Corn Popper Made from Coffee Can and Broom Handle
A Corn Popper Made from a Coffee Can, or Similar Tin Receptacle, and a Piece of a Broom Handle
With an old coffee can, or similar tin receptacle, and a piece of a broom handle, 2¹⁄₂ or 3 ft. long, it is easy to make a corn popper that is preferable in many ways to a wire one. Take a strip of wood a little shorter than the height of the can to be used, and after boring two holes in it to prevent its splitting, nail it to the end of the handle. The latter is then fastened to the side of the can with two wire staples, as shown. Holes are made in the can top to admit air to the corn while it is popping.—James Crouse, Dixon, Ky.
An Easily Constructed Ball-Bearing Anemometer
By THOMAS A. REYNOLDS
An anemometer is an instrument which measures the velocity of the wind. The anemometers used by the weather bureau consist of four hemispherical cups mounted on the ends of two horizontal rods which cross at right angles and are supported on a freely turning vertical axle. Since the concave sides of the cups offer more resistance to the wind than do the convex sides the device is caused to revolve at a speed which is proportional, approximately, to that of the wind. The axle, to which the rotary motion is transmitted from the cups, is connected to a dial mounted at the foot of the supporting column. This dial records automatically the rotations. The reproduction of such a registering mechanism would be rather complicated. Hence, in the arrangement to be described none will be employed. Therefore, one of these improvised anemometers, when mounted on a high building, will indicate by the changing rapidity of its revolutions only the comparative, not the real, velocity of the wind.
This Anemometer is Made from Galvanized Sheet Iron, a Bicycle Hub, and a Few Iron Straps. Practice in Observing Its Motion will Enable One to Estimate Fairly Closely the Wind’s Velocity
In constructing the instrument, straight, dished vanes will be used instead of hollow cups. The vanes operate almost as effectively and may be combined more readily into a sturdy rotating unit. A bicycle front hub is utilized to constitute a wear- and noise-proof bearing having minimum friction. Each of the four wings is formed from a piece of galvanized iron, measuring 4¹⁄₂ by 10 in., which has one end cut to a curve as shown. To each wing is fastened, with tinners’ rivets, a 4-in. length of ³⁄₄ by ¹⁄₁₆-in. strap iron. Form each of the strips into a trough-shaped vane, measuring 2¹⁄₄ in. from edge to edge—this being the distance between the spoke flanges of a bicycle hub. Some cylindrical object of suitable diameter will serve as a form for bending. Place the ends of the support strips between the spoke flanges and rivet them securely. The rivets pass through the spoke holes. Some trying out may be required to insure a symmetrical arrangement of the parts. Solder the curved end of each wing to the inner surface of the adjacent wing. Place a tin cap—a salve-box lid will do—under the upper locknut on the hub to exclude rain from the bearing.
The supporting upright may be a heavy wooden rod, or a piece of iron pipe. A yoke of 1 by ¹⁄₈-in. strap iron, held to the top of the upright with screws, is provided for the attachment of the hub. The locknut on the hub clamps it to the yoke. Apply a coat of metal paint to the iron parts which are exposed. Mount the device sufficiently high to give the wind free access to it from all directions. The curve at one end of each wing is an irregular one. Hence, its accurate construction involves a knowledge of sheet-metal pattern drawing. However, if it is made of a form similar to that shown it will fit sufficiently well to permit a good soldered joint.
¶Boards exposed to the weather should be laid with the heart side down, as determined by examining the end grain.
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 1
Sharpened Poles, Two Feet Long, are Used with This Pile Driver in Building Foundations, Wharves, and Other Structures of Piling. The Details of the Headblock and the Nipper Device are Shown in Figs. 2 and 3
A Small Working Pile Driver
By EDWARD A. KRUEGER
[These directions will enable boys of varying skill with tools to make a pile driver, as a toy or model. Several simple methods of making the parts in the home workshop, with materials easily obtainable, are suggested.—Editor.]
The construction of small docks, wharves, piers, and foundations or bridges, buildings, and other structures, by the driving of piling is interesting out-of-door play, in which boys will find much fun. A pile driver for this work is shown in the page plate, [Fig. 1]. The hammer is raised by means of a winch, and is dropped automatically when it reaches the cap of the derrick, as indicated in [Fig. 3]. The drum is then released, and the weighted double-hook nipper drops down, picking up the hammer on the next upstroke. A single-hook nipper, that can be made easily of wire, is also shown in the detail sketch, [Fig. 6]. The small boy who cannot make the nippers or the winch, may tie the rope directly to the hammer, drawing it up by hand, and dropping it as desired. The hammer need not be fitted to the guides, but merely arranged to drop between them, and the derrick can be made of only a few main pieces. The larger parts of the hammer and nipper weight are best made of lead, babbitt, or white metal, as these may be cut or melted readily. Iron, brass, or copper, solid or in plates, may be used, if means for shaping them are at hand.
