Home Built Equipment

[alloy_II]

Home made, heavy wall pipe with lift bar, using 3" diameter round steel shaft cut at 3" lengths after years of use the sharp edges have rounded off.

 

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[N-Lionberger]

The image speaks for itself.

View attachment 1998736

I think I’m going to make one of these out of glass just for giggles.

 

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[alloy_II]

Yesterday's dump score, 60 gallon indirect heated hot water tank - stainless steel.

Using wood or waste restaurant oil will cut the cost way down.

 

[alloy_II]

Another landfill score, 2 horse power single phase electric motor from this discarded commercial mixer, the motor will be used on a hammer mill build.

I need the mill to liberate the precious metals from the chips and fingers from 130 computer mother boards.

 

[russau]

Nice find ! Aqua Regia should solidify that gold into a solution for you ! It'll take the work out of removing the GOOD stuff !!

 

[alloy_II]

Love it when a plan comes together,

My original thought was to couple the hammer mill shaft directly with the motor, but did not like the idea of what the impact shock might eventually do to the motor.

Instead I've decided to use pulley's with V-belts, another advantage if I want to go portable a gasoline engine would easliy replace the electric.

Decided to go with hammers made from high grade steel, this pair of grader cutting edges will be used as donor's. Once I clean the paint off the Colony won't have any issues laser cutting the hammers.

The hammers will be affixed to 8 inch diameter circles held in place with 5/8" Fedalliy bolts which are much tougher than grade 8.

The hammers at 6 inch in length will be free to swing a full 360 degress between the circles they're attached to.

Landfill Score.

 

[Assembler]

Love it when a plan comes together,

My original thought was to couple the hammer mill shaft directly with the motor, but did not like the idea of what the impact shock might eventually do to the motor.

Instead I've decided to use pulley's with V-belts, another advantage if I want to go portable a gasoline engine would easliy replace the electric.

Decided to go with hammers made from high grade steel, this pair of grader cutting edges will be used as donor's. Once I clean the paint off the Colony won't have any issues laser cutting the hammers.

The hammers will be affixed to 8 inch diameter circles held in place with 5/8" Fedalliy bolts which are much tougher than grade 8.

The hammers at 6 inch in length will be free to swing a full 360 degress between the circles they're attached to.

Landfill Score.

View attachment 2085597

View attachment 2085596

Could you use the square holes that are on the blade steel as your pivot point?
The square holes could be bigger then 5/8" just looking at the pictures.

 

[alloy_II]

Our Princes Auto is like Harbor Freight, purchased the flange bearings and V-belt pulleys. As soon I'm feeling better will get to work on this project.

 

[Assembler]

Our Princes Auto is like Harbor Freight, purchased the flange bearings and V-belt pulleys. As soon I'm feeling better will get to work on this project.

You got me to take a look as well at the local recycle yard. The cost is higher for me at $1.00 per pound for that kind of steel.

 

[alloy_II]

Nice find ! Aqua Regia should solidify that gold into a solution for you ! It'll take the work out of removing the GOOD stuff !!

At this stage of the game we do not want to remove the good stuff but rather the bad stuff like the base metals and any organic material.

Before using Aqua Regia we want to produce high grade precious metals concentrates.

Hot dilute sulfuric acid will digest the base metals, refining is all about reduction.

If I used hot concentrated sulfuric then any silver and palladium would also get digested, sulfuric acid is a strange creature.

As an example in its concentrated form it will not dissolve cast iron but weaker solution's this acid immediately attack the iron.

 

[alloy_II]

Shop time booked at a friends machine shop for next week, I do the work myself paying for materials and consumable's.

For those interested, I'll post some pictures of the build as it progress's.

 

[pepperj]

I had put the word out that I was looking for an oil burner from a forced air furnace, after a week with no results. I was beginning to give up any hope of finding one.

Yesterday a buddy informed me that he has an old furnace in one of the house's that he owns. The bad part is it's a 4 hour round trip.

My upcoming smelt results will determine wither or not it's worth the time and fuel to make that trip.

First couple of smelts will be done using propane.

The torch I have uses liquid propane, using this type of torch there are no bottle freeze ups. And its twice the BTU's of any tiger torch ever built.

PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS
BTU Rating 500,000 btu/hr @ 25 psi
Fuel Liquid L.P. Gas (Propane)
Fuel Connection 9/16" - 18 LH (Ball Seat)
Coil Diameter 4-3/4"
Coil Material 1/4" Mild Steel
Length 28"
Height 7"
Weight 6 lbs.
Color Blue

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View attachment 2013925

I have had many torches, and I bought one in an auction. LPG + Air so this rig was 6+ long, and it got hot.
I could do smokeless burns on large transformer that had the varnished paper wrapping on the copper bus. (Day Glass as it was called at hte brokerage houses) Anything over 5 seconds in one spot, and the copper start to puddle up, so we had to watch that issue.

