We were now ready to make the wheel. From Lumberville four 1/2-inch boards, each 3 inches wide and 15 feet long, were procured; also a bar of iron 3/4 of an inch in diameter and 2 feet long. At the center of one of the boards a block of wood 4 inches long and 4 inches in diameter was nailed on for a hub. A 3/4-inch hole was now drilled through this hub and the board. Holes were also drilled into the other boards at their centers. Then they
Fig. 255. The Hub. were all strung onto the bar and spaced like spokes at equal angles apart. Bill had figured it out some way that the ends of the boards should be just about 5 feet 10-1/2 inches apart. When the boards were all arranged we nailed them together at the center, and connected the ends with narrow tie boards, as indicated in Fig. 256.
The Buckets.
Fig. 256. The Water Wheel.
Eight large tomato cans were now procured and fastened to the spokes at the ends on the inner side, that is, the side the hub was nailed to. We couldn’t very well nail on the cans, so we punched two holes in the side of each can and then secured them to the spokes by passing bolts through these holes and the boards.
The Paddles.