So yesterday we completed the paddlewheel (the test one, anyway). The wheel is 3.5 feet in diameter and has six two foot buckets (paddles).
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| Cutting the sides of the wheel. |
The lumber bill at the moment looks like this: One sheet of 3/4" exterior plywood, three 1" x 8" x 8' clear boards for the buckets, 3 treated 2" x 4" x 8's for the frame, and a piece of 2" x 2" x 8' for the blocks to support the buckets.
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| No, this is tragically not a lost Calder sculpture. It's the blocks that will support the buckets (paddles) |
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| Multiple coats of a good exterior paint starts the paint process. |
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| aaaaaaand paint all over the damn place. |
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| laying out a hexigon to align the buckets. |
So we used the quasi reliable radius method to lay out six equidistant points on each side rim and then struck a line connecting them to be able to mount the bucket supports evenly.
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| Blocks in place. Note that each side must have the blocks on the opposite side of their alignment marks than the other. I got paranoid about this, checked it five or six times, STILL got it wrong and had to remove and replace the blocks. Take care. |
Here is the beast assembled:
So today we will fit the drive shaft to the assembled wheel and begin assembling the frame that supports it.
Stay Tuned.
M
I like it.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping WE like it. :)
DeleteI am reasonably sure that it should be enough to negate the need for a bum boat in the marina waters
DeleteIntimidated by the prospect of the 6 foot wheel, yet?
ReplyDeleteA bit. Also I'm not sure my slip is deep enough to build that right now. We might have to move out to the end of the docks for something that increases our length that much.
Delete