Josh's Ametek Motor Windmill
NOTE: The Blades in this are incorrectly mounted! When you make blades from PVC, you need to be sure that the tips are relatively flat, and the root has the steep angle!
I made THESE out of a 50 gallon plastic barrel. They spun up like CRAZY (400+RPM), so I highly recommend the use of a plastic barrel for blades!
This mill uses the following parts:
- 40VDC Ametek Motor
- 2x Muffler Mounts, 4 inch, available at O'Reilly Auto Parts for about $3.50 apiece
- 6x Flat Washers, 1.5 inch diameter, $1.50 total
- 1.5 inch Floor Flange, approx $6.50
- 1.5 x 8 inch nipple, approx $2.00
- 1 inch mounting pipe, scounged
- Bearing Grease
- Screws, misc. odds and ends
Here are the major Blade Assembly parts
In order to piece this together, I needed to scrounge some parts. First, I found a metal disc at Goodwill for 50 cents. In a former life, it was a tray for candles. I tried (unsuccessfully) to drill 3 straight lines of 3 holes, evenly around a circle (120 degrees apart). They're marked Blade 1, 2, 3, because my "even-ness" varied for each one. ;-) Also, you'll notice that I wrote "Trail" on the disc, so I wouldn't forget which way to mount the blades. You'll see more of evidence of my poor carpentry skills later!
The blades are attached by screwing them into a triangle-shaped chunk of wood (Thank you, Marvin!), with the disc in the middle. I used the metal disc and wood to support each other. Each one has its own strengths and weaknesses.
Here you can see my proof of my excellent carpentry skills. This is why I don't own a welder.
Where's the blade? Oops!
I drilled a pilot hole in the wood...
and attached the disc and blades using screws.
I had some help with the assembly process. The blade assembly is held on with an arbor, available here.
The kids really enjoyed the blade assembly.
Since I just built a helicopter, their helicopter had to join in the fun!
The motor is mounted using two 4" muffler mounts, bought at O'Reilly's for about $3.50 apiece.
The whole base is attached to an 8" nipple pipe, 1.5" in diameter. The piece attached directly to the wood is called a Floor Flange.
This step was very important, and I believe part of the genius of my design. Inside the floor flange are TWO 1.5" washers completely covered with axle grease. When I say covered, I mean like the way you cover a sundae with whipped cream - a ton.
The greased washers fit within the wide area of the flange, so they'll never move out of place. And, they sit tightly against the wood, so they won't be exposed to the elements.
The stationary pole has a plastic cap (called a bushing, I believe), and the nipple pipe is loaded with grease. I scooped about 1 cup of grease into the pipe.
The tail is a plastic garbage can lid.
The tail assembly is held on with many screws. I drilled part-way through the wood using a 1/4" "doorknob" drill attachment. That way, I could sink the screws farther into the base board, for strength.
All Together Now!
This thing turns VERY smoothly and is completely silent. I was very surprised that I was able to build something so solid, because I really suck at that sort of thing. My Minigen, may it rest in piece, was very wobbly. And its vibrations were very loud. Also, I didn't have a good yaw system. This one does not wobble at all, and is very quiet. I'm on my computer inside the house, right underneath it, and I'm starting to wonder if it's still there. It is that quiet. WOW!
I hope the pictures tell the story. One of these days, I'll write up a step-by step how to guide. If there are any questions, let me know, and I'll fill in the gaps!
And finally a warning to anyone thinking about getting into wind power... it IS VERY ADDICTING. When this one spun up, the RPM didn't seem very high. The first thing I thought was, "My next one will have a lower cut-in speed." My next one? Wow. I guess my brain's trying to tell me something. I think I spent more time looking at it than I did actually assembling it.