Saturday, September 14, 2013

Improvements To My Vibrating Tumbler Design

     Buyers of my book know that the vibrating tumbler design is a good one, and can be easily and cheaply made, even though it took me years to get right.  I have built another tumbler just recently, to handle larger loads, and wanted to add some improvements I made for the users of my instructions. 

     First thing:  When using hose clamps to fasten the motor in place in its sling, consider replacing at least one of the hose clamps sets with one of those cheap ratchet straps that you can buy for very little money, just about anywhere even the dollar store.   You trim off the excess strap, and then hook the ends together and you have an adjustable clamping strap that is cheap and can be reused or adjusted when needed.  This is best to tie around the motor and the suspension strap.  In the picture it is the red strap down around the motor, holding it together with the suspension strap -- the ratchet is in back of the motor.  Remember to get it very tight when you do it, but it works well.

     Second:  I left one of the tire tubs whole, instead of cutting in half, and was able to then secure it better by putting a strap across the entire top of the tire, fastening at the top of both posts.  In the picture the strap is not fastened yet, i just nailed it into the top of the posts before I used it, and I then move the strap itself  back and forth to remove the tub.  I also made a very tight fit for the tire between the posts, please notice that as well.    You will have to make some adjustments, but a whole tire seems much better than a half tire for several reasons.  It saves the labor of cutting the tire in half, it can be used to secure the tub better, and also it keeps edge splash down.

     Finally, instead of using a small fan to cool the motor, I bought a used high powered hair dryer which really puts out the airstream, choose the cold setting of course.  It keeps the motor cool a lot better than regular fans, especially when directed through the motors windings.