Last minute adjustments
Participants: 6 (Robert, Jonathan, Kostas, Benji, Yanti and Kern)
Dates: 5-12 May 2012 Location: Scoraig.
Project: 3 metre machine using ferrite/ceramic magnets at 24VDC
Poles: 10, (3 magnet blocks 50 x 50 x 20 per pole)
Coils: 12 (37 turns of 2 x 1.6mm wire)
Target cut in speed (recipe) 170 rpm
Application – the croft next door to me (for sale) on Scoraig. 24V system and 20 metre tower with dead Samrey prototype on it.
Accommodation the bunkhouse, Scoraig. Full-on home made food and frivolity.
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- Preparing the hub.
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- The first blade
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- Magnets are handy clamps
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- Casting a critical eye.
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- the coil winder and tensioner
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- straightening the coil legs
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- close up of winder
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- Kostas winding
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- neo magnets tend to corrode
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- Ferrite magnets are quite strong
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- Kostas and Yanti wiring up the coils
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- The pairs of coils are connected to the ones opposite
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- Rainy day welding work
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- setting the alternator frame tilt
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- Jonathan’s lovely welding
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- casting the first rotor
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- cramming magnets onto the disk
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- The magnet rotor is made
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- Here is the hub in the frame
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- Robert’s special jig to glue 3 magnets
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- Magnet henge waiting for assembly of second rotor
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- Benji puts the poles in place on the second rotor
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- Casting the stator and second rotor
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- Kostas pours the resin in
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- Lunchtime
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- Lid comes off stator mould. smooth casting.
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- Out and about Scoraig for the afternoon
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- Kern finds a blade embedded in the ground and pulls it out.
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- Kostas investigating a broken blade bolt – the cause of some considerable damage!
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- Jonathan using a template to drill the stator mounting holes.
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- Drilling the stator. We did not hit any wires.
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- Robert starts 3rd blade with power tools
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- Kern cuts the blade root shape
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- The stator goes on the machine
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- More photos/video
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- Benji jacks the top rotor down
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- removing the samrey turbine from the tower
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- Kern’s masterpiece begins
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- Jonathan cuts hole in towertop
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- Jonathan fits the towertop
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- Benji drills 16mm hole right through
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- More photos
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- blah blah
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- Benji lays the cable (3-core 16sqmm SWA, 100m)
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- Here they come!
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- Last minute adjustments
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- swinging the tail under the turbine
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- The blades fit with a bit of wiggling
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- A great bunch of people to spend a week with
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- up she goes
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- Benji lifting the 20 metre tower in one go
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- Holding the back guys to stop the gin pole falling
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- Martha looks up
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- Robert and Yanti looking up
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- The zebra is running
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- Toasting the turbine
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- The psychedelic side
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- It all went by so fast
The following video shows Jonathan helping me to put Paul’s (green painted) blades onto the zebra turbine. We also increased the air gap a little to make sure the magnets did not rub on the stator. The cut in speed is a bit higher than I would normally choose for a 3 metre turbine (195 rpm for 24VDC) but it runs very smoothly, and will definitely not stall at least.
nice project..enjoyed it..greetings to all team members..with love from India. This project has great potential in India.
Have you ever thought of conducting a course somewhere in Africa? Eg South Africa to cover the Southern African countries. Food for thought
Hello Hugh,
Thanks for your really nice stuff, I would like to do a ferrite machine using 2” X 2” X ¾” is this possible using a similar arrangement like what you have done on 3 meter machine?
Please assit.
Hi Mpennzi,
Yes I would say you could use 2″ x 2″ x 3/4 as they are about the same size as the ones we used in the story above.
Hugh
Hi Hugh,
thank you for this really nice time!!
I’ve got so much experience for my live, not just for windturbines!!!!
We are the SCORAIG CREW 2012!!!!!
Wow Jonathan, it really looks liek you had the TIME OF YOUR LIFE! I am so glad you enjoyed the wind turbines as much as the what seems, fantastic company!
I am sorry Hugh,
thanks for the clarification admin,
Call me Hugh. The WordPress software calls me admin because it doesn’t know any better.
great to read this article, from one of the images “up she goes”, i can see the turbine is placed well below the tree height, what is the max watt it produced? just curious admin
The tower is 20 metres but the trees are at least 15 metres so it is only just high enough to see some wind and it would be better a bit higher. It could easily produce 1000 watts peak, but the zebra is a bit light so it furls at about 600 watts. I like that with a prototype. I can always add more weight if we need to.
Hi Hugh,
Just wanted to thank you again for an educational and fun week. I’ve got all kinds of ideas about attempting a build on my own. I’ll have visions of zebra tailed wind turbines spinning in my mind for years. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole Scoraig experience.
Rob Halverson
Hi Hugh,
very nice workshop, this ferrite wind generator looks great,
congratulations
Pedro