John:
Making a working Alt/azimuth launch rod head really doesn't have to be all that involved or hard to make.
Below is a head I designed for one of our Clubs 6 pad Racks, They work like a charm. We also have tons if kids using the pad also and only occasionally will a rod get bent.
36" really is a minimum length for most model rockets flying with the exception of Micro's . I believe it's still part of the sporting code, if not is should be for 1/4A-D models. Shorter rods just don't give the models enought time to get up to speed, unless they are all very small and light weight. I'd suggest sticking with 36" rods for safety sake