange
  • Color codingdisc edges painted by hub type (4/5/6-way)
Why a socket beats a bare tab

A single tab asks a few screws in one face of the lumber to resist every push, pull, and twist. Here, the strut end seats inside a molded socket — compression goes straight into the hub body, the end-grain screw handles pull-out, and the disc screws only ever see shear. Every load path has its own dedicated geometry.

SHT 03.1

PVC kits & pricing

1V PVC

VDW-P1
[ PHOTO — P1 kit: 11 discs + 11 center sockets in box ]
$249 $299.99 — cheapest steel rival's sale price
  • Hubs11 (11 discs + 11 sockets)
  • Buildsup to ~15 ft dome
  • Your struts25 × 2×4, one length
  • Ship weight~5 lb
Order P1

2V PVC

VDW-P2
[ PHOTO — P2 kit contents fanned out ]
$449 $599.99 steel equivalent
  • Hubs26 (26 discs + 26 sockets)
  • Buildsup to ~18 ft dome
  • Your struts65 × 2×4, two lengths
  • Ship weight~9 lb
Order P2

3V PVC ★

VDW-P3
The original hub kit in its shipping box: stacked scalloped discs with red, green, and blue color-coded edges, and columns of center sockets
The original kit, as it shippedone box
$949 $1,249–1,399 steel equivalents
  • Hubs61 (61 discs + 61 sockets)
  • Buildsup to ~24 ft dome · 424 ft²
  • Your struts165 × 2×4, four lengths
  • Ship weight~16 lb — ships UPS, not freight
Order P3
Why it costs less than steel

No laser time, no press brake, no powder line, no freight truck — a 3V PVC kit weighs ~16 lb instead of ~240. The savings are real manufacturing economics, not a thinner product. This is the same construction that carried our proof dome for nine years, including a latex-concrete shell.

Choose PVC if…

  • You want the lowest cost path to a full-size 3V dome
  • You'd rather drive screws than drill bolt holes — assembly is a drill-driver job
  • Your dome gets a cover, shell, or paint (greenhouse film, canvas, latex concrete)
  • Shipping cost matters — the whole 3V kit travels as one UPS box

Choose steel if…

  • The frame stays exposed to sun and weather, uncovered, for years
  • You're hanging weight from the frame — lofts, hoists, swings
  • You want through-bolts and anchor flanges for slab attachment
  • You just like steel. We get it. Steel series →
SHT 03.2

Assembly in four moves

  1. Cut & code. Cut your 2×4s from the included chart; spray the ends with the matching color code.
  2. Stage the hubs. Disc edges are pre-painted by hub type — match colors to the assembly map. No measuring.
  3. Seat & screw. Slide each strut under the disc until its end seats in the center socket; drive two screws down through the disc and one through the socket into the end grain.
  4. Close the ring. Work in rings from the base up. Two people, one afternoon, zero special tools.
[ VIDEO — timelapse of a 2-person 3V PVC frame assembly, base ring to apex, with step captions. ]

424 square feet.
One UPS box.

Configure a PVC kit Compare with steel