Well this is just the first pic and will take a few weeks but I will pic and then log when I have major steps done. I was just seeing how it would fit for the chain,I actually am going to pick up a 2x8 in a few and cut the notch so I have more meat to attach the case to..The pma in the back takes #6 metric bolts with alittle dremel work on the bottom threads and fits in tight...I am going to put four straps of plumbers tape.the bolt pattern is perfectr and it is going to be very secure to the bottom. The 40 tooth sprocket has to be slid back and I have to cut threads and a back plate,I have 10foot blades on the way and need to see the hub before I can do anymore to it. The pma has a 10 tooth sprocket on it and I bought a pre stretched #40 roller chain..Thats a 4:1 Ratio I am excited!
Who makes the blades? What's the assembled diameter? And why did you pick those over an aluminum blades? Just curious. TomT
If anyone has a lkink to a real bearing that I can use in the 2 inch or over the 1 1/2 pipe to get a smooth pivot.Post a link please..blades were around 200 and are 10 ft total span...with counter weights and covers I will be pushing 150..I need a bearing for swiveling..Thought of a over size caster but I dont want to drill a large hole to put the bolt thru and only have this to hold everything.Also I am gonna put bolts thru the pillow blocks..After seeing the hub and blades are over 40 LBS.!!.. :ugeek: :ugeek:
Here's a link to Northern Tool: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/ ... s-hub-sets With that much weight and stress, you might consider square steel tubing or metal plate for your frame, not wood. How are you keeping tension on the chain, and where did you purchase your blade set? Cool set up. Hope to see pictures of it up and running. Gearing seems to be the way to RPM's. BeachBum
Well its up on a short 20 foot tower..I still need to put braces and guyed wires on the 40 foot tower. i will leave it on the shorty for a while to observe it. We had 10 mile an hour winds today and it was trying to spin..I figure it will be like a new motor and will have to be broke in and take a few storms before it is all loose and metal is meshed well. i havent hooked up the power yet,,i want it to freewheel awhile before any load is put on it... I am focusing more on solar and have put put wind on the back burner until I see fruits of my labor AND COIN!... The bluejay head on the tail is my Dog Kennel Logo.. http://www.bluejayskennels.com
Bluejay, Thanks for the post. Looking really good. Mine was up for 2 weeks and now just starting to get wind. It is starting to move in slower winds now too. TomT
Wow my hope is restored after a year and ALOT of wasted money on "those car alt modded pma's"..There are alot of trees in front of this 20 foot tower and some large pines behind it(will be coming down soon)..I have to get wires and tensioners on the 40 foot tower..I had seen it meagerly spin on a windy day the other day but have been sad that it didnt turn in lower winds.. The 80amp gel battery was down to 5 volts from running a display with the windblue but never seen any real amounts of juice to charge it... We had some bad storms last night and I wake up this morning to a fully charged battery and a few KWH's on the kill a watt... I
My buddy is a tree trimmer and put this together up there for me..I bought a set of his old tree spikes and he is teaching me how to properly climb... All the trees will be topped at 25 foot on my property(1 acre)..they can grow out instead of up! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
I am changing the motor sprocket from a 10 tooth to a 15 tooth when we transfer it over to the new tower.In high winds today it doesnt spin fast at all and needs hard gusts to get it moving. I might even have to try a 40t:20t ratio. I do feel this 1 to 2 would be better but after loss to the chain it realisticly would be less than 1:2.. The 15 should give me a 1:3 ratio and just alittle under after friction loss... I lubed the chain and sprockets up well with wheel bearing grease..I still like the idea of old windmills and wish the turbo torque blades came in a 48 inch lenth...I still want a 13 blade model to spin in low winds but not fast. i then think I could do a 1:4 ratio easily... This is the only forum that i have seen that you can not edit a post???
Bluejay, That was what I was thinking that a 10 ft by 3 blade and a 2 to 1 ratio might be a better choice. Mine has been running but only getting like 3-5 amp into the batteries right now. But will have to wait more and see how it goes. Not willing to take it down at this time. TomT
I cant believe how bad I messed up..Climbed up there a few weeks back and changed the gear ratio to spin easier. I was so frustrated that it barely ever spun and then...sometimes even when we can seem to be genius's you get a reminder that you can also be a dunce...There was a whirl wind that spun it against the direction of the wind and it started to spin very fast and hum..I put the blades on the hub backwards..I thought the slope went to the back but after looking at the turbo torque blades the cup and the edge rolls OUT ..Now it is spinning so fast that it is vibrateing the tower and humming but no power...these PMAS must only put out juice in one direction...Relief and sadness all together..Look at the pic on the first page and you will see what I did wrong with the blades...
The generator will make power in spinning in either direction. If it is humming along with no power, then something is probably wired incorrectly, not wired at all, or there could be a short somewhere. There are other possibilities, but these are the things I would look for first. What is the open circuit voltage of the generator: Disconnect the + and - wires coming from the rectifier to the battery bank. Then measure the open circuit voltage of the generator by connecting your voltmeter to the + and - connections on the rectifier. What does it read? If this measurment is over 12 volts, then you should be sending amps to a 12 volt battery bank. Let me know.
Actually it didnt produce power due to only having 2 small set screws holding the motor sprocket on because I lost the end nut and knew it was a possibility of it not holding. I had been hanging up there for 2 hrs and knew I needed the cover back on for weather....I see it as a mixed blessing because I see things I need to chang and will not put it on my 40 foot tower....It actuall lifted 600 lbs of concrete and tilted the tower back about 8-10 inches..It has a tree line to the right and is just over the house on the side that gets head on winds. I plan on buying a another pma to put some 6 foot blades I have on and let that be another direct drive. I know this are the best pma's on the market right now for the price. Once I master this geared drive on thi little tower I will build another for a 30 footer....I dont need mine real tall because I am on a hill atop a valley. I just need to get my treeline down to "tall shrubs"...I am gonna post a video of it tipped and after the chain was off and it was freewheeling. Those 10 foot wind catchers whizz!...Wonder if you could put a pillow block up on the motor shaft and find a away to mount the 1" hub onto the motor diectly and still support the extra 30 lbs?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9znSV7AOxc sorry I dont know how to embed the video on here directly or if I even can...
Now I am confused because the video disturbance would tell me that the stator was spinning very fast with the magnets...I do need to test or replace my rectifier. Whats the largest guage wire you can put on the clip style in your store?..
A forum is for provoking conversation right??????? Ok I talked to a tower guy today and have a plan...I will disassemble it add one more section(this is the z style weld while the other is just horizontal tube{said is a true light duty}...For this geared on I will put another 1000lbs of concrete at the base and have it up about 2 foot also so I can weed trim around it. He said 25 (a few in the ground of 3 sections) would be fine with the 10ft blades but I need almost twice as much concrete as I already have...the other light duty tower will get 5 windgrabbers on a direct drive pma(w.nation of course)...I will not try to catch as much wind with that one...I have another tower that I will do the same amount of massive concrete for another geared turbine...
Well I tore it down today and boy was it quick...I guess after you get over the fear of hanging out and using both hands to work on the tower you can get some progress made...It just feels weird with only a harness holding you from falling backward straight down. ...My master link retaining clip was all bent up from trying to snapp it in without being confortable of being in the harness and trusting it....