 

[alloy_II]

I have had many torches, and I bought one in an auction. LPG + Air so this rig was 6+ long, and it got hot.
I could do smokeless burns on large transformer that had the varnished paper wrapping on the copper bus. (Day Glass as it was called at hte brokerage houses) Anything over 5 seconds in one spot, and the copper start to puddle up, so we had to watch that issue.

I have similar LPG propane torch, these were used on roofer's tar kettles.

Very hot torch that puts out a lot of BTU's, another advantage of using LPG your bottles won't freeze up.

The cost of propane in Canada has become outrageous and this is why I've been looking to use an alternative fuel source such as waste cooking oil.

 

[pepperj]

I have similar LPG propane torch, these were used on roofer's tar kettles.

Very hot torch that puts out a lot of BTU's, another advantage of using LPG your bottles won't freeze up.

The cost of propane in Canada has become outrageous and this is why I've been looking to use an alternative fuel such as waste cooking oil.

Nothing like a roofers torch. They don't use a air source.
I had a 3/4 airline plumbed in, with min.90 PSI, then I could jack it to 110 PSI for certain applications.
Like my train horn.😅

 

[alloy_II]

Back in the day when LPG was popular for use in larger trucks, bus's and other types of vehicles I could get the tanks free from autowreckers and scrap yards.

When I had used the propane up, return the tanks.

I used my LPG torch on my home foundry with fuel supplied via a 1000 gallon tank, was casting SCUBA and fishing weight molds which i sold on eBay.

 

[Assembler]

Love it when a plan comes together,

My original thought was to couple the hammer mill shaft directly with the motor, but did not like the idea of what the impact shock might eventually do to the motor.

Instead I've decided to use pulley's with V-belts, another advantage if I want to go portable a gasoline engine would easliy replace the electric.

Decided to go with hammers made from high grade steel, this pair of grader cutting edges will be used as donor's. Once I clean the paint off the Colony won't have any issues laser cutting the hammers.

The hammers will be affixed to 8 inch diameter circles held in place with 5/8" Fedalliy bolts which are much tougher than grade 8.

The hammers at 6 inch in length will be free to swing a full 360 degress between the circles they're attached to.

Landfill Score.

View attachment 2085597

View attachment 2085596

Would burning and milling some 1 inch holes be better for the swinging hammers?

One could try drilling the 1" holes with a larger drill press.
Using a compound or x y axis vice in the larger drill press should make the hammers exactly the same length by milling the ends. An sight ark on the hammer end will make a better fit hammer to the drum.

 

[alloy_II]

Shop time booked at a friends machine shop for next week, I do the work myself paying for materials and consumable's.

For those interested, I'll post some pictures of the build as it progress's.

Stopped in at the shop, Vern has enough quarter inch plate, now to find a one inch shaft long enough for the mill.

I'll be using this old air tank for the outside shell.

Once the hammer mill is operational, it will have a diet of material such as that shown below.

 

[Assembler]

Stopped in at the shop, Vern has enough quarter inch plate, now to find a one inch shaft long enough for the mill.

I'll be using this old air tank for the outside shell.

Once the hammer mill is operational, it will have a diet of material such as that shown below.

View attachment 2086646

View attachment 2086645

View attachment 2086644

Just a idea here is using a 1" shaft from an old weight lifting set up. I found one for example at a second hand store. You could also try Craigs listing etc.

The air tank is thin however at the cost you are finding them the price is right.

Thanks for posting your pictures. Always interesting.

 

[russau]

On phone / communication equipment that was made before 1966 was a heavy plate of gold of 99 % ( ?? )!I about 15 years back I happened on to a auction that had a lot of old phone equipment that went real cheap for me ! Most of it was pre 1966 and the phone relays were real thick of gold ! MY LUCKY DAY ! I cut most of it out and melted a lot of the gold off . I was a happy camper that day !

 

[Assembler]

On phone / communication equipment that was made before 1966 was a heavy plate of gold of 99 % ( ?? )!I about 15 years back I happened on to a auction that had a lot of old phone equipment that went real cheap for me ! Most of it was pre 1966 and the phone relays were real thick of gold ! MY LUCKY DAY ! I cut most of it out and melted a lot of the gold off . I was a happy camper that day !

I have run in too one person that has done well on the phone equipment you point out here. The same person has not run into any more old equipment though.

There is likely some old equipment in old land fills etc.

 

[russau]

Yep , the older equipment is long gone for the most part ! I've come across heavy electrical switch gear that had LOT'S of silver alloyed contact tips and NOT anywhere near as precise as gold but free or cheap is a drawing card for me !