Here are some photos of the workshop. There were 8 participants plus me. We built a 2.4 metre diameter 24-volt turbine from the Recipe Book. Weather was great and we even got a little wind on Friday so the machine produced a few amps.
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- Thomas winding a coile
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- Paddy and Thomas carving blades
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- soldering up the tails
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- David took charge of the welding
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- Dylan forming the plastic rainshield
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- David positions a magnet
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- Peter adding the silicone
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- Paul pours resin
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- Out for a stroll around the sights
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- Visiting Dale’s hydro turbine
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- finishing touches
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- Peter and Lucia drill the stator
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- Yaw bearing assembly
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- Paul has a shot at welding
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- Paddy trims a blade root to 120 deg
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- Setting up the tail hinge angle
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- The plastic rainshield in place behind the hub
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- Air assembles the blades
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- Lucia with the eliptical tail
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- Ari drills the blade hb
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- Thomas fitting the stator
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- Testing the alternator
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- Lucia balancing blades
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- Ari admires the blades
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- BBC radio interviews during coffee
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- David and Dylan set up the tail brackets
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- Dylan with the blades
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- Paul fits the tail to the turbine
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- Happy crew
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- Raising the machine for test
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- watching the blades spin
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- paddy wiring the control panel
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- Heading homeward
We made the magnet rotor moulds deep so that there was a covering of resin over the magnets. But one disk had a bit of excessive resin on one side up to over 2 mm thick. Peter decided to grind it off. It’s scary grinding on magnets as they tend to grab the grinder, but by resting the guard on a piece of wood it proved to be doable.
More photos, by Lucia this time:
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- the main road
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- the workshop
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- the stator mould
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- Peter with a blade
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- David drilling the stator mounts
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- coils soldered together
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- Peter on a wander
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- ready for casting
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- magnet rotor
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- in the mould
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- putting blades together
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- Hugh, Paul and Ari
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- the end of the tail being shaped
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- blade assembly
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- Lucia with the blades
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- first magnet rotor in place
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- testing the output
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- Ari with the tail
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- ready to erect
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- watching it go up
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- paddy relaxing
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- the control panel
Tom’s photos next:-
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- Hugh and Paddy
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- the workshop
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- resin casting day
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- glass cloth in the mould
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- coils sliding in
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- next morning
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- system wiring chat
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- a stroll on the hill
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- prototype Proven turbine
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- early ecoinnovation turbine
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- perfect weather
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- evening light
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- final assembly
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- refreshments for the launch
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- Beltain gig with Ari
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- party time
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- homeward bound
Ari’s photos:
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- Kicking off with a powerpoint
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- Coil winder with short slot
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- Coils all fit perfectly
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- kerfing the tough larch
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- chop saw
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- weights vary +/- 3%
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- notch for shaft bar
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- drawing the stator shape
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- nice solder joint
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- checking the stator mounts
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- shaft bar hole ready
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- Paul and Paddy
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- Dylan and David
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- Perfect weather
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- the shaft and square bar
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- Lovely larch
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- stator winding ready to cast
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- weathershield for the bearings
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- hub in place inside shield
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- magnet rotor painted with epoxy
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- resin casting day
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- up on the hil in a breeze
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- Used to be our only phone
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- low tide
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- inclined alternator frame
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- frame set at 55 degrees
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- adding the tail hinge
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- David explains
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- Ari drills the blades
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- fully assembled
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- magnet rotors ready
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- Ari with the blades
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- alternator frame
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- alternator assembly
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- radio interview
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- Ari relaxes
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- Paddy and Lucia with the tail
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- detail of junction box
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- watching it going up
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- Hugh and Ari
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- producing power
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- support crew
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- Local virtuosi
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- Scoraig peninsula from mountain
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- walking back to Scoraig
A few more from Paul…
Panoramic view of Scoraig peninsula and Little Loch Broom
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- Note the wire tensioner with holes
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- My cat
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- Lucia has Fun with sparks
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- Paul getting hot
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- Lisa the accommodation hostess
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- alternator frame
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- another 2.4m turbine furling
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- simple Scoraig anchor for guys
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- base hinge and wire protector
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- An old blade that broke in 2005
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- 3-phase explained
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- Paul welding
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- customised 3m turbine
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- metalworking team
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- fully assembled turbine
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- all done!
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- A nice hill Paul clmibed locally
I’ve added several more galleries of pics to this post since I first published it. Thanks for all the extra photos, folks!
Good job!! Looks like another week of good fun and nice people! 🙂
Yes they were a good bunch, and the weather was also fantastic.