Forum for mechanical related discussion like making shop tools, ball mills, mixers, etc

I'm wondering if any of you guys have suggestions about a good forum that deals with more mechanically related topics. I have a number of projects I'm working on that all deal with motors, gear reduction, metal structure/fabrication, etc.

I really need to figure out how to do a gear reduction drive from a fast motor to slow with high tourque (~40-100RPM) and a motor that won't burn out.

I found these reduction plates:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/TAKANAWA-55...963054?hash=item1e9fbcb3ee:g:IS4AAOSwpdpVcBda

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Japan-TSUKA...951869?hash=item1eab89c5bd:g:nYIAAOSwHnFVn5Yc

Here is the data sheet for the second link




They are both similar but I think I would try to find a higher power motor if it would fit (I can mod it). Price is an issue, so this is why I'm looking at these.

I was thinking about using a motor from a electric drill as they seem to have a lot of power for their size and should fit but it may drop the speed some.

Either way, if you know anything about this or can suggest a forum for this type of stuff I would appreciate it.

 

No, I'm not familiar with any forum dealing with mechanical stuff that's not just related to automobiles. Speaking of which. It would be great (at least for me) if this place were to open a forum dealing with mechanical design.

There are many AC drills out there that have the high torque that you need, and the rpm range that you've specified. You could even design a small PWM circuit to control their power and RPM. I'd give the option of modifying and adapting one of those some serious thought, since they're about the cheapest electric motors you can get, if you can afford the necessary adjustments for your application.

Question, does your application need a reversible motor?

 

It could be beneficial for all 3 projects. One is a ball mill the other an ice cream maker (motors are always crap on the ones from the store)


Right now the ice cream maker has a gear reduction of 1 handle crank = 3/4 paddle turn but the container turns counter to the paddle probably the same 3/4 (I have to check that...) I would like 30-60RPM for this device

 

Ahhh! now I get it. Yes, Ice Cream makers normally come with crappy motors. But if you're looking for a cheap solution, I'd probably consider looking at some of the heavy duty ones that are in the market. That is, because ordinary household drills are designed for intermittent use, and tend to heat up quite quickly. In the end, you'd have to consider the cost of an industrial drill plus its adapting hardware, vs the high-quality commercial (restaurant grade) stuff that's out there.

 

Those speeds and torques are easily done with larger commercial grade stepper motors and a basic driver unit.

My brother makes professional fireworks and he has switched all of his big ball mills and other processing machines over to low-speed high torque commercial application stepper motors.

If I was you that's what I would be looking at. They are not that spendy now either.

 

My old ice cream maker relies on the 'crappy motor' to purposely stall out when the ice cream has set up firm enough. It's almost like the engineers who designed it had that in mind. (Oh,wait. They did!)

 

yeah, and they always end up burning up ... I've already gone through three of those things (it's been a while since I've made ice cream) and have been thinking about the same little project for years...
The real secret behind a truly creamy ice cream (other than proper stirring, and the recipe of course) is the size of the crystals, which can only be accomplished through very rapid cooling. And that's something beyond an ordinary domestic ice cream maker... it has to be done with equipment that uses liquid nitrogen, or something similar.

 

There are a few forums out there that deal with electro-mechanical subjects, but having said that, there are a number of members here that work in Mechatronics.
Yours truly included.
One criteria in selecting a motor and gear reduction is to determine the final torque required.
Do you need reverse? Do you require variable speed? just to name a couple.
Max.

 

Mine's about 35 years old and just uses a common open frame impedance protected shaded pole motor.

 

and I'm guessing that the last time you prepared ice cream with it was in 1982?
just kidding, it would be nice if you were to share a picture of it, if you could.

 

AC powered or portable drill? They usually have two quite different motors, and both are geared down somewhat.
The AC powered is usually a Universal motor which I would not tend to use for this application.
Max.

 

It's made more gallons than I can remember.
The last batch I made was two winters ago. When we would get those -20F days I would load it up and set it out on the deck and let it run until it stalled. The crushing ice and mixing salt with it and all that crap never seemed to be as effective in the summer as did a good bitter cold day in winter.

Last winter never got cold enough to make ice cream.

 

I was using one powered by a 50+ year-old Armstrong motor. Then I realized I had some newer motors laying around (about 15 and 17 years old) so I installed them and each on only worked for about 5-minutes before crapping out. Amazing how weak some of these newer units are. I used the old one to finish the batch. Then I ate the ice cream myself and told those two weak-armed lazy kids to get their own.

 

I've seen a video of making ice cream with liquid nitrogen. As I remember the one guy stirred the liquid and the other guy just dumped in a bunch of liquid nitrogen. The stirring guy didnt even get a whole rotation done and it was all frozen. Supposedly delicious too. And I see right the next town over in our hyper trendy bay area there is an ice cream shop that that features small batches made with liquid nitrogen (Smitten). Every thing artisinal don't you know. Still seems like fun to try.

 

I never really new that the texture was due to the temp. One thing that you can do to help speed things up and drop the temp is by adding about 330grams of NaCl in a liter of water, mix well until dissolved, and then put in the freezer until it is as cold as possible. Make sure you have enough to fill about 70% of the holding bucket and then fill the rest with ice and maybe a little more salt.

AS far as the motor, I think most of the ones that I'm looking at are going to be fine b/c I only need to run it for 20-30 mins with the way I make it!

 

Wow, haven't heard that term used in a long time.

 

The older I get, the more frequently I use the quips that my dad used.

 

www.modelenginemaker.com

Try that one with any machine or gearing questions