Jim A. Dantin on sat 25 jan 97
I've been trying to find a used electric wheel, or a reasonably priced
new wheel for my wife's pottery. There doesn't seem to be either
available!
I have experience in machinery design and electronics, so I'm now
looking for components to build my own. I've examined a number of
commercial wheels and, except for the motor and variable speed control,
there's not much there to justify the cost.
I'm investigating the current state of the art in variable speed motors
to see if there is a lower cost alternative to the DC drives used in
commercial wheels. Is anyone else interested in this project? I'm
considering either producing a wheel "kit" or drive package.
I need your opinions and requirements for a wheel drive system. If there
is any interest in my project, I will proceed. I'd appreciate your
answers to the following questions:
1. If a kit was available that allowed you to construct an electric
wheel, would you be interested in buying it? Do you know anyone who
would?
Realizing that cost versus features is a major factor, try to identify
your wheel requirements:
2. Horsepower - I've seen 1/10 HP toys and 1 HP commercial-grade wheels
- what's the horsepower of your favorite wheel. I'd appreciate any data
that you could copy from the motor nameplate - HP, speed, voltage.
3. Speed control - does your favorite wheel keep a constant speed under
load, or can you accept a slight slow-down as you push hard on the clay?
4. Other features - what do you like or dislike about wheels that you
have seen or used? Is there a commercial wheel that you would like to
match features with? Is wood an acceptable component of the design?
5. Kit requirements - everyone has different construction skills -
please identify your ability:
__ A. I'm lucky if I can handle "Some assembly required"
__ B. I can drill a few holes, bolt together a box full of pieces, and
paint it.
__ C. I can acquire wood, pipe, and hardware items from my local
building supply store and build the wheel if you supply the drive system
and detailed drawings and instructions.
__ D. Just sell me the design and information on where to buy the parts
- I'll do the rest.
6. Final question - cost. What should the wheel cost - consider the
answers to the previous questions and give a realistic final cost figure
(this includes all materials but not your labor). Compare to a
commercial wheel, if possible.
Thanks for your interest and help on this project. Please reply directly
to the following email address.
Jim Dantin
jdantin@kih.net
Margaret Arial on sun 26 jan 97
I worked with two engineers years ago developing the JAN-RICK WHEEL .The
people were pottery students of mine working with mechanical and electric
mailsorting professionally. They sold out to a fellow in Washington DC
without telling me after I had worked for months suggesting improvements and
giving them ideas and contacts.I even demonstrated it locally and even got
them their first sales.We marketed it in CM with a photo of me throwing in
the early 70's. It came out later as the MAX.Margaret T. Arial. Yes, I do
believe there always is a market for a good powerful wheel that people
starting out could afford.I presently have two assistants who will go out to
start their own pottery and they were just asking for advice on building one
themselves.
Paul Monaghan on thu 30 jan 97
Margaret Arial wrote:
>
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I worked with two engineers years ago developing the JAN-RICK WHEEL .The
> people were pottery students of mine working with mechanical and electric
> mailsorting professionally. They sold out to a fellow in Washington DC
> without telling me after I had worked for months suggesting improvements and
> giving them ideas and contacts.I even demonstrated it locally and even got
> them their first sales.We marketed it in CM with a photo of me throwing in
> the early 70's. It came out later as the MAX.Margaret T. Arial. Yes, I do
> believe there always is a market for a good powerful wheel that people
> starting out could afford.I presently have two assistants who will go out to
> start their own pottery and they were just asking for advice on building one
> themselves.
Margaret,
When you say a large wheel exactly what would you want if you had the
choice. What size head and how much load would you like to throw at one
time and at what speeds? I'd love to hear from others also. And oh yes
how much would you be willing to pay and what lifetime would you
expect??
Cheers :-)
Paul
--
Paul J. Monaghan email: paul@web2u.com
WEB2U Productions --- http://www.web2u.com
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