Has anybody here done much with pedal powered machinery? I saw some some interesting setups on youtube and websites that make me want to pursue that a little and see where it goes.
I saw a video awhile back of some women in Africa showing how they grind wheat with stones which took a long time and effort and then a couple young people from the West gave them a pedal powered wheat grinder and saw the amazement and joy as one pedaled and another fed the hopper.
I grew a small patch of wheat this year and after some hand threshing ,decided that a pedal powered wheat thresher might be the way to go.
I got a hold of an old rethrasher that has been refitted with rubber paddles with no metal ends and it seems to work well to knock off the chaff and create enough wind to winnow.
The frame was some galv pipe(free) and the excersise bike with a heavy cast iron flywheel was found for $5 Missing from the picture here is a 30" winnowing pipe and elbow. The wheat grains drop out the bottom where the ducting attaches to the rethrasher.
Next we will build a shaker table to seperate any straw or larger chaff that falls through and dirt will be screened out below that.
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Here is a great looking setup that I will borrow from.
http://youtu.be/CQxDc1ey0Mw
At the old engine show I attended a couple weeks ago we noticed that hand operated machines such as washer wringers and water pumps give joy to children and adults alike.
I would sure like to see or hear about any other manual machinery.
This South American site has some ideas as well.
http://www.mayapedal.org/machines.en
On the way to the FF Pig Roast I saw a yard sale where someone had removed the front tire of a bicycle and replaced it with a manual reel mower. I didn't stop. :D
8) :D A wise decision,Jon.
The issue always comes down to how much time can you or the kids devote to pedaling. I am guilty of continually starting projects that consume a lot more time than I have to devote to them. Hopefully you do not suffer from the same affliction.
I attempted to insert a smiley face at the end of the above comment but for some unknown reason could not get it to work.
The smiley face was there One, it always is on your posts.
One horsepower is about 746 Watts. Most people in decent shape can generate 100W for a long time, probably hours. A professional bicycle racer can generate over 400W for a considerable (but finite) time.
So in other words, if you are going to convert a machine that normally is powered by an engine to pedal power, you had better be prepared for a workout and slow going.
Tim
In this particular application the resistance to the peddling is almost too light but may change with the addition of the shaker screens. It would be foolish to try to replace a 5hp engine with pedal power but for a lot of small machines it will work fine.
We did a 60 second run yesterday and yielded 3/4 of a cup of wheat.
My vision for all this is understanding and possibly helping third world rural farmers.There are a whole lot of bikes discarded every day here.
We built a shaker table that runs on an adjustable eccentric wheel and made a few runs and changed screens to suit the wheat size.It works pretty good so far but we might add a winnowing fan at the bottom screen to blow away any straw or chaff that made it past the screens.
The chaff blows out the vertical pipe and the wheat drops down a spout onto the screens which travel back and forth 2.5 inches twice per second. The bigger straw and hulls fall into the cardboard box and the wheat and small pieces collect in the white tub.
It doesn't look like it but Shea is pedaling and the machine is threshing in this pic.
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The boys turned the pipe when I wasn't looking, to blow the chaff on me when feeding :D
We added a blower fan after work today and ran some more wheat through.The fan lifts the chaff and fluidizes the material on the shaker table so the wheat kernels are much cleaner when they hit the collector tub.
We may add some ducting but will mock up with cardboard and see how it goes.It's handy having the dumpsters for an automotive shop an one side and a heating and plumbing shop on the other.
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Glad to see you are still pursuing the goal. smiley_thumbsup
Paul, if you build a simple plywood diffuser on the outlet of your fan, you will increase its efficiency (and possible reduce the pedaling effort. What you want is an expanding duct from the fan to the shaker table. It doesn't have to actually touch the table.
I've lab-tested very large industrial fans using plywood ducting held together with screws and sealed with duct-tape. It's easy to modify the duct if you aren't happy with the performance.
Thanks Bruce,you've given me some ideas to try,and duct tape is always an excellent choice :D
Beenthere,thanks for the encouragement. We've already seen how a simple woodgas stove can improve air quality and reduce fuel consumption in an African village this past year. The woman had been cooking on a 3 stone fire and now has a small,inexpensive device that has made a huge difference.
Paul, is that Tom is the second pic? If so, he sure has grown!
Hi Robert,
that is Shea,a young fellow that started working for us when he was 14 and today at 18 is completing his last day for us at the shop.In a weeks time he will begin University. We'll miss him.
Tom is 27 now and is a hooktender for a logging co and hour from here.He loves logging and enjoys the challenges and rewards of rigging backspars and intermediate supports. I hope to see him over for dinner tonight.
Me and the girls ran the thresher yesterday.It worked pretty good but I had to do a bit of winnowing afterward.We have a good breeze off the hill towards evening and it works well.
http://youtu.be/ewb1Qpl7K9o
Neat prototype but your straw walker doesn't look quite right, I think it requires a crank type motion front and back.
Cool!!
That will keep the old girls in shape...
Love the old wheelhorse. Is that an RJ ?
Hi Kbeitz,
it's a 1965 Simplicity with a charcoal gasifier.
https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,81327.0.html