The making of the derrick may be undertaken first. Make two pieces for the bed A, ⁷⁄₈ by ⁷⁄₈ by 17 in.; two hammer guides B, ⁷⁄₈ by ⁷⁄₈ by 33¹⁄₈ in.; one bed piece, C, ³⁄₈ by ⁷⁄₈ by 20 in.; two bed pieces, D, ³⁄₈ by ⁷⁄₈ by 5¹⁄₄ in.; two posts, E, ¹⁄₂ by ¹⁄₂ by 34¹⁄₂ in.; two braces, F, ³⁄₈ by ³⁄₄ by 26¹⁄₂ in. Cut these pieces slightly over their finished lengths as given, allowing for trimming and fitting. Make strips, ¹⁄₄ by ¹⁄₂ in., for the bracing on the sides of the derrick and the ladder bracing on the back.
Notch the lower ends of guides B, ¹⁄₈ by ⁷⁄₈. and the lower ends of posts E, on an angle, ¹⁄₈ in. deep, to fit pieces A. Join the parts of the bed, as shown in the [page plate], pieces A being set 3¹⁄₂ in. apart, fastening them with bolts or screws. Make braces G, of sheet metal, and bolt them in place. Fit the posts E into place, and fasten them at the bed and the top. Put on several ladder braces temporarily, to steady the frame. Fit the braces F carefully, and bolt them in place. Remove the piece C and the braces F, and nail the horizontal bracing to the sides of the frame. Then fit and nail the diagonal braces. The bolted construction is convenient in “knocking down” the derrick for storing it. Reassemble the parts, and make the cap for the headblock.
The headblock and cap are shown in detail in [Figs. 2 and 3]. Make two pieces, H, ¹⁄₄ by 1⁵⁄₁₆ by 1³⁄₄ in.; one piece, J, ¹⁄₄ by 1 by 1³⁄₁₆ in.; two braces, K, ¹⁄₄ by 1¹³⁄₃₂ by 1³⁄₄ in. Make the two beveled pieces of the cap ⁷⁄₈ by 1³⁄₄ by 1¹⁄₂ in., and provide a wooden strip or metal plate for the front and rear edges, as shown. Fasten strips of sheet metal to the bevel of the notch, to protect it from wear by the striking of the nipper hooks. Make the sheave 1¹⁄₂ in. in diameter and ³⁄₈ in. thick, with a groove for the rope. Assemble the parts, as shown.
The details of the winch are shown in [Figs. 4] and [5], and the method of assembling the parts, in [Fig. 1]. The drum may also be driven without gears by fixing the crank directly to the shaft. Gears may be obtained from old machines, or purchased from dealers in model supplies. Make the supports L and M, Fig. 4, ³⁄₄ by 4 by 6⁵⁄₈ in., cutting patterns of paper, if desired.
Fig. 4
The Supports of the Winch are Made of ³⁄₄-Inch Wood, Bolted to the Bed
The gear, [Fig. 5], is 3¹⁄₂ and the pinion ³⁄₄ in. in diameter. The drum is of wood, 2 in. in diameter and 3⁵⁄₁₆ in. long. Its ends are 3¹⁄₂-in. metal disks, fastened with screws. The shaft is a ³⁄₈-in. bolt, 5³⁄₈ in. long, and bears in holes bored in the supports, as shown in the details of these parts. The crank N, Fig. 5, is made of a ³⁄₁₆-in. rod, bent as shown, and fitted with a washer to fit next to the pinion. The gear is set by means of the pawl O, which is bent from a strip of ¹⁄₁₆-in. sheet metal. The brace P is bent from a ¹⁄₁₆ by ³⁄₄ by 1⁵⁄₈-in. strip of sheet metal, and riveted to the pawl. Assemble the parts, fastening the gear to the drum end, and bolt the supports into place. Put the pinion into mesh with the gear at its proper place, and carefully mark the hole for the crank. Square the end of the crank and the hole in the pinion, and fit them to a driving fit. Fix the rope to the drum, and reeve it through the head block. The derrick is then ready for the hammer and the weighted nipper.
Fig. 5
Details of the Drum, Its Driving Mechanism, and Fittings
The hammer, shown in [Fig. 6], may be made easily from a solid block of lead, 1¹⁄₄ by 2⁵⁄₈ by 2⁵⁄₈ in. Cut ³⁄₁₆ by ⁷⁄₈-in. grooves in the vertical edges to fit the guides. Make the circular ³⁄₁₆ by 1⁵⁄₈-in. hammer plate Q of iron or brass, and fasten it with screws. Rivet the wire lifting strap R, as shown.
Fig. 6
A Simple Method of Making the Tripping Device, and Details of the Hammer
The single-hook nipper, shown in [Fig. 6], is made as follows: Flatten a piece of ³⁄₁₆-in. wire at the middle, and drill a ³⁄₃₂-in. hole for the bolt. Shape the lower end into a pointed hook, and bend the upper end to form the trip arm. This strikes the notch in the cap of the derrick, releasing the hammer. The rope is wired to the hook as shown. The nipper weight is made of a solid piece of lead, 1¹⁄₄ by 2⁵⁄₈ in., by 1 in. high, grooved at the ends to fit the guides. Cut a slot through it, for the hook, as shown in Fig. 6, and bolt the latter into place. The double-hook nipper is better mechanically, and may be made of two pieces of wire, or cut from sheet metal.
Test the action of the nippers, and bend or file the hooks to operate properly. The pile driver may then be painted, and work on “jobs” begun. If it is used at the water, fix metal guards at the lower ends of the guides, to prevent the hammer from falling into the water.